Best of luck with that, Cory.

Which papaya variety do you have?

I have a red lady papaya.

The funny thing is that I've never actually eaten papaya before, but I thought it would make an excellent addition to my fruit forest (I just moved from Chicago to Miami, so I wanted to feel like I was in the tropics!).

haha.

CORY!

Those little buggers are a BEAR to get rid of. If the plants are small spray like every 3-4 days and DON'T STOP for a long long time!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've had mites that just would never leave my papayas and I had to eventually cut them down (they were inground)

Which reminds me - don't leave them near any other plants -not even within like 10 feet. Hopefully you still have them in pots...

And get a magnifying glass - examining with that is the best way to see where you stand with those fast-breeding little buggers.....you know, run your finger on the bottom of the leaf and see if anything moves....the trickiest little devils....

Dang - I wish you luck squared!

MDog

The best way to rid them in summer is to use a hose. Spray them every single day or even you have a chance. Spray under the leaves.

Thanks MDog and Yellowthumb!

Very luckily, I had the papaya tree on the other side of my house from the other 5 trees, so the spider mites have only attacked the papaya so far. I may have waited too long, I've lost 3 leaves so far and a few of the small fruits. While I haven't seen any more, I'm continuing to spray every 3-4 days with the insecticide. I'll definitely use a spray hose in between sprays! Great idea!

I really hope the plant survives... the leaves are very yellow now :(