I'm torn! I want to plant either papaya or babaco in my yard, but I can't make up my mind! Babaco is cold tolerant and heat intolerant, and papaya is heat tolerant and cold intolerant. Also, babaco is self-fertile and most papayas are not. If I'm going to plant papayas I will most likely have to plant both a male and female plant. I live in the foothills in Southern California (zone 10a), where summer temperatures can easily get into the 90s and sometimes 100s. Winter night temperatures can drop into the 30s, and frosts are very occasional but they do happen. We also have the Santa Ana winds during fall and winter, but I can compensate for this by planting it in a sheltered location.
I have seen papayas and possibly babacos growing here in the San Fernando Valley, but mostly a few miles south of where I live, which is zone 10b. I also went to a local nursery, and they had both papaya and babaco plants for sale there. I'm sort of leaning towards babacos because they are self fertile, but some extra advice would be nice. Here are some helpful resources:
PAPAYA Fruit Facts
BABACO Fruit Facts