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Post by flowerweaver on Feb 16, 2014 13:59:35 GMT -5
Chayote (Sechium edule) is readily available in grocery stores here so close to Mexico and would likely do well on my farm. Never having eaten one of these so-called 'squashes' I always wondered why I've never seen seeds sold for them. In reading more about them, apparently the only way to grow one is to let the seed germinate inside the fruit, which is intriguing. They are hard as rocks, so I imagine this takes some time. People here boil them like potatoes and eat them with butter, salt and pepper.
Have you grown them? Do you like them? How do you prepare them to eat?
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Post by blackox on Feb 16, 2014 15:28:47 GMT -5
Too far north too grow them but have eaten one - only raw but they have a very mild, watermelon rind flavor with a nice crispness.
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Post by zeedman on Feb 16, 2014 17:45:12 GMT -5
I grew chayote when I lived in California, both in San Jose & San Diego. It is perennial where the ground is not allowed to freeze, and gets stronger for several successive years. Flowerweaver, your information about the seed is correct - it is sprouted inside the fruit, and the whole fruit is then planted. Bury the fruit about 1/2-2/3 of the way down, at a 45 degree, with the largest end down. This can be done when the soil is warm, but you will get the best production the first year if the seeds are started early as transplants. As I recall, in California, I started mine indoors just about now. You can get starts from supermarket fruit, but they need to have been mature enough at the time of harvest to have good seed... Asian groceries are more likely to have viable squashes. Use the largest squashes you can find. The plants grown from these may or may not resemble the parents, since some commercial crops are from hybrids propagated vegetatively - the ones I grew did not (they were larger & spinier). If you are in a warm climate, you might also be able to get starts from others nearby - inquire from your local Master Gardeners, which is where I obtained my first start. It is recommended to plant at least two to get better pollination, but I believe they will self-pollinate.
The vines are very aggressive climbers, and should be trained to a very large trellis. The recommendation I was given by the gardener who first gave me stock was to make a horizontal trellis, elevated above the ground. I made mine 10' X 20', elevated 6 feet high, for two plants spaced 10' apart. The initial shoots should be trimmed to the one or two strongest, and trained up by string until they reach the top of the trellis, where they spread out horizontally. The vines branched at nearly every node & quickly overran my trellis, onto my neighbors shrubbery, and along 15' strings that I ran from the trellis to the edge of my roof. After that experience, I allowed 150-200 square feet of trellis per plant, and they would easily fill that area the second year. I think they would cover a small tree, given a chance to do so.
The root system is large, but fairly shallow. I found roots just below the surface up to 8' away, so you might not want to disturb the soil within this area. The plants also require a lot of water, so I would recommend mulching the root zone heavily. If mulched heavily with leaves or grass clippings, the plants will send feeder roots into the mulch as it decays, so this is a good way to feed them.
The vines look nearly identical to cucumber vines, and grow rampantly - without flowering - until day length approaches 12 hours. At that time, flower clusters will appear plant-wide in each new leaf node... usually one female flower, and a cluster of males. These flowers are only about 1/4" wide, so you might have to look closely to see them. As the fruit begin to develop, you will appreciate the use of a horizontal trellis, because they will hang below it for easy picking. From two vines the first year, I harvested about 50 12-ounce squashes. The second year, this increased to 200! The third, to 250. Given adequate water & good fertility, you can expect 100+ chayote per plant in the second & subsequent years. I was giving them away like zucchini! I don't know how long the vines will bear, because I always had to move after 3 years & left them behind.
As for how to eat them... our preferred usage was in Asian soups & stews. They were also very good eaten alone as a vegetable, especially if the fruit were allowed to get larger - and sweeter - on the vine. Peel & seed the squash, and save the seed - it is like a giant pumpkin seed, and can be eaten. The flavor of the cooked squash is sweeter than zucchini, and cut into chunks, will maintain its shape, with a texture similar to daikon radishes. The squash will store for months in a cool place, but do not refrigerate them, as they are susceptible to cold damage at temperatures just above freezing. You can eat the tender vine tips that you trim, they are delicious. Chayote also develops an edible root, that gets larger as the plant gets older... but I never tried it, since I didn't want to risk reducing the squash yield. Looking back, I should probably have tried that just before I moved. ;-)
U.Cal. Davis had a crop pamphlet for chayote when I started growing it in the mid-80's, they were pushing its cultivation back then. Don't know if they still have it, or if other Southern states might have something similar... but it might be worth looking for.
Chayote was one of the most rewarding vegetables I've ever grown, and provided that you have the space for them, I think you will enjoy them. If you have a lot of extra space, you might also look into growing Malabar gourd (a.k.a. Chilicayote or Figleaf gourd) which is another perennial, highly productive cucurbit for sub-tropical regions.
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Post by flowerweaver on Feb 16, 2014 20:42:28 GMT -5
zeedman thank you so much for this wealth of information. That's a lot of squashes! I'm in southwest Texas, 8B, about an hour from Mexico as the crow flies... so do you think they might survive with protection? We have a 5 acre farm surrounded by very sturdy 6-8 foot welded wire and pole fencing which I thought might work, but I can see how helpful the horizontal trellis would be. Since I am so close to where they are grown I would hope they are picked closer to ripeness since their travel time is short, especially if I choose a couple in season, which sounds like end of summer?
