A Detailed Guide to Common Papaya Seed Varieties and Seedling-Raising Methods
I believe everyone is familiar with papaya. It is a very common fruit in our daily lives. It also helps with weight loss and can detoxify the body, so eating it has many benefits for your health. Some friends may be getting ready to grow papaya too, so what common varieties of its seeds are there? And how do you raise the seedlings? Next, the editor will give you a detailed explanation.
1. What common varieties of papaya seeds are there?
1. Papaya (Carica papaya)
Papaya is a tropical herbaceous fruit, and the plant belongs to the small tree genus, with milky sap contained in the trunk. When papaya is ripe, the flesh is yellow, and the shape is mainly oblong, with a length of about 20 cm. The flesh is smooth, refreshing and juicy, with a strong fragrance. It is mainly grown in tropical provinces in China such as Guangdong and Taiwan, China.
2. Xuancheng papaya (Chaenomeles speciosa)
In the classification of papaya used in traditional Chinese medicine, Xuancheng papaya has been cultivated in China for as long as over a thousand years, combining medicinal and edible uses. It contains more than a dozen amino acids essential to humans, and is also rich in trace elements, vitamins and more. It has very high medicinal value and can calm the liver, warm the stomach, dispel wind and remove dampness. Moreover, the various foods derived from it are very popular on the market.
3. Hairy-leaf papaya (Chaenomeles cathayensis)
Hairy-leaf papaya also belongs to the small tree category. Its tree form is smaller than that of papaya, with a height of only about 4-5 m. Unlike ordinary papaya, hairy-leaf papaya is distributed in most provinces of China, for example, Shaanxi and Hunan both have a certain planting area. Hairy-leaf papaya combines ornamental and edible uses. Its fruit has the effects of resisting epidemics and killing insects and enhancing the human immune capacity, and its nutritional value is relatively high.
4. Smooth-skin papaya (Chaenomeles sinensis)
Smooth-skin papaya is the most commonly seen papaya variety in our daily lives. Its fruit shape is similar to that of papaya, but its length is only about 12 cm. Smooth-skin papaya is the dried fruit of the rose family plant Chaenomeles sinensis. Its color is relatively dark, accompanied by a rather strong fragrance. The fruit skin is very smooth, and even after losing water and drying out, it still does not feel rough, hence the name smooth-skin papaya.
5. Wild papaya (Asimina triloba)
Wild papaya is actually a variety introduced from the Americas. Wild papaya has a relatively strong aroma, the fruit is large and heavy, and the fruit skin is also very thin, while the flesh is thick and firm. Wild papaya has now become a natural green fruit in China and is welcomed by many young people. In addition, various foods such as beverages and dried fruit have gradually been developed from it, and its economic benefits are very considerable.
2. Seedling-raising methods for papaya seeds
1. Collecting papaya seeds
After papaya is planted, it generally flowers and bears fruit in 3-5 years. When selecting the mother tree for seed collection, you should choose fruit borne by excellent trees that are robust, highly resistant to pests and diseases, and bear fruit early and abundantly. In September to October, when the fruit skin turns yellow, it can be harvested. Peel open the harvested fruit, take out the seeds, and place them in a dry, ventilated place to dry. They must not be placed on cement ground or exposed to high-temperature sun. Alternatively, after the fruit is completely dry, cut it open and take out the seeds.
2. Choosing the seedbed
Papaya seedlings like warmth and cannot tolerate cold. Frost may freeze the new seedlings to death. If the raised papaya seedlings are soaked in water for 24 hours, they will die from lack of oxygen. Therefore, when choosing a seedling bed, you must choose sandy soil with high, dry terrain, abundant sunlight, convenient drainage and irrigation, and fertile soil. The selected plot should not have previously grown cucurbitaceous melons, and it is not suitable to raise seedlings in an old papaya orchard, because papaya seedlings are easily infected with ringspot mosaic virus. For seedling raising, you can use paper bags, or roll old newspapers into cylindrical seedling cups with a height x width of 10 x 16 cm, or make a seedbed 1.5 m wide.
3. Sowing
Seedlings are generally raised around Grain Rain. Before sowing, seeds can be soaked in 0.3% potassium permanganate for 8-12 hours, then taken out and drained. Wrap them well in a wet burlap sack and place them in a humid, dark environment at 35 degrees to promote germination, watering once a day with warm water. When some seeds show white, they can be sown. Sow them broadcast in the seedbed at a row spacing of 20 cm, cover with 0.5 cm of moist soil, cover with plastic film, and then add a small arch shed on top. When 70% have pushed through the soil and sprouted, the plastic film can be removed. After emergence, pay close attention to the temperature and humidity in the seedbed. Before emergence, keep it at about 35 degrees; after emergence, keep it at about 25 degrees.
4. Seedling-stage management
Ventilate in time to harden the seedlings and prevent suddenly removing the shed film, which can cause seedling burn. During this period, pay attention to weeding and spraying water to maintain moisture. At the four-leaf stage, 0.1% potassium dihydrogen phosphate mixed with brassin can be sprayed on the leaves. The standard for strong seedlings is no pests or diseases, dark green and complete leaves, and a short, sturdy tree body. If sown in autumn, plant them out in the second year. During the seedling overwintering period, do a good job of cold protection and warmth preservation. According to experiments, the minimum temperature for papaya growth must not be lower than 5 degrees, and the maximum is 35 degrees. Papaya trees planted for more than two years have enhanced cold resistance.
Alright, that is all for what the editor wants to share with you today. Papaya tastes quite good and also has relatively high nutritional value, so farmer friends can grow some for themselves to eat. Above, we introduced several common varieties of papaya seeds. You can choose one according to your own taste. If you do not know how to raise seedlings, you can also appropriately refer to the methods above.
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