The document provides information on the papaya plant. It describes how papaya fruit and latex contain papain, a protease used for tenderizing meat that was used by indigenous Americans. The fruit is high in vitamin C and the leaves can be made into tea to treat malaria. Papayas grow best in hot climates and need well-drained, nutrient-rich soil. They are pollinated by male and hermaphrodite flowers and are susceptible to diseases like ringspot virus and pests like fruit flies. Papayas have several health benefits including aiding digestion, reducing inflammation, and strengthening blood.

1. www.PermaTree.org, Herbarium Page 8
Papaya
Carica papaya | Familiy: Caricaceae
Description:
Both green papaya fruit and the tree‘s latex
are rich in papain, a protease used for ten-
derizing meat and other proteins. Its abi-
lity to break down tough meat fibers was
used for thousands of years by indigenous
Americans. It is now included as a com-
ponent in powdered meat tenderizers.
The latex of the plant contains rubber and
protein decomposing enzymes papain and
chymopapain. It is drawn from the bark
and unripe fruit and officially used for in-
digestion problems and for the industrial
use to treat wool and silk.
Fruit:
The fruit is a berry. The fruit of papayas
is high in vitamin C. You can also pick the
fruit when it is green and cook it like a
marrow. Papaya flower bud can be cooked
as vegetable.
Medicine:
In some parts of the world, papaya leaves
are made into tea as a treatment for ma-
laria.
Native:
To Central and northern South America
Cultivars:
Two kinds of papayas are commonly
grown. One has sweet, red or orange flesh,
and the other has yellow flesh.
Sowing:
Growing papayas from seeds. It is easy to
grow the ordinary papaya tree from seed.
Wash the seeds from a ripe papaya. Squee-
ze the seeds from the jelly bag that covers
each seed. The seeds will only grow if you
remove the bag. Dry them in a shady pla-
ce. Store in a tightly closed container and
keep them until December. Plant the seeds
in December. Put 5 seeds to a hole. Do not
put any compost or manure into the holes.
Keep the small plants moist. Seedling pa-
payas do not transplant well. Plant them in
large containers so the seedlings will have
to be transplanted only once, when they
go into the ground. Transplant carefully,
making sure not to damage the root ball.
You can only tell which trees are female
and which are male when the trees start to
flower. Therefore, you should always have
more than one tree per hole, because then
you can select the female trees.
Water:
Papayas need little water. They will, howe-
ver, give more and bigger fruit if they are
watered every 2 weeks in the dry season.
The flowers will drop if they do not get
enough water. If they are planted in clay
soils, make sure that the soil does not stay
too wet. To avoid waterlogging in clay soil,
make a ridge and plant the papayas on the
ridge. Watering is the most critical aspect
in raising papayas. The plants should be
kept on to the dry side to avoid root rot, but
also need enough water to support their
large leaves
Climate:
Papayas grow best in hot areas. The
frost-sensitive plants can be grown at 1500
m at the equator to heights mild frost if
they are protected from cold winds. Papay-
as like to be warm with both sunshine and
reflected heat, so the hottest place against
the house where nothing else seems happy
is an ideal location. They also like to be as
free from wind as possible, although this is
not as critical as their need for sun. Papay-
as can be grown successfully in shade, but
the fruit is rarely sweet.
Soil:
Papaya trees are very, very hungry. That
means they need very good soil, rich in
organic matter and nutrients a good mix
of compost soil. Papayas need a light,
well-drained soil. They are easily killed
by excess moisture. Do not cover the stem
with soil because it will rot.
Fertilisation:
Compost or manure. Give the tree: 1 bu-
cketful September, November, January.
Sprinkle a few handfuls of manure evenly
around the tree each month from Septem-
ber to the end of March. Phosphorus de-
ficiency casuses dark green foliage with a
MaleHermaphroditeFemale
img: biology.stackexchange.com
img: yago1.com
Source: web; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papaya, www.nda.agric.za, www.crfg.org,
book; Taschenlexikon tropischer Nutzpflanzen und ihrer Früchte
Water: Little
Sun: Hot
Challenge: Root rot, by to much water
Substratum: Light, well-drained soil, compost mix
Fertilisation: Every month
Temp.: Hot climate
Companion: -
Non-Companion: -
Spacing: between plant 1,5 m, between rows 3 - 4 m

2. www.PermaTree.org, Herbarium Page 9
reddish-purple discoloration of leaf veins
and stalks. NB: Do not apply chicken ma-
nure on trees younger than 2 years as it can
burn the young papaya trees.
Cut:
You can cut the tree (remove top) so that it
does not grow too tall.
Harvesting:
Harvesting all year. You can pick the fru-
it when the skin starts to become yellow.
The fruit will ripen after you have picked
it. Handle it carefully because it gets bru-
ised easily.
Sexes:
Female; bigger, closer to the branch than
the male flowers (produce inedible fru-
its unless pollinated), male; (pollen) very
small, there are many flowers which grow
on long branches of the stem. Only female
trees give fruit but they need male flowers
to pollinate them. Leave 1 male tree for 10
female trees and hermaphrodite (male and
female on one plant; can self-pollinate).
