By Umar Nsubuga
Pawpaw (papaya) is a single-stemmed tropical tree which grows up to 4-5m (12-15ft) in height. Papayas adapt to well-drained soil.
The plant is shallow-rooted and will not tolerate excessive wetness or standing water and thrives best in full sun.
Some wind protection provided by other plants or structures is vital.
Papaya fruit is a berry with a thin, smooth peel and thick, fleshy mesocarp surrounding an open cavity containing many small seeds and can measure up to 10 kilograms in weight.
Pawpaw is a fruit that is widely grown in the country and some people do grow it in their compounds. It is in a few areas that the pawpaw is grown on a large scale for the local market.
Muhammed Kyazze, a pawpaw farmer, says he realised that pawpaws can grow anywhere and yet they fetch good money on the market.
“There are few pawpaws during the dry season. For example, between January and March, a big pawpaw went for as much as sh5,000 in most markets around the city,” he said.
Although the fruit is grown all year round, Kyazze says its major season is from September running through to November. Sometimes it could run until December.
Dan Ntale, who works at Kalerwe Market says when pawpaws are off-season, they could even go for sh5,000 for wholesale. And depending on how big it is, one pawpaw will sell at sh6,000 and sh7,000.
Irene Nabirye, who vends salads, says pawpaws are mostly eaten in the hot season for body hydration.
“The good thing now is that we have a mixture of the weather, the cold and hot. So, people buy at any time,” she says.
Fruit salads are a big business in town. Along the streets, there will be a number of vendors selling these salads at sh1,000 and sh2,000. In these salads, one is more likely to find a piece or two of pawpaw.
Although pawpaws may look the same when ripe (yellow and green on the outside), they have types.
According to infonet-biovision.org, there are three types; female, male and hermaphrodite.
Nabirye says people prefer the female ones because they are more delicious than the others. The female pawpaw is small and the inside is red. The male and haermaphrodites are big and yellow on the inside.
Pawpaws grow well in the warm season and take 12 months to bear fruit. Once harvested, Kyazze says the pawpaw can stay fresh if kept well in a dry place.
