Achocha (Cyclanthera pedata var pedata), packet of 5 seeds, organic

Family:  Cucumber (Cucurbitaceae) Annual, 100 days to fruits (Slipper Gourd, Caigua, Caihua) Annual cultigen from the Andean region, vining to 15 feet, leaves palmate, flowers male and female, yellow.  Yields upright, slipper-shaped, smooth-skinned fruits that are hollow, occurring in great number, all along the stem, pushing up from the nodes.  The fruits are about the size of a medium cucumber–around 6 inches from base to tip, and fat enough to fit comfortably in the hand, while several of them fit less comfortably in the hand.  These fruits are edible fresh (scoop out seeds and eat like a cucumber, or whir into smoothies) or cooked (the hollow shape lends the achocha to use in the casserole dish, stuffed with cheese and herbs, covered with sauce.)  The fruits of this cultivar are tasty and sweet, with no “cucumber bitters” aftertaste.  The plant prefers a cool, moist and fertile root system and responds admirably well to applications of coir, compost, and also frequent watering.  Trellis.  Many state that the plant does best in cool and shady circumstances, but I grow them very successfully in a full-sun exposure, and I believe they give more fruit when grown in this manner.  Sow the seed indoors around the last frost date and work the plants up in pots.  Transplant outdoors once the weather has truly settled.  Space plants 3 feet apart. 5 seeds per packet, certified organically grown