When I was growing up, no one from our land could ever think of investing in pawpaw farming. The fruit was so readily available that it was thought to be a poor man's fruit. Fast forward to 2024 and the fruit is now a sort-after commodity akin to a precious mineral, especially among the well-informed urban population making it a very profitable agricultural venture. Surprisingly, my fellow village-mates are now diligently seeking the fruit, just a few years after abandoning pawpaw farming.
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The soaring demand for pawpaw in Kenya presents an opportunity that is increasingly becoming attractive to farmers in Kenya who are keen to tap into new ways of making money making it one of the leading and most profitable fruit farming venture. Well, it is not an entirely new crop but there are two main reasons why its farming has recently become more profitable: one, the increasing awareness of its nutritional and medicinal values among local consumers, and two, the opening up of an attractive export market especially in Dubai and the larger Middle East.
Since papaya (as it is commonly known worldwide) is our main crop at Rich
Farm Kenya, we have been getting a lot of questions regarding investing in
its commercial farming. We thought it would benefit you to share these
insights.
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| Pawpaw Seedlings at our nurseries |
Germination
The seeds will take about two to five weeks to germinate. To achieve faster
and higher rate of germination, you should soak the seeds in an optimizer or
a potassium nitrate fertilizer for at least 24 hours before sowing. These
products can be bought at an agro-vet shop.
Prepare raised beds measuring 1m wide and any convenient length. If you are
using soil, ensure to mix it with 1 unit of sand for every 3 units of
soil.
Pawpaw seeds are sown at a depth of 1 cm in rows which are 15cm apart. Water the beds heavily before sowing the pawpaw seed and regularly thereafter. Young plants are ready for transferring to the field at a height of 10-15cm. If you are using soil, ensure to mix it with 1 unit of sand for every 3 units of soil.
Transplanting
Transplant the seedlings at two to three months after sowing the seeds. At
this age, the plants will be about 10-15 cm tall and with at least 2 sets of
leaves. If planted later than this, the seedlings are likely to suffer
transplanting shock.
Spacing
Spacing between plants and between rows varies widely. Universally practiced is the single-row system, with plant spacing ranging from 1.8 to 3 m and between-row spacing varying from 1.8 m to as much as 3.6 m. The between-row spacing largely depends upon the degree of mechanization; a standard tractor requires approx. 3 m.
Generally, one acre will accommodate 1100 trees with the common spacing of
2x2 meters.
Dwarf varieties like Calina papaya IPB9, Red Lady and Red Royale can be
spaced 1.5 meters from plant to plant and 2 meters between the lines giving
a plant population of about 1345 trees per acre.
Watering
Pawpaw trees do not need a lot of water to grow. In fact, they are drought tolerant. However, they will need to be irrigated during the dry seasons in order to grow faster and produce tasty fruits of a good size. While irrigating, though, you should keep in mind that the trees cannot tolerate waterlogged soils.
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| Pawpaw Farming in Kenya |
Common Pests and Diseases
Anthracnose and charcoal spot
Symptoms: small water-soaked lesions of fruit during ripening; circular sunken lesions with light brown margins.
Management: It is managed by application of appropriate protective fungicides; also dipping fruits in hot water at 48°C for 20 minutes reduces the incidence of the disease.
Black Rot
Symptoms: Black sunken rot on young fruits originating from stem end or contact with a leaf; young fruit withering and dropping from plant; small, brown sunken lesions with light brown margins on ripening fruit.
Management: Disease may require applications of appropriate fungicides for adequate control.
Powdery mildew
Symptoms: Infect all parts of tree. The infected leaves show white mycelial growth commonly on under surface, particularly near leaf veins. Some time white mycelial growth can also seen on upper leaf surface. The infected area becomes light green and chlorotic (lesions) with dark green margin.
Management: Remove the infected parts and dispose them properly. Avoid irrigating the trees by sprinkler. Provide proper nutrition to trees to withstand powdery mildew infection. If the disease is severe, apply suitable fungicides.
Internal Yellowing
Symptoms:
Flesh of ripe fruit discolored yellow; discolored areas soft with spreading
margins; rotting odor.
Management: Dipping fruits in hot water at 48°C for 20 minutes reduces the incidence of the disease and is currently the only method of control.
Bunchy top
Symptoms:
Chlorosis of young leaves; water-soaked spots on petioles and stems;
petioles rigid, horizontal and shortened; thickened leaf blades that cup
downward; internodes shorten and growth stops resulting in a bunchy
appearance to the plants.
Management: Use of tolerant varieties of papaya is currently the only method of control recommended.
Papaya Ringspot
Presents dark green rings on fruit which may be slightly sunken and become less distinct as the fruit ripens; fruits may have uneven bumps; leaves often exhibit a bright yellow mosaic pattern and new leaves are small and plant growth is stunted.
Management: Infected plants should be removed and destroyed to prevent spread of the virus; new planting materials should be free of the virus; intercropping papaya with a non-host such as corn can help to reduce the incidence of the disease in papaya orchards by providing aphid vectors with an alternative feeding site.
