Editing Sicyos edulis

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; width: 320px; margin-left: 1.25em; margin-bottom: 1em;"
! colspan="2" style="background: #e8e8e8;" | Chayote (''Sicyos edulis'')
|-
! Scientific name
| ''Sicyos edulis''
|-
! Common names
| Chayote, choko, christophine, mirliton, vegetable pear
|-
! Genus
| [[Sicyos]]
|-
! Family
| [[Cucurbitaceae]]
|-
! Order
| [[Cucurbitales]]
|-
! Growth habit
| Perennial climbing vine
|-
! Fruit type
| One-seeded fleshy fruit
|}

''Sicyos edulis'' is the accepted name used by GBIF/Catalogue of Life for chayote, also widely encountered in horticultural literature as ''Sechium edule''. The two names should be treated as taxonomic alternatives rather than as different crops. <sup id="cite_ref-1">[[#cite_note-1|[1]]]</sup><sup id="cite_ref-2">[[#cite_note-2|[2]]]</sup> Chayote is a vigorous, monoecious climbing vine cultivated for its fleshy fruit and also used for its shoots, leaves, and tuberous roots. <sup id="cite_ref-3">[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup><sup id="cite_ref-4">[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup>

== Description ==

Chayote forms a vigorous perennial vine with stems reported to reach about 50 feet (15 m) in favorable production systems, so it needs a substantial trellis rather than a small vegetable cage. Large tuberous roots are a characteristic of the crop. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup> The fruit is a fleshy berry containing one large seed; cultivated fruit varies in shape, size, and flesh color, with pale-green and white forms described in extension material. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup><sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup>

The species is taxonomically variable in treatment. GBIF lists ''Sicyos edulis'' as accepted and includes ''Sechium edule'', ''Chayota edulis'', and ''Sechium americanum'' among its synonyms, while Kew's Plants of the World Online page for ''Sechium edule'' also records the competing usage. <sup>[[#cite_note-1|[1]]]</sup><sup>[[#cite_note-2|[2]]]</sup>

== Cultivation ==

=== Soil and water ===

Give the vine fertile soil that drains reliably while supplying enough moisture for sustained vegetative growth. A large tuberous root is typical, but the PROSEA crop record cautions that tubers do not develop well in perpetually wet climates. <sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup> Avoid treating a permanently saturated site as equivalent to ordinary irrigation: drainage and seasonal moisture balance matter, particularly where tuber development is desired. The crop is vigorous and should be planted where a strong trellis and room for the root system can be provided. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup>

=== Sun and humidity ===

Use a warm, humid growing season with a trellis that can carry a large climbing canopy. UF/IFAS recommends a trellis about 6 feet high for production; the long stems and heavy growth make open airflow and sturdy support practical considerations. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup>

=== Seasonal changes ===

In frost-prone climates, establish chayote after the danger of frost and plan harvest before the first fall frost. One attributed grower account describes harvesting before the first fall frost and eating the fruit through winter, but gives no location, plant age, cultivar, or detailed conditions; that observation should not be used as a hardiness limit. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup><sup id="cite_ref-6">[[#cite_note-6|[6]]]</sup> In warm production regions the vine is treated as perennial, while the crop record recommends renewal at least every three years because of disease problems. <sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup>

== Propagation ==

The usual propagation method is to plant the entire mature fruit. The seed can germinate viviparously inside the fruit, and the fruit should not be buried deeply because excess depth increases the risk of rot. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup><sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup> Place the fruit shallowly enough that the emerging shoot is not smothered, then move the rooted plant only when a permanent support and well-drained site are ready. The whole-fruit method is also why mature chayote should be handled as living planting material rather than stored indefinitely like dry cucurbit seed. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup>

== Flowering, fruiting, and harvest ==

Chayote is monoecious, producing separate male and female flowers on the same plant. Flowering is described as beginning about one to two months after germination in the PROSEA crop record. Pollination is predominantly cross-pollination there, although the same record describes the crop as self-compatible; this combination makes pollination biology relevant without making fruit set a guarantee for every planting. <sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup>

Fruit development is described as taking about one to two months after pollination. Fruit shape, size, flesh color, and flavor vary among cultivated material, and an accession comparison found reproductive and genetic differentiation among material from Mexico, Japan, and Myanmar. Those differences support choosing planting material for local performance rather than assuming that one accession represents every chayote. <sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup><sup id="cite_ref-5">[[#cite_note-5|[5]]]</sup>

Harvest timing depends on climate and planting material. In one first-hand account, the grower harvested before the first fall frost and reported eating the fruit through winter, while also describing poor growing success. The report is useful as a bounded seasonal observation but does not establish a general frost tolerance, storage life, or bearing schedule. <sup>[[#cite_note-6|[6]]]</sup>

== Fruit and uses ==

The fruit has pale-green or white flesh in the cited extension treatment and a single large seed. Chayote is used cooked in preparations including creamed, buttered, fried, stuffed, baked, frittered, boiled, mashed, and pickled forms, as well as salads and pies. Shoots, leaves, and tubers are also recorded as crop uses. <sup>[[#cite_note-3|[3]]]</sup><sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup> Texture and flavor vary with the cultivated material, so a description of one accession should not be treated as a universal tasting profile. <sup>[[#cite_note-4|[4]]]</sup><sup>[[#cite_note-5|[5]]]</sup>

== References ==

* <span id="cite_note-1"></span>[[#cite_ref-1|↑]] '''[1]''' [https://www.gbif.org/species/2874612 ''Sicyos edulis'' - GBIF | Catalogue of Life taxon page].

* <span id="cite_note-2"></span>[[#cite_ref-2|↑]] '''[2]''' [https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:293884-1 ''Sechium edule'' | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science].

* <span id="cite_note-3"></span>[[#cite_ref-3|↑]] '''[3]''' [https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1454 Chayote—A Potential Vegetable Crop for Florida (HS1454) | UF/IFAS Extension].

* <span id="cite_note-4"></span>[[#cite_ref-4|↑]] '''[4]''' [https://prosea.prota4u.org/view.aspx?id=2199 ''Sechium edule'' - PROSEA Plant Resources of South-East Asia record 2199].

* <span id="cite_note-5"></span>[[#cite_ref-5|↑]] '''[5]''' [https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/3/476 Comparison of Chayote (''Sechium edule'') Accessions from Mexico, Japan, and Myanmar Using Reproductive Characters and Microsatellite Markers].

* <span id="cite_note-6"></span>[[#cite_ref-6|↑]] '''[6]''' [https://growingfruit.org/t/what-unusual-vegetables-should-i-grow-that-ive-never-heard-of/11097/1 What unusual vegetables should I grow that I've never heard of? | GrowingFruit.org].

[[Category:Fruit plants]]
[[Category:Cucurbitaceae]]