chayote vining like mad

[hoodat]

I planted some chayote vines last August and they were so slow to get moving I thought they'd never do anything but they must have gotten a second wind. They are going up some old bean stakes I have leaning against a retaining wall and are well over six feet long and going strong. I thought I would have to wait two years for the first crop but if they can keep going till warm weather comes around again I may make it the first year.
A neighbor has a five year old vine and he gets over 100 fruits per month off it during the hot weather.

 

[pharmerphil]

Excellent Hoodat, sure wish our climate would let us grow them

 

[Warthog]

That's one the vegetables I will be trying soon.

 

[lesa]

Very interesting- I had never heard of that before. What does it taste like? Do you eat it raw or cooked?

 

[hoodat]

Chayote is one of those foods that has a very mild taste and absorbs the taste of what it is cooked with. Mexicans sometimes eat it sliced raw and dressed with lemon or lime juice and chili powder. It can also be used in raw salsas. It is great in stirfries, soups and stews as well as salads. The shoots and leaves can also be used as a cooked green.
Warthog - chayote is native to Central America so it should be right at home in Belize but remember to give it lots of room. the vines can get very large.

 

[Warthog]

Hoodat - thanks for that tip, we can buy them here quite easily, but always nice to grow your own.

lesa - I have read (I think in one of the local cookbooks I bought) that you can also put them in a pie, and they taste like apples when cooked that way.

Now I have never tried this, and like Hoodat said they are very mild flavoured, so I have my doubts. Maybe sometime when I have more time, I will try it, because all our apples here are imported and very expensive.

 

[hoodat]

Try adding some lemon juice. My grandma used to do that with zuchini and it tasted just like apple pie, although a bit mushier. I've also heard of using jicama to make apple pies.

 

[hoodat]

Here are my chayote vines

 

[Warthog]

Wow those vines look great.

I didn't know what jicama was, so I googled it. I think I have seen it here on the market, and one guy sold it to me as a fruit, which I just peeled and ate raw.

I will keep my eyes open and try to find it, could well be out of season now.

 

[TanksHill]

My mother had a chayote that was planted next to her lemon tree on our patio. For years it grew up and in the branches. Giving us tons of squash. I tried to plant one this year and it withered and died. Any advice on it sun exposure or soil conditions?