How to Grow a Papaya Tree from Seed?

Papaya seeds usually sprout in two to three weeks, and you can move the seedlings into the ground once they’re 6 to 12 inches tall. Plants grown from seed can turn out male, female, or bisexual, and only the female and bisexual ones make fruit.

Preparing Papaya Seeds

Choose a fully ripe papaya and scoop out the small black seeds into a colander or strainer. Press the seeds against the side of the colander to break the slippery sac around each one. That sac slows germination and needs to come off. Rinse the seeds well under running water.

Spread the rinsed seeds on a paper towel and let them dry out of direct sun. Dried seeds keep in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several years, which makes it easy to plant later.

Seeds from a grocery store papaya will grow, but the plants may not match the fruit you bought. Seeds saved from a hybrid like UH Rainbow won't breed true, and the seedlings may lack the parent's resistance to papaya ringspot virus. Seeds from small, pear-shaped Solo-type fruit tend to be more susceptible to that virus than seeds from the larger, elongated, oval fruit sold in many markets.

Germinating Papaya Seeds

Plant 2 to 4 seeds in each 1-gallon container of fresh, clean potting mix, then water thoroughly. Used mix can carry the fungi behind damping-off and root rot, and a new bag avoids them.

Set the containers in a warm, sunny spot. Papaya grows best when temperatures stay between 70 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and root growth slows once the soil drops below 60 degrees. Seeds usually sprout in two to three weeks.

Once the seedlings are up, keep the strongest one in each container and snip the others off at the soil line with clippers. The plant's sex stays unknown until it flowers. Growing two or three containers improves the odds that at least one plant fruits. Feed seedlings with a dilute complete fertilizer every 10 to 14 days.

Planting and Transplanting Seedlings

Move seedlings to the ground when they are 6 to 12 inches tall and before roots begin circling the pot. Choose a sunny spot with well-drained soil that stays dry after heavy rain. Space plants 7 to 12 feet apart, and leave at least 7 to 10 feet between each plant and nearby structures or other trees.

Dig a hole 3 to 4 times wider than the container. Set the root ball level with the surrounding soil or slightly higher. Do not bury the stem too deeply. Fill in with the soil you removed, and avoid packing compost or topsoil into the bottom of the hole.

Water right away after planting. Keep the soil evenly moist, but never soggy. If your yard floods or drains slowly, plant on a raised mound of native soil to help keep the roots above standing water.

If you stake the young plant, use cotton or another natural-fiber tie. Keep mulch 8 to 12 inches away from the trunk, and do not let grass, mowers, or weed eaters damage the base.

Optimal Growing Environment

Papaya grows and fruits best when temperatures stay between 70 and 90 degrees. Heat above 90 can make flowers drop, and flowering struggles below 59. Cold is the main limit: papaya is damaged or killed below 31 degrees, and young plants are the most at risk. Bring potted plants inside before a freeze, and cover in-ground plants. Once a plant tops 10 feet, covering it gets difficult. If a freeze does hit, protecting the lower trunk may let the plant regrow from sprouts.

Papaya does best in USDA Hardiness Zones 9B through 11. In colder areas, keep seedlings in containers over winter in a sunny, warm spot and move them out in spring once temperatures warm up.

The warmest spot in most yards sits close to the south or southeast side of a house. Strong wind damages papaya, and a plant loaded with fruit can topple. Plant where a house or other plants block some of the wind.

Papaya handles many well-drained soils, including sand and rocky ground, with a pH from 4.5 to 8.0. The roots stay shallow, and the plant won't tolerate standing water.

Watering, Sunlight, and Fertilizer

Papaya drops flowers, leaves, and young fruit during a dry spell, and excess water brings on root rot. In sandy or rocky soil that drains fast, water every other day, or daily in hot, dry weather. Cut back in cool weather in late fall and winter. If you're growing in loam or sandy loam, water every 3 to 4 days and don’t overwater. Soil that stays waterlogged for 24 hours or longer can kill a plant. Uneven watering after planting is among the transplanting mistakes that slow growth and fruit set with papaya.

At least six hours of full sunlight a day keeps growth on track, although heat above 90 degrees can make flowers drop. Papaya grows best in USDA zone 9 - 11 (zone 9B and warmer). In colder areas, grow it in containers and bring them inside before a freeze. Dwarf-like papaya varieties are easier to move or cover.

