Mystery Plant Finally Identified!

When we plant our seeds in our gardens, we generally have a pretty good idea of what we expect to grow. If we plant squash, we should find squash growing, and if the seeds are for tomato seeds, we expect to see tomato plants. When Sally Brockett, President of the Daytime Gardeners of North Haven, and an experienced gardener who has grown vegetables for decades, saw two plants growing in her row of green bean plants, she quickly realized these two plants were not beans.

The two plants grew quickly and soon became taller than the bean plants. Being a curious gardener, Sally choose to let them grow for a while so she could see what they might become. They grew bigger and bigger, yes, just like Jack’s bean stalk! But they were not beans. The leaves grew larger and larger while the plants grew taller. They were soon waist high! Now it became more important to definitively get an ID on these plants!

Walt Brockett, a Daytime Gardener, and master gardener, began to study the structure of the plant more carefully and became concerned that they resembled giant hogweed, an extremely toxic plant that can be invasive. However, key characteristics of the giant hogweed were not evident on these two plants. When none of the local friends could identify the plants, and they were gaining more and more height, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station was contacted for help. This CT agency is an excellent resource for CT residents when they need assistance in identifying plants, insects, diseases, etc. When the concern about the plant’s resemblance to giant hogweed was shared, the case was immediately turned over to Donna Ellis, co-chairperson of the Connecticut Invasive Plants Working Group affiliated with the University of Connecticut. Photos and detailed information was sent to Ellis, who immediately began work on identification. She quickly assured us that it was not giant hogweed, but thought it might be a castor bean plant, which also has very toxic elements within the bean. She continued her research and after working with a colleague who is a plant botanist, the mystery plants were finally identified as papaya trees!

The papaya seeds did not come from the bean seed packet. Papaya, purchased from the grocery store, had been used in smoothies and the seeds were put into the compost, which was added to the garden soil. It was just by coincidence that the seeds in the composted soil happened to land in the row used for the green beans, which was covered with mulch on either side of the seed row. The little papaya seeds had a chance to grow because they were in this opened area of the garden.

By this time, the plants towered over Walt’s head and the leaves could serve as an umbrella during the rain. Small buds appeared at the juncture of the leaf branch and trunk, which if there were sufficient time before frost, would become papayas.

We will continue to let it grow until the frost brings an end to it. Then we will have to figure out how to remove it from the garden. Given its trunk diameter of 3-4 inches, it may require a chain saw to bring it down, and Walt’s John Deere tractor to pull out the roots!

Photos: Plant leaves – about 15 inches in August. Plant towers over Walt Brockett. Flower buds at leaf juncture. 3” trunk