Growing Choko - Bali Advertiser

‘Dear Garden Doctor,

I found a long lost forgotten choko on the back of the kitchen shelf that had to my surprise sprouted a fresh set of leaves from the end of the fruit! I have since planted it into a small pot eagerly awaiting to see if it grows up whilst deciding where to put it in the garden. Do you think that this plant will crop and how long should I expect to wait for it to produce? Do you have any further advice or tips for growing choko.

Thank you in advance.

Dianne – Bali’

Choko (botanical name Sechium edule) is also commonly known as chayote christophine, pear squash and vegetable pear. It is a vine belonging to the Cucurbit family, related to cucumbers, pumpkins, squash and melons.

For anyone that wants to grow a choko vine the official method is to leave a fruit on the shelf and wait a few weeks for it to sprout. Usually this situation comes about by accident when a forgotten fruit has rolled off to the back of the kitchen shelf all by itself. Then suddenly one day you find that a plant is growing out of the kitchen cupboard, and on closer inspection you discover that it’s a choko!

Once the choko has sprouted a few inches of growth out of the fruit, plant it outside with the sprouted half above the ground. It will prefer a well-drained soil with plenty of organic matter worked in. Keep it well watered for the first few months until it is established. Chokos are easy to grow and will fruit abundantly if grown well, which brings me to another question – Is a choko a fruit or a vegetable?

Chokos are one of the true fruits which are generally thought of as vegetables in a culinary sense, mainly due to their lack of natural sweetness. Cucumber, pumpkin, eggplant, avocado and tomato are some other common fruits that are generally thought of as vegetables. Despite their lack of natural sweetness these culinary vegetables are botanically regarded as fruits.

In botanical terms, a fruit is the structure that develops from the flower, after it has been fertilised, and which typically contains seeds. An easy way to remember the difference is that fruits have seeds, whereas vegetables don’t. This leaves me a little perplexed about the seedless watermelons! And try telling a six-year-old that a pumpkin is a fruit and see how far you get – I digress.

Choko is at home growing in the conditions of a warm tropical climate. Plant it in a full sun location for best results. Once growing, the plant will need space and support to grow. It will grow well along fences, walls, trellises or even up a tree. The vines will start to spread anywhere and everywhere, and can easily take over the entire yard, smothering plants and even invading the neighbours plot.

For these reasons, it is best to train the vines along a trellis and keep them well trimmed and under control. Choko is so prolific that it will take over a yard in no time at all, if left to its own devices. Growing choko across an overhead trellis or an outdoor pergola is useful, as it can provide shading for outdoor areas with the lovely fruit hanging down for easy pickings.

The vine produces both male and female flowers which pollinate via wind and insects. Once your plant is in the ground you should be picking fruit within 9-12 months. Pick the fruit when it is 4-6 inches in length. There are many now who might be thinking – why, oh why, would you ever consider planting a choko vine? They go rogue, running rampant all over the garden, with fruit that doesn’t even taste that nice.

Well, in fact despite what some people think, choko are a very versatile plant, with uses that extend far beyond the culinary value of the fruit, which by the way is both nutritious and tasty.

There are many creative ways to use it and keep in mind that choko is more than just the fruit – choko is everything!

The fresh shoots, leaves, seeds and roots are all edible. Chokos are often grown specifically for their fresh shoots and tendrils, popular in Asian cuisine and sometimes known as the dragon whisker vegetable. The young shoots and leaves are commonly consumed as a vegetable all over Asia.

Trimmed tips can be steamed and served like any other vegetable. The soft seed inside the fruit can even be fried and has a taste reminiscent of roasted almond – it’s a real treat!

The fresh young leaves and raw fruits can be sliced fresh and added to salads for extra crunch. The tuberous roots can even be pulled up from the ground and used as a potato substitute.

Choko fruits are used in curries, soups, and stews, where they absorb all of the herbs, spices and flavours of the dish, The subtle taste of choko always renders it adaptable to the flavour of other ingredients.

Any home gardener who likes to experiment with new and unusual varieties of fruits and vegetables should have a go at growing a choko. They have a high yield of fruit which is both savory and nutritious, and the fresh shoots and tendrils are also very useful as a vegetable.

The best part is once established the plant will do very well at growing on its own. In fact, it is so prolific that you will probably spend more time cutting it back than you do actually trying to grow it!

Dr. Kris

Garden Doctor

Contact: dr.kris@ymail.com

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