Papaya

Common Name: Papaya

Chinese Name: 木瓜

Family: Caricaceae 番木瓜科

Scientific Name: Carica payaya cv.

Plant Type: Angiosperms (Dicotyledons)

Flowering Period: Jan-Dec

Fruiting Period: Jan-Dec

Nativity to China/HK: Exotic

Height: 1.8-6 m

Fact:

• The Papaya is an erect plant that has soft trunks ringed with prominent scars from previous lead stems. it is native to the lowland tropics of South America.

• The Papya has palm-like leaves that are deeply incised and lobed, 30-60 cm long.

• Papaya flowers are fragrant and have five creamy white petals, each 2.5-5.1 cm long. The ovaries in the flowers all have 5 stigmas.

• Immature fruits are green in colour and mature fruits are yellow or orange in colour. The oblong-shaped fruits are 4-15 cm long and weigh about 0.05-0.5 kg, hanging on short stalks in clusters under the leaves.

• The fruit is fiberless, juicy and sweet. Some are melon-like or apricot-like in flavour. The central cavity has block round seeds enclosed in a gelatinous membrane.

• Papain, an enzyme in papaya, is used as a meat tenderiser to soften the texture of meat. For industrial use, this kind of enzyme is used to clarify beer by digesting the precipitable protein fragments, give shrink resistance to wool and help in the processing of natural silk.