Stem Rot: Symptoms are water-soaked lesions on unripe fruit that oozes latex; withering fruit; water-soaked lesions on leaf scars of fruit bearing stem; mature fruit covered in white mycelium.
Management: Disease can be controlled through the use of appropriate protective fungicides such as mancozeb or copper sulfate; root rot in seedlings can be prevented by planting in holes filled with soil in which papaya has never been grown - by the time the roots extend out of the added soil the plant is no longer susceptible to the disease.
Common Pests
Papaya Mealy bugs:
mealy bugs can potentially be controlled by natural enemies such as lady
beetles but are commonly controlled using chemicals; chemical pesticides may
also decrease populations of natural enemies leading to mealy bug
outbreaks.
Scale Insects: Populations are often kept in check by natural enemies, including predacious beetles and some wasps, although broad-spectrum insecticides may result in outbreaks of scale by killing off populations of beneficial insects; trees can be sprayed with horticultural oils when dormant which effectively kill scales without damaging natural enemies.
How long does it take for the tree to produce fruits?
It takes between 6 and 11 months from the date of sowing seeds to
harvesting your first fruit. The climate is the major determinant of how
long the tree takes to mature. In hot areas, you can get your first fruit as
early as the 6th month while in cooler areas it can take as long as 11
months.
Generally, papaya trees will keep producing fruits for 4 to 5 years. Some
varieties such as the solo sunrise will live even longer than that but the
yield will significantly reduce after the 5 year.
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Harvesting
Papaya fruits typically take 22-26 weeks to mature. The fruits can be picked when one-fifth of the fruit surface has turned from green to yellow, but leaving them on the tree longer increases the fruit's sugar content. Fruit can be twisted or snapped off the tree, or it can be cut using a sharp knife.
Are there male and female papaya trees?
There are actually 3 types of trees: male, female and hermaphrodite. The
male trees produce many flowers whose sole purpose is to produce pollen for
pollinating female flowers. The female trees produce flowers that are
pollinated by the male flowers and develop fruits. The hermaphrodite trees
are self pollinating and they all bear fruits.
The major determinant of whether you will get male trees is variety.
Varieties that are dioecious have separated male and female trees and you
must have both in order to have good fruit setting. Varieties that are
hermaphroditic are self pollinating and they all bear fruits
successfully.
In which soils do they grow best?
Well drained sandy loam soils with high humus content are the best. As
mentioned earlier, the trees are easily killed by excess water in the soil.
That is why it is very important that the soils be well drained. For this
reason, heavy black cotton and red clay soils are not ideal for Pawpaw
farming. Where the soils are not too heavy, drainage can be improved by
planting the trees on raised beds.
What is the best fertilizer?
The best fertilizer is one that will provide well balanced nutrients
especially nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P) and Potassium (K). Well composed
farm yard or animal manure will often give enough of these. However, if you
must use chemical based fertilizers, ensure that you do the first top
dressing on the 3rd month after transplanting and then once every month
thereafter. 100g of NPK 17:17:17 or 14:14:14 per tree will suffice. The
application should be done around the tree at least 30cm from the base: all
trees must be watered if it is not raining after fertilizer application.
For all organic farmers which is normally the recommended practice, use properly decomposed farmyard manure. Replenish your soils every 3-4 months with a bucket of manure for every tree.
Which is the best pawpaw variety in Kenya?
IPB9 and Solo sunrise are the best varieties in the country. However the
best will actually be determined by what your target market is. There's also
Malkia, the big, red and sweet variety that many blenders and juice makers
prefer making it very profitable. I wrote a simple guide to help you choose
the best variety for you: you can read it here: How To Choose The Best Pawpaw Variety For Farming In Kenya.
Well, we cannot say all that we need to about pawpaw farming in Kenya. So
we have written a few more detailed articles for you. Here are some reads we
recommend for you:
Pawpaws Make You Money While Asking For Very Little Input From
You
Pawpaw Farming In Kenya: How Much Do I Invest and What’s The
Profit
- Cost per seedling 100/=
- Seedlings per acre - 1,100
- Spacing- common spacing 2by 2m, dwarf varieties 1.5m by 2m
- Fruit price- 30-60 per kg at farmgate.
- Yield- 30-40 tons depending on variety
- Common diseases- Black Rot, Powdery Mildew, Anthracnose, Bunchy Top, Papaya Ringspot, Stem Rot.
- Common Pest: Mealy bugs, spider mite, scales
- Lifespan- 5 years for hybrid varieties
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do I plant pawpaw?
- How long does it take for pawpaw seeds to germinate?
- When should I transplant my pawpaw seedlings?
- What is the spacing required?
- How much water does a pawpaw plant need?
- What are the common pests and diseases affecting pawpaw farming?
- How long does it take for the tree to produce fruits?
- Is papaya farming very profitable?
- Are there male and female papaya trees?
- How are the pawpaw fruits harvested?
- In which soils do they grow best?
- Which is the best fertilizer?
- Which is the best pawpaw variety?
Call us now on 0724698357 / 0723213602 and order your pawpaw seedlings.
