Hey ! Let ’s do a list post ! How about “ 8 cause Why You Should be uprise Chayote Squash ? ”
Oh shoot . Now I have to come up with eight reasonableness , which is a telephone number I picked arbitrarily . That should n’t be hard , though , as chayote really is an fantabulous increase to the garden . Also known as christophine and mirliton , they are a Mesoamerican harvest which is now available around the world . Costa Ricaexports tons of them to the EU and the US every yearas the preference for this tropic squash - that - doesn’t - mouthful - like - a - squash racquets has grown .
Ready ? Let ’s see if I can come up with eight reasons for grow chayote squash … here goes …
1. Chayote is Productive
No lie ! This squash rackets is likely to be the star of your garden in 2017 if you get them institute this fountain .
Here ’s a photo - manipulated shot of a bag of them I picked in my North Florida garden at the beginning of 2016 , just before the first frost of the winter ( which was a very late one – January ! ):
It looks aesthetic , does n’t it ? I sum an “ artistic ” filter in Photoshop !
you’re able to see me harvesting these mash in this video ( along with a few other goody ):
They are a marvelously productive plant life – but do n’t believe this productivity lasts for only one gardening year . Oh no – the story gets better !
2. Chayote are Perennial
That means they come back year after year . Look at this one growing back :
I fuck perennial vegetable . ( You might be surprised at how many great unity there are – if you want to dive down the perennial rabbit jam , Eric Toensmeier ’s excellent bookPerennial Vegetableswill get you dreaming . )
If you subsist in a colder climate , mulch over chayote ’s roots to ensure they do n’t freeze in the wintertime . My stakes is you ’ll be able-bodied to keep them go all the way into zone 7 if you’reclever with frost protection .
3. Chayote Taste Good
There is a extremely fertile veg that start with a “ ezed ” which I do n’t wish to bring up , as it is a hateful and vile thing .
the great unwashed originate this , then hurl them away .
Unlike that loathing , chayote are good enough that you ’ll want to eat them . They are much like a dense cuke and some call them a “ vegetable Pyrus communis . ” If you play make-believe , they are somewhat like a meek pear but without the grittiness .
How do you eat them ? I postulate to make a another pointedness , obviously , or I wo n’t hit eight . So …
4. Chayote are Versatile in the Kitchen
Chayote can be slice up and eaten raw like their cousin-german the cucumber , or they can be uncase and fake . we discovered through experience that if you do n’t undress them the skins get quite tough in cookery .
Chayote can be made into pickles and relish and can also be sauteed . One of my best-loved direction to deplete them is the right way off the vine , like a yield .
They are denser than a cucumber and hold up good in cooking . They ’ll also absorb the flavor of whatever you cook them in , so they ’re a good makeweight for the sens .
5. Chayote Shoots are Delicious
This is something I fall upon while I was see the H.E.A.R.T. gardens in Lake Wales and touring the plants with my ally Josh Jamison .
“ Have you ever eaten the shoots ? ” he require , when I recognized chayote produce on a treillage .
“ No , ” I sound out , “ I try they were edible but never tried them . ”
“ Here , ” he enounce , breaking one off . “ You have to try one . ”
I did . “ These are amazing ! ” I said .
He grinned . “ They really are good – I ’m growing this trellis just for the shoots ! ”
I was impressed . They ’re good in the path edible asparagus is good . Chayote shoots are a admixture of subtle flavour , nutty , impertinent , gullible , sweet , delicious .
6. Chayote is Easy to Grow
Some vegetables – like love apple – are technically a perennial but practically speak are an yearly . Unlike these fair conditions perennials , chayote sticks around happily . I ’ve had few problem with insects , disease or nutritional deficiencies … they just care to grow . Strangely , though , I have had multiple chayote rot when they were planted , rather of develop . I found out what I was doing wrong , however , and now plant them differently .
In a telecasting I place yesterday , I show you how to imbed chayote to give them a good success rate from the starting time .
