ianj@mh3bc1.UUCP (02/04/84)
In Australia chokos are quite common, not so here (in N.J. or in
catalogs). Does anyone know where I can get some to grow ???
Here is what the Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening has to say.
It is a perennial tropical American vine of which almost
every part is useful for food or forage. Its green or white
fruit, commonly called choko, chayote, choyote, chritophine, or
mirliton, is pear shaped, three or four inches long, and fleshy.
Sechium can be creamed, baked or bolied and used in sauces,
puddings and salads. It can be served as a cooked vegetable. It
tastes somewhat like delicately flavoured summer squash. The
tubers, branches and young shoots are also used as vegetables,
while all parts of the plant, including the leaves make good
fodder for livestock.
Since the vine thrives only in areas where frost does not
penetrate the ground deeper than an inch, its culture is
generally confiend to the southernmost parts of the country.
Sechiums are planted in the spring with harvest beginning at the
end of the rainy season and lasting until first frost. Each
plany can be expected to produce between 50 & 100 fruits. The
entire fruit is planted in a rich, well-drained soil with the
stem protuding above ground. Since the vines can grow up to 50'
long, the plants should be spaced 8' to 10' apart and given a
trellis or arbor for support. Large tuberous roots are formed
during the second season.
Because the flowers are male or female and both kinds of
flowers are not always found on the same vine, it may be
necessary to plant more than one vine.