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How to Use a Soil Sampler to Prevent Watering Problems in Mirlitons

by | May 15, 2026 | ,

Michelle Impastato Glore takes a soil sample from her raised bed.

If you felt feverish and wanted to check your temperature, you wouldn’t guess; you would get a thermometer and take your temperature. Your garden soil is no different, and we now have a way to determine exactly how much soil moisture your mirliton has available: the soil sampler.

The soil sampler is the simplest way to see how much moisture your mirliton roots are getting. It’s the quickest and most inexpensive way to determine if you have overwatered or underwatered your vine.  Knowing what is happening several inches below the surface is even more important during droughts — many growers lost their vines during the heatwaves in 2023 and 2024 because the soil was starved of moisture.

The “knuckle” method of sticking your finger into the soil only tells you what the soil moisture is near the surface; that method does not work with mirlitons because the roots extend downward 8″.  Electric meters are also ineffective because they measure electrical conductivity–not soil moisture.  The only way to know the available soil moisture beneath your mirliton is to see and feel it, and that’s exactly what a soil sampler lets you do. Mirliton growers in Brazil have used this method for years.  

Michelle Impastato Glore demonstrates how easy it is to take a sample and check moisture levels at all root zone levels. First, insert the sampler, twist 180°, and pull a core sample. Then, examine the soil by pressing down on it in the sampler at intervals of about every inch. Feel for moisture and how it compresses.  That will indicate the amount of moisture present at each level. If it’s bone-dry and crumbly, it needs more water.  If it’s muddy–it has too much.  After a while, you will be able to easily take a reading by touch and sight. The soil will generally be moist at the surface, and it should even out as you go down about 8 inches.

See how Michelle does here

Buy a soil sampler here.

 

 

 

 

 

We’ve Made an Important Discovery That May Change How You Grow Mirlitons: Female Flowers Dominate in the Spring.

by | Apr 28, 2026 | , ,

Michelle Impastato Glore’s 2026 Spring Mirlitons

We’ve made an important discovery that may change how we grow mirlitons in the U.S.A.

I say “we” because it was the observations made by growers in the Mirliton Facebook group that sparked my interest in why spring mirlitons were flowering females long before males–the exact opposite of the fall flowering sequence.  And the reason is that one of the best ways to consistently harvest amid radically changing weather patterns is to focus on getting a spring crop. The fall crop is bedeviled by summer anthracnose epidemics, heat waves, heat domes, droughts, and then fall hurricanes and near-miss traumatic winds. The spring is not. 

And here’s why.

The reason mirltons tend to produce females (pistillates) first in the spring is cool weather. This tendency for cool weather to produce female blooms earlier has long been observed in other cucurbits such as cucumber, melon, and squash, and we used that insight to extrapolate that mirlitons were doing the same.  All mirliton flowers originate at the axil where the buds emerge. They can turn into a male or female flower.  While initial flowering is stimulated by daylight length, the sex of the flower depends on cool night temperature and light intensity.  All these factors combine to release hormones that determine whether a floral bud becomes a boy (staminate) or a girl (pistillate). That explains how the cool nights, short days, and lower light in the spring generally accelerate the appearance of females first. 

That’s good news because it means that spring flowering and fruiting occur long before the summer heatwaves, droughts, the anthracnose epidemic, and fall hurricanes.

The spring may be your best bet for a crop–not your only crop–but your best bet for at least one crop. 

So, how can we take advantage of this discovery?

  1. If you are starting with a sprout, container plant it as soon as possible in the fall in a 3-gallon container so the biological clock starts ticking. We know that when a sprout has been in the soil–any soil–it will flower and fruit within 110-120 days. So if it is transplanted in the first week of March, it will have time to develop a good canopy and flower lots of females during the ideal spring weather. Always overwinter in containers, then plant in the first week of March. (You can run out and tarp it in the event of a frost)

 

  1. If you have an established vine, don’t cut it back in the fall. If you cut back your vine at the end of the fall, you are eliminating your chances for a crop during the safest growing season of the next year—the spring. Frost-protect it through the fall and winter so it emerges with a large canopy that can host hundreds of female flowers in spring.  That canopy will receive the full benefit of the cool temperatures during January-April that trigger female flowering. Growers who tent and heat their vines will be blessed with a sure-fire spring crop. And if all things go well in the summer, you will also get a fall crop — that’s just a bonus crop.