Planting them on their side , not all the way in the ground , seems to be the honest way to do it .
7. Chayote are Novel
There is such a matter as garden brag rights . In fact , once you strain Super Elite Gardener Status(TM ) , you start competing with other gardeners to see who has the wildest and weirdest things get .
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ So … did you see my shiner melon ? ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : ( yawns ) “ Oh yeah . I grew those , like , five twelvemonth ago . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ Of trend . Everyone grows them . But I sleep with you used my Edgar Albert Guest lavatory in the beginning … discover anything … interesting … in there ? ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ Uh … ”
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ You did , did n’t you ? Yes , you did . secern me what it was . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ It was … a … 30 - metrical foot …
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ Yeeeeeeeessssss ? ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ … or perchance longer … ”
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ Say it . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ … vanilla orchidaceous plant with pods on it . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ Which you would n’t suppose was anything , would you , if it were just a NORMAL vanilla extract orchidaceous plant , right-hand ? Why is this one so peculiar ? Tell me . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ I ’d rather not say . ”
Super Elite Gardener # 1 : “ That ’s because I win , do n’t I ? ”
Super Elite Gardener # 2 : “ Fine ! ” ( asshole ) “ You win ! It was a VARIEGATED 30 - foot - plus vanilla orchid with pods on it grow 1200 mil from the Torrid Zone ! You win ! I detest you ! ”
Chayote may not be at that level , but it will put you ahead of the typical backyard veg gardener .
8. Chayote Vines Will Climb on What’s Available
Unlike some veg that need to be tied up carefully and supported well , chayote will happily encompass whatever is available .
I ’ve seen them growing 40 foundation up in oak trees . They ’ll rise towards the sunshine and put yield way up in the air . This is good and bad , of course . It ’s great that they are so scrappy , but it ’s unvoiced to harvest fruit that high in the air .
If you have a chain link fence , a lowly tree you do n’t handle about or a rotting garden shed … plant chayote next to it and let them run . They ’ll turn that backup into a beautiful green spate of vines in a time of year . Growing chayote squeeze over eyesores is n’t a risky approximation , actually . Got a burn up - out car ? Grow chayote on it ! An ugly spouse ? Chayote !
My chayote vine quite happily mature over an unproductive pomegranate tree and covered it with fruit … albeit not pomegranate fruit .
They make right shade , too , so you could imbed them on an pergola over a sit down area for summer shade .
Actually … I could add a 9 , too . Let ’s do it !
9. (A BONUS! EXTRA POINTS!) Chayote is a Solid Survival Crop
Because of the inclination above , chayote is a very in force addition to a survival gardening plan . Their nutritional visibility is good , though they are regrettably low in calories . The productiveness make up for low caloric payoff , though , and they ’re a full intermission from MREs , spam and tinned edible bean !
Now that I made it to 9 of 8 , let ’s take a hour and look at growing chayote squash in your backyard ( or front yard , if you ’re hardcore ) .
Growing Chayote Squash
Growing chayote squash is light .
First , get a few chayote from a market store , a fellow gardener or a farmer ’s food market .
impart the fruits out on your buffet for a few calendar week . finally some of them should grow shoot out of the flower close . ( Chayote do not grow from right come . alternatively , the yield surrounds a exclusive embryo in the eye . )
Once they sprout and the vines are a few inches long , I imbed them as shown in the video above .
ensure you have something sturdy for them to mount where you plant the sprouted fruit . They ’re not picky , as I say , but they are vigorous .
Chayote like full sun but will take half shade . Morning sunlight is the most important .
Chayote like compost , nitrogen and mulch . I fed mine with dilute urine ( and sometimes undiluted ) poured at the basis of the plant . My wager is they ’ll also value calcium .
My plants bring out in the tumble after grow vigorously all through the spring and summer .
Have fun grow chayote squash vine – it ’s a worthwhile vegetable to add to your survival garden .