Fertilizing works best in small, frequent doses. Seedlings in containers do best with a dilute complete fertilizer every 10 to 14 days, and young plants in the ground need a small feeding every two to four weeks. Use a complete fertilizer that includes magnesium. Follow the label rate, and increase the amount as the plant grows. Plants replanted every 18 to 24 months start the young-plant schedule over.

Common Growing Problems with Papaya

Root rot shows up as a plant that loses vigor and can die fast. Wet feet cause it, meaning roots that sit in soggy soil, and overwatering from a lawn sprinkler timer is a common trigger. If a plant is declining, stop watering on a timer and check the drainage. Start seedlings in fresh potting mix, which also guards against damping-off.

Viruses show up first as yellow mottling and clear veins on the leaves, then smaller, distorted leaves and dark green streaks on the stem and leaf stalks. Fruit gets dark rings or C-shaped marks. Papaya ringspot virus is the most serious of the diseases in Florida, it can’t be controlled, and seed from small, pear-shaped Solo-type fruit is more susceptible to it.

Remove any plant showing symptoms immediately so it can’t pass the virus on, and replant every 18 to 24 months. Other diseases include anthracnose, which leaves sunken brown or black spots on ripening fruit, and powdery mildew, which leaves white growth on the leaves. Removing infested leaves helps with mildew.

Cold or wind can cause loss of growing tip, because a papaya grows from a single tip and normally doesn’t branch. When the tip is damaged or killed, side shoots take over, and multiple trunks can form as a result. Branched plants may not produce as well, so keep the one or two strongest shoots, remove the rest, and tie them to a stake to keep fruit or wind from snapping them.

Strong winds can topple a plant loaded with fruit, and nematodes, tiny worm-like pests that feed on the roots, make toppling more likely. Fruit accessibility gets harder as the plant grows, since the fruit ripens on a trunk that can top 30 feet. Commercial growers keep plants short because shorter plants are easier to harvest.

Cold, drought, high winds, and pests all shorten a papaya’s life, and plant distressing conditions like these also cut growth and fruiting. Sucking insects such as whiteflies cause leaf drop and sooty mold on leaves and fruit, and mites brown the leaf surface and can strip leaves early. Check the undersides of leaves for both. Remove badly infested leaves, and use a soapy water spray for whiteflies.

Check out our Papaya Collection!

Starting With a Nursery Plant

Buying a potted papaya is a simple alternative to starting from seed, and most nursery papayas turn out female or bisexual. A male can still end up in the mix unless the nursery tests for sex. Everglades Farm carries the Red Lady Papaya Dwarf Tree and the Hawaiian Papaya Tree.

Whichever way you start, check the first flowers. A tiny papaya at the base of the flower marks a female or bisexual plant, and long, branching sprays of small trumpet-shaped flowers mark a male.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Plant Papaya Seeds?

Yes, papaya is mainly grown from seed. Take the seeds from a ripe fruit, rinse off the slippery coating, dry them, and plant them in clean potting mix.

How Long Do Papaya Seeds Take to Germinate?

Papaya seeds usually germinate in about two to three weeks in a warm, sunny spot, and the plants grow best between 70 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

How Long Does a Papaya Grown from Seed Take to Fruit?

Well-cared-for plants flower about four to six months after planting and set fruit 7 to 11 months after planting. Cool weather slows growth.

Can a Papaya Plant Survive Winter?

A papaya plant survives winter only where winters stay mild. Below 31 degrees Fahrenheit, papaya is damaged or killed. In colder areas, grow it in a container and bring it inside before a freeze, or treat it as a short-lived crop and replant.

Can You Grow Papaya from Grocery Store Seeds?

Yes, but the plants may not match the fruit. Seeds from hybrids don't breed true, and seeds from small, pear-shaped Solo-type fruit tend to be more susceptible to ringspot virus.

References

University of Florida IFAS Extension, "Papaya Growing in the Florida Home Landscape," https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/MG054

UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions, "Papaya,"
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/edibles/fruits/papaya/

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, "Papaya,"
https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/fruit-nut/fact-sheets/papaya/

University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, "'UH Rainbow' Papaya: A High-Quality Hybrid with Genetically Engineered Disease Resistance," https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/nph-1.pdf

UC Davis Western Institute for Food Safety and Security, "Papayas,"
https://www.wifss.ucdavis.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Papayas_PDF.pdf