ABSTRACT
Chayote, Sechium edule Sw., is in one of the more important genera species in the Cucurbitaceae. The commercial importance of squashes, cucumbers and melons, watermelons, bottle gourds, and sponge gourds, has resulted in much attention directed to these crops. This chapter discusses aspects of the evolution and domestication of chayote, and presents a summary of pollination and seed germination. Chayote is a large perennial, monoecious vine with a single seeded viviparous fruit; it is self-compatible and cross-pollinated with a generalist pollinator syndrome. The male and female flowers are almost identical, with rotate corollas and ten pouch-like nectaries on the floor of the saucer-shaped hypanthia. The diversity of fruit morphology in chayote is high, particularly in the land races in regions of Mexico where traditional agriculture is prevalent. There is variation in length, color, shape, surface features, flavor, texture, and amount of fibers surrounding the seeds.
