Papaya Fruit Fly : Comparing Bags and Protection Methods

[@user-hz7kv6js6l]

Thanks for your video. I'm in zone 9b sw Florida, and I noticed something was getting into my papaya trees. I topped off my tress last year when they got right under 6 feet. My 2 trees have about 10 fruit on them. Tomorrow, Im going to inspect my trees hose down the fruit and spray them with neem oil. I have the same organza bags that I can use to cover any of the smaller fruits. I have been watching a lot of KZbin videos on growing papaya trees and one said to thin out your papayas when they are just about 1 inch to allow space for your papayas to grow without touching each other which I did not do but its not to late for me to thin them. It's only been 1 year since I started growing papaya trees. I used the organza bags on my tomatoes last year and they worked to keep the birds and pest away.

[@yvette_inspired]

Thank you for this thorough explanation !

[@NealMansfield]

Could you provide a link to the green bags. They do look promising!

[@caraghabrielledorsett5460]

With the green tiny mesh bags do they come in larger sizes to fit as the fruit grows?

[@TheHivefl]

Yes , I usually just get the larger ones. That type of bag cinches down easily. Once the fruit get full mature size, they are less vulnerable to being totally ruined. It’s the medium size ones with developing seeds that they really want.

[@maryleigh8990]

My most prolific tree has a family of green tree frogs living in the crown, Im hoping the have an appetite for the fruit fly😬

[@sunnydayz4040]

Thanks gor sharing! Did you have a hole down the center of the Papaya trunk you cut back? Mine are little still. How Did your cotton candy tree (Jamaican Cherry) do after this winter?

[@TheHivefl]

No problem! Papayas are hollow, they are somewhat segmented like a bamboo. I love Jamaica cherries, mine got whacked pretty good this winter. We had at least 28 deg, maybe colder. It resprouted well. I actually just removed it because it just didn’t fit. Awesome tree, delicious fruits, but they get pretty large fast. You want to let them grow uninhibited to get production that justifies their space.

[@sunnydayz4040]

ok thanks for the update!

[@user-hz7kv6js6l]

Has anyone else cut open a papaya and there were no seeds inside? Is this normal?

[@TheHivefl]

Yes, this a product of poor pollination. It’s most common I think on the varieties that have hermaphrodite (self pollinating) flowers like Red Lady. I have seen this many times in mine.

[@user-hz7kv6js6l]

@@TheHivefl thank you