we've tried growing papayas over the years. they seem to survive down to the upper 30's but as soon as the 1st night of 32' temps, they're dead the next morning.

last year i planted a few seedlings in pots, moved them under the porch for winter, we only had a few light freezes this past winter, i just covered them with the freeze blanket, along with my other tropical plants, like mangos and succulents.

Well, I had some seedlings from grocery store fruit last year, and left them out until mid-October. They were close to the house and under the canopy of a big maple, but I could tell that the cold nights in the upper 30s made papaya, my Moringa olerifera, and my anthuriums suffer, they would be all droopy the next day even though not dry, kind of limp and sad. They all recovered, but I don't want to let this one suffer that way.

What I decided I will do is haul it into the garage on the colder nights, and set it on my seedling heat mat to keep the soil warm. I'm just not sure what the limit should be, either 50 or 45. I want it to have the maximum outdoor time before it has to come in under lights.