Prickly Chayote

Description:

Thorny or prickly chayotes are one variety of the chayote family, which is a member of the same plant family as gourds, squashes, watermelon, and cucumbers. Because of this, chayotes are often called chayote squashes, and, in addition, they’re known by a bunch of different names around the world: merliton, vegetable pear, chokos, pear squash, chocho, christophene, sayote, Japanese pumpkin, pipinola… the list goes on.

Habitat:

Spotted growing on a trellis.

Notes:

From the Aztec word 'Chayotli', chayotes are native to southern Mexico and central America. Grown primarily for their odd pear shaped fruits, they were an important cultivated vegetable in that region before Columbus arrived. Chayote is a perennial member of the cucumber or pumpkin family with a strong climbing habit.