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
                  P P P

(Best months for growing Choko/Chayote in Australia - temperate regions)

  • P = Plant tubers
  • Easy to grow. Plant whole mature fruit when one produces a shoot at one end.. Best planted at soil temperatures between 15°C and 30°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 100 cm 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

Your comments and tips

05 Jan 13, sadie (Australia - arid climate)
Each time I've grown chokos from fruit they grow well but then before flowering die off Any advice???? Mind you I did try to move them from pot to soil...is that it?
29 Nov 14, Andrew (Australia - temperate climate)
Yes, all plants know when their environment has been changed, and they know when they've left the confines of a pot and given "free-range" in the soil, if the choko didn't flower/fruit after transplanting, that is probably because
17 Jan 13, wendy (Australia - temperate climate)
Greek-Australian Salad! Feta cheese, diced, lots of chopped tomatoes, olives, and (instead od cucumbers, they don't grow for me) lightly cooked cubes of choko - olive oil & lemon dressing!
21 Jan 13, Barb (Australia - tropical climate)
How do I get my choko vine to flower?
19 Apr 13, LAVERNE (South Africa - Humid sub-tropical climate)
Does choko need lots of sun and does the seed go right under the soil with the sprout above the soil?
03 May 13, Kym (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You can plant the whole thing except for the sprout but also just leave the fruit on the surface and it will still grow. I think they do best left to their own devices as far as fertiliser etc though I do water mine if its dry
09 May 13, mary irvin (Australia - temperate climate)
when the vine is finished fruiting do we cut the vine bach
29 Nov 14, Andrew (Australia - temperate climate)
Depends, if it is cool and the plant seems to be dormant, and it is going into winter, the leaves are getting old and dying, in other words, the vines are dying, yes, strip them back, the plant will go into dormancy for the winter, but only cut back carefully to the stump, or failing that about 5cm from the ground.
11 Jun 13, Orlando (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Where can I get choko seeds or plant?
05 Apr 14, jeanette (South Africa - Summer rainfall climate)
what is the food value of this plant?
Showing 71 - 80 of 265 comments

Just picked the first chokos from my vine and they are white! Is it a different variety? Isn't it supposed to be green? I bought the plant from local farmers markets.

- Heather

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