How to grow Chayote

Chayote plant grow and care – herbaceous vine of the genus Sechium also known as Chayote squash or Chuchu, Chayote plant is perennial plant but can grow as annual plant, mostly used for edible fruits also the tuber and the leaves edible can grow in mediterranean, subtropics or tropics climate and growing in hardiness zone 8-10 as annual and 11+ as perennial.

Leaves are edible when they are young and tender after that the leaves become hairy, the shape of the leaves is maple leaf shape.

Flower color is white, there are female and male flower.

Chayote plant edible fruits

Fruits edible are pear shaped, the color fruit are green or yellow. The weight is 100-900 gram, size 7-20 cm, the peal also edible and seeds are green-white and edible, taste reminds kohlrabi taste when eaten raw, recommend to harvest the fruit when it’s still soft, young and fully grown.

Tuber is edible brown skin and white from the inside

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How to grow Chayote plant growing and care:

Trellising, frost free, well-drained soil, slightly acid

How to care:
Add organic matter, fertilize twice a year, cover with mulch

What is the best way to start growing?
Seedling / Seed / vegetative reproduction – cutting

Is it necessary to graft or use vegetative reproduction?
The seeds are part of the fruits and it’s impossible to separate them from the fruits, and it’s easy to start by cutting

Difficulties or problems when growing:
Aggressive

Planting season:
Spring in hardiness zone 8-10, spring to summer in hardiness zone 11, all the year in hardiness zone 12+.

How to plant:
Planting in well ventilated soil, dig bigger hole than the plant and put organic matter, humus and dead leaves

Pests and diseases:
Powdery mildew, aphids, moth, virus, beetles

Pruning season:
No need. But possible all the season

How to prune:
Infected leaves needed to take out, pruning mostly for design and easy pickup

Size of the plant:
5-10 m, 15-30 feet

Growth speed in Chayote plant:
Fast growing

Chayote plant Irrigation Water Management:
Average amount of water to big amount of water

Water requirement:
Full Sun

Is it possible to grow indoor as houseplant?
No

Growing is also possible in a pot / planter /flowerpot / containers:
Yes

How to plant chayote in container:
Planting in containers need to be at least 20L (5 gallons), well-drained soil, the plant not react well to overwater, need to make enough holes in the container for good drainage also choosing soil for container important and need to be soil well ventilated, can be potting mix or peat soil with perlite, when use bottom for the pot need that it will dry in the same day.

Blooming information

Bloom season:
Late spring to summer autumn (in the tropical all year)

General information about the flower
White flower with five lobs, there are female and male flowers

Thinning the bloom:
Sometimes happened because disease or not enough water

Pollination is done by:
Bees and more pollinators, by hand

Edible Fruits

Fruit harvest season:
Summer to autumn (in the tropical all year)

Fruits pests or diseases:
Powdery mildew

What can be done with big quantities of Chayote plant fruits?
Cooked, baked, grilled, stir fry, fry, eaten raw

Work requirements on the fruit:
Trellising

How long does it take to bear fruit?
120-150 days (4-5 month)

Edible leaves

Leaves harvesting season:
All year

How to harvest the leaves?
From the base of the leaves

Information about leaves:
The shape of the leaves is maple leaf shape, the color light green

Uses of Chayote edible leaves:
Cooked, staffed leaves, stir fry, salad

Edible Roots

Information about tuber:
Brown skin and white from the inside

When to pull up tuber:
At least 10 month from planting can be all year long, in cold area in the autumn

Uses of Chayote edible tuber:
Cooked, staffed leaves, stir fry, salad

How to grow Chayote plant from seeds

Sowing requirement:
The seed germinate while inside the fruit, the seeds have short life and sprout plant from fruit

Saving seeds until sowing:
As long as the fruit alive the seed alive inside

Sowing season:
Spring in hardiness zone 8-10, spring to summer in hardiness zone 11, all the year in hardiness zone 12+.

How to plant:
Better to plant it in light soil that will be well ventilated and keep the moist like vermiculite

Planting spacing:
20-30 cm

Depth of Sowing:
Put the fruits on the soil and cover half of the fruits in 5cm (2 inches), possible without cover

Conditions for seeds germinate:
Moist soil, full sun

Watering requires for Seeds:
Average amount of water

Germination time:
10-20 days

Condition of seedling:
Warm weather, big amount of water, full sun, place to trellising

Do the seeds require burying?
No

Scientific name:

Sechium edule

Alternative names: Chayote squash, Chuchu, Mirliton plant, Sayote

How to grow Chayote

Growing Chayote plant

Chayote plant care

Harvesting Chayote plant

Chayote plant

Categories

Blooming Seasons
  • Spring flowers
Edible Parts
  • Edible Fruit
  • Edible leaves
  • Edible Roots
Culinary uses
  • Eaten raw
  • Stuffed or Wrapped
  • Vegetables
Flower colors
  • Yellow flower
Climate
  • Desert Climate
  • Mediterranean Climate
  • Subtropics Climate
  • Temperate Climate
  • Tropics Climate
Harvest Season
  • Autumn Harvest
  • Spring Harvest
  • Summer Harvest
  • Winter harvest
Plant growing speed
  • Average growing plants
  • Fast growing plants
Plant life-form
  • Annual plant
  • Evergreen
  • Herbaceous
  • Perennial plant
Plant Uses
  • Edible plants
  • Ornamental plants
Planting Season
  • Autumn Planting
  • Spring Planting
  • Summer planting
Plants sun exposure
  • Full sun Plants
Watering plants
  • Regularly water
Hardiness zone
  • Hardiness zone 10
  • Hardiness zone 11
  • Hardiness zone 12
  • Hardiness zone 13
  • Hardiness zone 4
  • Hardiness zone 5
  • Hardiness zone 6
  • Hardiness zone 7
  • Hardiness zone 8
  • Hardiness zone 9