Papaya

Water

Too dry to grow on rain alone. It would need irrigation.

Needs about 1,460 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 180 mm it can use in a normal year, and 110 mm in a dry year.

Temperature

Grows best at 21–30 °C on average, and survives 12–44 °C.

Here, in its growing months (day / night):

• Jun 41 °C / 27 °C (outside its best range)
• Jul 37 °C / 28 °C (outside its best range)
• Aug 36 °C / 27 °C (outside its best range)
• Sep 34 °C / 24 °C
• Oct 33 °C / 18 °C
• Nov 28 °C / 11 °C (outside its best range)
• Dec 23 °C / 7 °C (outside its best range)
• Jan 19 °C / 6 °C (outside its best range)
• Feb 23 °C / 9 °C (outside its best range)
• Mar 28 °C / 14 °C
• Apr 36 °C / 19 °C
• May 41 °C / 24 °C (outside its best range)
• Jun 41 °C / 27 °C (outside its best range)

Nights in December can bring frost. When frost is forecast, water the field lightly in the evening.

Soil

Soil for Papaya: 7 out of 10 (okay).

Not in the score: nitrogen and boron.

• Soil here is often more alkaline than it likes.
• Many fields here are short of potassium, which it needs a lot.
• Many fields here are short of zinc, which it needs a lot.
• Most fields here are short of phosphorus.

Likes pH 5.5–7.0.

Money

Yield: about 156 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).

Rain gives it too little of the water it needs, so there's no income figure on rain alone: grow it only with irrigation.

Mandi price through the year (December 2025–November 2026): about ₹2,225 a quintal at mandis in your district.

This week: about ₹3,150 a quintal, the middle of 2 mandis in your district (latest 13 Nov).

Prices are usually best in September.

Typical costs are about ₹2.3 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.