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Post by steev on Feb 16, 2014 23:05:34 GMT -5
I've grown it twice in Oakland. Once I let it eat the clothesline (50'). One hundred pounds of fruit is no strain for a healthy plant. For use as a green vegetable, it is commonly used too young for mature seed; as it matures, it cooks up watery; I prefer it very mature, not much liking the flesh (insipid, to me), but I really enjoy the seed.
There being little difference to varieties, taste-wise, forget the spiny ones, if you can get the smoother, just less difficult to handle.
There is a white-skinned, goose-egg-sized variety that is very nice.
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Post by flowerweaver on Feb 16, 2014 23:38:13 GMT -5
I've only seen the smooth green ones at our grocery store. Did you also find yours ripe at an Asian market?
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Post by zeedman on Feb 17, 2014 0:42:04 GMT -5
...I'm in southwest Texas, 8B, about an hour from Mexico as the crow flies... so do you think they might survive with protection? As long as you can prevent the ground from freezing, the roots should survive; the aforementioned thick layer of mulch will help with that. Be sure to give added frost protection to the crown. The mulch has an added benefit - it helps to keep the ground from drying out. I lost a couple plants in San Diego because the soil got too dry during their dormancy (I mulched too lightly that year) so you might need to water during dormancy if the soil gets dry more than a couple inches down. I agree with Steev, the smooth ones are nice; but just because that is what you plant, doesn't mean that is what you will get. My starts in San Jose were spiny from the beginning (and bred true), but the starts in San Diego were smooth... and still produced spiny fruit. Personally, I didn't have a problem with that, because they were also much larger than their parents. The spines are not really an issue anyway, they are fairly soft & get removed during peeling.
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Post by steev on Feb 17, 2014 1:02:08 GMT -5
I go to a pretty quirky produce market in foodie North Berkeley, which gets a range of supply from commercial, to imports, to back-yard growers. I've seen all three kinds of chayote there, although the white (Perulinas? Peruleras?) not for years, dammit! The only advantage to them is that when cooked whole, they are relatively easy to peel and of a manageable portion.
It occurs that I've also seen a smooth, dark-green variety there, which may be the largest.
It seems that the smooth, light-green variety is to only commercial form. I've never had occasion to test any types side-by-side, so my sense is that they all taste much the same: blandly green. I find zucchini much more flavorful.
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Post by flowerweaver on Feb 17, 2014 4:24:43 GMT -5
zeedman the ground never freezes here. Our climate is diurnal, with winter days usually warm enough to go without a coat, but often freezing at night. We are able to grow a garden all year, and so we irrigate year round. steve now I will be on a quest to find a white one! The image is planted in my head.
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Post by raymondo on Feb 17, 2014 15:30:20 GMT -5
Here they are called choko. Growing up, everyone seemed to have a vine in the back garden. Most were the smooth green types but there were occasional pale yellow ones. I don't know if this was a varietal difference or simply pale fruits. They were used as a filler mostly. If my grandmother didn't have enough apples for a pie she make up the bulk with chokos. Sometimes they were served as part of a potato bake.
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Post by steev on Feb 17, 2014 19:39:19 GMT -5
I've never liked dealing with them raw, because the sap is so glue-y, so I tend to bake, nuke, or boil them whole before peeling and whatever.
It occurs to me they might be good in egg foo yung (if I didn't have snap beans, bean sprouts, or zucchini).
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Post by kevin8715 on Feb 18, 2014 0:33:59 GMT -5
I have a seedling from three planted. Will try to get a picture soon.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2014 19:43:55 GMT -5
I managed to get a vine to emerge from a fruit, but it's wasn't vigorous.
This qualifies as as ethnic food in southern California, and I like to try new things.
I respect that it might look like something familiar to a foreigner.
In a subsistence situation, anything which grows prolific amounts of food would be valuable.
But, they have no flavor, here. Are they supposed to taste like something?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2014 20:03:13 GMT -5
In today's junkmail, these are sold, 5 for $1, at a store where you can buy all of the animal parts. Marrow, guts, and liver are also advertised. "The tuberous part of the root is starchy and eaten like a yam (can be fried). It can be used as pig or cattle fodder, as well... Another possible reason for the rumour of McDonald's apple pies containing chokos was that it was thought that apples would degenerate and become soggy and inedible in a McDonald's pie, whereas chokos are well known to retain their firmness and consistency after cooking, freezing, and reheating. It was thought that the "chunks" of apple in the pie were in fact chunks of choko, and the sauce and filling were simply a spiced, apple-flavoured concoction. Mummies Due to its purported cell-regenerative properties, it is believed as a contemporary legend that this fruit caused the mummification of people from the Colombian town of San Bernardo who extensively consumed it. The very well preserved skin and flesh can be seen in the mummies today." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chayote
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Post by steev on Feb 19, 2014 20:50:46 GMT -5
The lack of flavor is why I prefer the seed, which I find tastier than the flesh, and of a more appealing texture.
To me, chayote fits very well in the category "makes great pickles", meaning not much worth eating, on its own.
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