Viruses:
Papaya ringspot virus; One of the biggest
effects that viral infections have on papaya
is the taste. As of 2010, the only way to
protect papaya from this virus is genetic
modification.
papaya mosaic virus; The difference bet-
ween the ringspot and the mosaic viruses
is the ripe fruit in the ringspot has mott-
ling of colors and mosaic does not.
Fungi:
Anthracnose; The fruit ends up being soft
and having an off flavor because the fun-
gus grows into the fruit.
Powdery mildew; superficial white presen-
ce on the surface of the leaf in which it is
easily recognized.
Phythphthora blight; causes damping-off,
root rot, stem rot, stem girdling, and fruit
rot. Damping-off happens in very young
plants by wilting and death in plant. The
most dangerous feature of the disease is
the infection of the fruit because it cause
harm to people who consume it.
Pests:
Papaya fruit fly; is mainly yellow with
black marks. Long, slender eggs are laid
inside of the fruit by the female papaya
fruit fly. The papaya will turn yellow and
drop to the ground if it is infected by the
papaya fruit fly. Two-spotted spider mite;
is a 0.5-mm-long brown or orange-red
or a green, greenish yellow translucent
oval pest. Usually on the underside of the
plant. If the spider mites are not control-
led, they can cause the death of the fruit.
Whitefly; lays yellow, oval eggs that appe-
ar dusted on the undersides of the leaves.
They eat the papaya fruits leaves, therefore
damaging the fruit.
Food-facts:
Helps aid digestion
Compounds found in papayas help to bre-
ak down and use proteins properly; spe-
cifically papain helps to break apart the
bonds between amino acids. Papain is si-
milar other types of enzymes made in the
pancreas that help our bodies digest meat.
But, these enzymes need acid for activati-
on and papain can work even without the
presence of acid.
Anti-inflammatory
Papaya may help reduce inflammation for
people with inflammatory medical con-
ditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. Pa-
pain has also been shown to help reduce
inflammation in people with disease such
as asthma or arthritis and can help reduce
inflammation in the prostate aging.
Strengthens blood
There is much in interest in the use of pa-
paya as a blood strengthener to help peo-
ple who have a medical condition called
thrombocytopenia, or low blood platelets.
This is a dangerous medical condition that
can reduce the body‘s clotting ability and
potentially lead to internal bleeding.
Benefits cardiovascular health
Vitamin C has been shown to help reduce
the risk of heart attacks by helping pro-
tect the arteries against damage. It may
help reduce free radical damage and the
oxidation of cholesterol, reducing the abi-
lity of cholesterol to form plaques along
the artery walls. Folate also helps convert
a substance linked to heart attacks called
homocysteine into other benign amino
acids, reducing risk of a cardiovascular
event.
Helps prevent cancer
Papain, since it is able to breakdown
proteins, may be able to help attack the
protective coating found on cancer cells,
preventing their growth. Vitamin C and
beta-carothene, both found in papaya,
have been linked
to a decrease risk
of cancer, especial-
ly colon cancer.
Prevents macular
degeneration
The flavonoids
lutein and ze-
axanthin can help
prevent macular
degeneration, an
age-related loss of
vision. Zeaxanthin
specifically helps filter out blue light that
can be harmful to the retina.
Prevents Asthma
Beta-carotene has been shown to help re-
duce the risk of asthma. Vitamin A levels
are specially critical for children to help
reduce airway inflammation levels.
Protects against arthritis
A 2004 study found that people with diets
low in vitamin C, and therefore low in
fruits and vegetables, had a three times
greater risk of developing polyarthritis,
and inflammatory condition that affects
multiple joints.
Vitamin C is also protective against other
types of inflammatory conditions such
as gout. This powerful vitamin has been
found to lower C-reactive protein, a com-
mon marker of inflammation.
Anti-viral
Papaya leaves have been used treat den-
gue fever, a deadly viral infection from
mosquitos in tropical areas. You can also
make a poultice form the skin, and apply
it to heal burns, rashes, or bug bites. Pa-
pain can be used to treat fungal and vi-
ral infections of the skin, such as warts or
ringworm.
Intestinal Worms & Papaya- The seeds of
papaya too possess medicinal properties.
They are very good in treating intestinal
worms in the body.
Morning Sickness & Papaya- In pregnant
ladies, regular consumption of a small
slice of papaya helps to cure nausea and
morning sickness.
Shampoos & Papaya- Shampoos cont-
aining papaya are very good to control
dandruff.
Menstrual Irregularities & Papaya- It helps
in controlling the menstrual irregularities
in women. Papaya helps to ease menstru-
al cramps and helps in promoting regular
flow of menstruation.
Preservation
Clean the black seeds and dry them and
they make a slightly bitter substitute for
black pepper. Frequently they are used in
salad dressings and soups.
Source: web; draxe.com/papaya, www.medindia.net, preservenation.blogspot.com
Papaya Fruit; 100g contains:
Minerals mg
Sodium 8.00
Potassium 180.00
Magnesium 21.00
Calcium 20.00
Manganese 00.04
Iron 00.25
Copper 00.045
Zinc 00.08
Phosphorus 10.00
Selenium 00.006
Vitamins mg
Vitamin A 0.047
Vitamin B1 0.023
Vitamin B2 0.027
Vitamin B3 0.357
Vitamin B5 0.191
Vitamin B6 0.038
Folate 0.037
Vitamin E 0.300
Vitamin C 60.90