Growing Choko/Chayote, also Chayote squash, christophene, chouchou, mirliton

Sechium edule : Cucurbitaceae / the gourd family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec

Not recommended for growing in USA - Zone 5a regions

  • Easy to grow. Plant whole mature fruit when one produces a shoot at one end.. Best planted at soil temperatures between 59°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 39 inches apart
  • Harvest in 17-25 weeks. Best when fruit is light green and not more than 6 cm long.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Cucumbers
  • Choko (cayote) on vine

Choko is only suitable for warmer climates but frequent hot nights will slow flowering. Fruit production is highest when night temperatures range from 59 - 68 F (15 - 20 C). Plant in a warm, unused corner of the garden. Leave the shoot sticking out of the ground and it will take off. Choko needs a long growing season, about 4 - 6 months but in that time it will spread and can be useful to cover old sheds or fences!

An average household would need one or two plants.

Leaves rather like cucumber and some prickles on the fruit. Some variation in fruit, with lighter green and few prickles depending on variety. The differences seem to be between countries eg. USA, Australia, Malta.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Choko/Chayote

Chokos can be peeled and chopped to use in stews, soup or as a stir fry vegetable.
Cooked or raw, it has a very mild flavour and is commonly served with seasonings eg. salt, butter and pepper or in a dish with other vegetables and/or flavourings. It can also be boiled, stuffed, mashed or pickled.

Your comments and tips

Be the first to post a question or tip from the USA

I see you are in a cool mountain climate and want to grow choko's. This challenge would be affected by how many frost-free months you have. I have seen them in Sydney 12 metres (40') up in a gum tree and have grown them in Bairnsdale on the South Coast of Victoria where they covered a shed. It's worth the challenge. Buy one or two choko's from a fruit shop and keep them inside on a bench until they start to sprout then plant the whole choko in a pot with the sprout base just under the soil. Keep them inside until all risks of frost are over. Select a spot in the garden that gets the maximum amount of sun for the day. Against a North or North-East facing wall or fence would be ideal. Dig a good sized hole and add horse or poultry manure in the bottom then cover that with soil. As the manure rots it will generate heat which will help get the choko growing and also provide fertiliser when the roots get down. Some aluminium foil or a piece of builders insulation fixed behind it will reflect heat and help as well. You will have to hope for a long hot summer to get chokos for harvest but it won't have cost you a lot if it doesn't work. Choko vines die back in the winter so you could give it a good blanket of hay or straw to protect the root from frost and hopefully a better season next year. All the best, let us know how you go.

- Jack

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