They are still developing. SO far every step is new and I figured post it now,since no telling if they will survive winter. These are plants that are not supposed to survive here,let alone flower and fruit. Ripe fruit would be first I heard of from seed grown plants. That's a Maridol. Although,that wouldn't take away from somebody getting those Solo Papaya's sold at local nursery's to do well.

Here,Greenman,it was thought only the mostly inedible "Mountain Papaya's" could commonly have fruit. Those,you have to cook and add sugar etc.

You inspired me to buy another papaya tree, and I happened to find one (or three) at my local HD, but I am going to keep it in a wine barrel planter to start out. If it gets rootbound in that, I can plant it into the ground, but if I plant them into the ground when they are too small, they drown, due to lack of drainage in my soil.

I've seen papayas make fruit in San Diego, and I've had friends grow them in South Texas (Rio Grande Valley) from seeds that they threw into their yard while eating the fruit.

Update?

We had a wet 2017 winter. First it dropped leaves in February. It still had hand sized fruit. But with no leaves? Rodents went right up the trunk and ate the top of the plant. A lesson you learn and would never read about in marginal climates about Papaya's and rodents. Anyway's that killed the 4' Maridol that was about 4 years old too. I now have a seedling "red" Papaya going sent to me by a friend in San Diego. Not good odds!

Thanks for the reply. Yes all my papayas have died of root rot. They absolutely hate soggy soil. I heard from a guy with success in So-Cal that his secret is extreme drainage in the soil. Bags of sand, perlite, lava rock etc.. he says that they don’t so much hate the cold but cold and wet soil is what kills them. He says no watering at all in winter but also here in Northern cal we get more rainfall I think, but i still think you can have success if you can keep it super dry somehow in the winter and maybe some thin metal around the trunk so rats can’t climb up? We had a rat problem here in Dublin to very bad but the new cats have helped tons. I’ve given up on papaya for now since I killed so many but I’m up for the task again in the future when I have time to give it what it needs. I’m only 1 year into this fruit tree obsession. For now I have a Babaco in the ground that handled the winter like nothing happend, even put on new growth. I know the fruit is very different taste from papaya but it still has the similar beauty as a plant itself

Well,my Maridol was almost four years old. So it can be grown. Just slow. I had mine in a sunny area that for some reason..drained so fast water never puddled there. I could stand there in summer and water and it just went down. It was slightly raised over the years from my diggings I guess.

Babaco fruit can't be eaten raw..its to be cooked and some mix that with sugar if you want sweet. I grew it as an ornamental. My problem with it is that the fruit were always knocked off the plant in heavy winter winds.

I think in Dublin a Mango is worth a try. You get hot and that's ALWAYS good thing with them. Just protect in Dec- Jan mainly, from freezing temps. For one thing,the fruit will be sweet. They ripen well.