How to Tell a Male & Female Chayote

Chayote is a delicious vegetable grown in tropical and subtropical regions around the world. It is perennial, and a single plant will continue to provide fruit for many years. It is typically grown as a vine, climbing on fences or other types of support. Male and female flowers appear on the same vine, so only one plant is needed to produce fruit. If you are simply curious, or want to watch the fruit develop from the flowering stage, the sexes are easy to distinguish.

Instructions

1. • 1

     Find the flowers. Blooms appear in the joint where the leaf is attached to the vine. Flowering begins when the days start to shorten in the fall.

   • 2

     Observe the flower arrangement and color. Male flowers are pale yellow and appear in groups. Female flowers are greenish, and grow singly or in pairs.

   • 3

     Observe the base of the flower. Male flowers are attached directly to the stalk of the inflorescence. Female flowers have a tiny fruit already formed between the flower and the stalk.