Chayote plant

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