How do dried papaya leaves serve as effective mulch for tomato plants?
[1] Foods and soil can have a pH that’s acidic, alkaline, or neutral. [2] Papaya and tomato are both alkalinizing foods. [3] Eastern white pine tree mulch can somewhat lower a soil pH, to make for more acidic conditions. Similarly, dried papaya leaf mulch may somewhat raise a soil pH, to make for more alkaline conditions. [4] In both cases, however, it’s a matter of organic mulching from the plant world. In both cases, therefore, the soil becomes better drained, healthier, and more fertile through the breakdown of natural materials. And good drainage, fertility and health make for happier, healthier plants.
