Tag: kapoho

Hermaphrodite fruits are generally pear-shaped while female fruits are more or less round. The fruits weigh about 450 grams and are produced about eight to 10 months after outplantng. The plants are one to 1.5 meters tall.

Varietal name is usually derived from the place of origin. Examples are Makapunong Isabela, Los Banos Pinakwan, Legaspi no. 1 znd Cagayan red stem.

Temperature and soil requirements. A tropical plant that originated from South America, papaya was introduced into the Philippines via Mexico. It prefers warm areas with temperatures ranging from 21 to 33 degrees Celsius.

A minimum annual rainfall of 1,200 millimeters is sufficient, well-distributed over the growing season. The plants cannot withstand strong winds. Lodging and stalk breakage are common during the typhoon season.

Continue reading “Papaya production in the Philippines- part 2”

 

Papaya production in the Philippines

By:Onofre Ballesteros

 

Papaya is a versatile crop that is grown year round. It produces fruits almost continuously as long as there is adequate soil moisture. Temporary cessation of fruiting usually occurs during the dry months. Moisture stress causes sex reversal towards maleness of flowers, thus resulting in the failure of plants to bear fruits. That’s why there are vacant spaces or escapes on nodes of the tree trunks.

Ripe fruits are usually eaten as breakfast dessert, while green fruits are used as a vegetable for such dishes as “tinolang manok.” The green fruits are also picked or processed into papain.

Ripe fruits are excellent sources of vitamin C. It also contains vitamin A and B, thiamine, riboflavin and niacin. It contains seven to nine percent fructose sugar but has very little starch.

Papain – an enzyme derived from green papaya fruits – is used in the preparation of food, beverages, medicines, in softening wool, in silk degumming, as a meat tenderizer, and as a stabilizer in beef processing.

Continue reading “Papaya production in the Philippines- part 1”