Cyclanthera Pedata 10 Seeds, Edible Fruit Vine, Caigua Slipper Gourd Vegetable

The Plant Attraction

$4.75 

Cyclanthera pedata
Also known as: Caigua, Stuffing Cucumber, Slipper Gourd, Achocha, Jaiva, Chuchay Karela

A herbaceous vine grown for its edible fruit, which is predominantly used as a vegetable. Presumably native to the Andes where it has been traditionally cultivated. The vine itself can get to a length of about 5-12 meters long, the stems are thin and the leaves can be up to 24 cm long. The small flowers can be greenish or white and are borne in racemes. The fruit is light green, ovoid, curved, up to 15 cm long, almost hollow (except for the seeds and a thin flesh layer), with smooth skin or sometimes covered in soft spines, known to be similar to green peppers with black seeds.

The fruits are eaten after removing the seeds and stuffing them with other foods like rice or meat and then cooking them. Young shoots and leaves can also be eaten as greens. The fruits are a source of potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. Flavor is similar to cucumber crossed with green bean.

It prefers full sun with filtered afternoon shade in hot areas. It will tolerate a wide range of soils with consistent moisture for fruit production. It is frost sensitive, USDA zone 9-11

This offer is for 10 seeds.