Garden Pests and Diseases: Papaya trees - What's wrong?, 0 by Diana_K

Diana_K wrote:
I can see several possibities:

The Hydrocotyle at the base shows the area is too wet, poor drainage or too-frequent water.

The competition from the grasses will remove most of the nutrients from the soil, leaving almost nothing for the Papaya.

They might have been planted too deep. Very few plants will do well if they are planted deeper than they were in the can. Difficult to see if this has happened- you could look at the base of the tree and see if there is a color difference between the part that was in the air (usually lighter) and the part that was in the soil.

In a situation like this (Known to be damp, competition) I would have dug out a larger area to remove the weeds, and planted the Papayas on enough of a mound to allow the water to drain away. Use soil amendment appropriate to the soil to blend with the soil and add volume.
If they have not been in the ground for long, dig them up and replant them.

If they have been in the ground long enough for the roots to have spread into the surrounding soil then I would remove the weeds around the tree, and remove the soil at the base of the tree until the air can get to the trunk where it was used to it.