 

  1. Freeze the male pollen. Males tend to arrive late in the spring, long after the females appear, and this can be a temporary problem because there’s no one to pollinate the females.  But we know that Mirliton pollen can be frozen and is viable for at least a year. You can collect male pollen the previous fall,  freeze it, and then hand-pollinate the females in the spring. We are working out the specifics of freezing pollen, and we will post the instructions separately–but it’s easy.

So Spring Up to Success Through Science!

Checklist for Transplanting a Containerized Mirliton Plant

by | Mar 20, 2026 | ,

 

Checklist for Transplanting a Containerized Mirliton Plant

✔ Harden off the potted plant before transplanting–or erect a shade cloth for the first week

✔  Plant in fast-draining,  composted soil

✔  Add manure or slow-release fertilizer

✔  Water thoroughly the first time. 

✔  Use a bamboo stake or soil sampler to determine when to water subsequently

✔  Protect from cold damage if the temperature drops below 50℉

 

 

It’s Not Just Frosts: Cold Damage to Mirlitons Can Occur Anytime Temperatures Fall Below 50℉

by | Mar 14, 2026 | ,

Cold-damaged mirliton leaf.

Freezes and frosts are not the only cold temperatures that can damage mirliton leaves. While not as damaging as frosts, Cold Damage can occur when temperatures drop below 50℉.

Cold damage symptoms often appear several days later and include limp, wilted, or yellowing leaves, and subsequent slowed growth. Light cold damage can generally be outgrown by an established vine, but young, newly transplanted plants are more vulnerable. So protect them by covering them with tarps or buckets and even adding a heating element. 

Why Using Imported Mirlitons (chayote) to Grow Your Own Mirliton Vine is a Bad Idea

by | Mar 8, 2026 | , ,

Many people want to grow their own mirliton (chayote) vine but find it difficult to find locally grown mirlitons. Because of their frustration, some people try to grow mirlitons by purchasing and planting one from the produce department in a grocery store, or online from seed stores. There are two reasons why this is not ideal. 

First, all mirlitons sold in grocery stores and markets are imported varieties. They are grown and imported only as produce, just like all the other vegetables that you purchase. The USDA tried to grow these varieties a century ago and concluded that high-altitude plants have tremendous difficulty growing in low altitudes. This is because these varieties have adapted to the altitude, pests, diseases,  and ultraviolet exposure in their native environment. The patterns of light and temperature influence when and if the variety will flower and fruit. Moreover, an imported variety may not have acquired resistance to diseases or disease pressures that occur in its new environment. 

All imported mirlitons will sprout and send up a shoot, but most imported mirlitons will not flower and set fruit. We have received reports of this problem from hundreds of growers over the years, and I had the same disappointing experience when I tried to grow a vine using imported mirlitons.  

Second, even if you could grow an imported mirliton, you may introduce new diseases that have devastated mirlitons elsewhere. Local mirliton varieties adapted to U.S. conditions have been grown for over two centuries in Louisiana and California. These were originally brought from low-altitude coastal areas in the Caribbean and Central America. In horticulture, these local varieties are called landraces —cultivars that growers have improved through traditional agricultural methods. The Louisiana heirloom mirliton is the U.S. mirliton landrace that has adapted to the regional climate, diseases, and pests through generations of trial and error. They are a reliable and healthy variety. 

But they are vulnerable to new diseases. Many mirliton diseases have not reached the U.S, and some,  like the destructive Chayote Mosaic Virus (CMV), are transmitted inside infected mirliton fruit without any sign of infection (seedborne and sapborne diseases).  The U.S.D.A. does not screen imported chayote for diseases becuase, rightfully so, they assume that it will be eaten, not planted. If you purchase infected imported mirlitons that carry the disease and then plant them, you may spread the disease to the Louisiana heirloom mirlitons.

There is no cure for CMV and other viral plant diseases, and planting imported, unscreened chayote can potentially destroy all U.S. varieties.  That applies to both grocery chayote and chayote of unknown origin sold online. Read about CMV here.

Plant diseases are constantly evolving and afflicting chayote.  In Brazil, scientists have discovered two new plant diseases in chayote. One is a new fungus that causes anthracnose disease in mirlitons — another soilborne and sapborne disease that can be spread through imported chayote. Read the article here.

Read the article about the new seedborne fungal pathogens that cause anthracnose discovered in Brazilian chayote herel https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/10/12/847

And another has been discovered: Cowpea Mild Mottled Virus (CPMMV). Read about it here.

To summarize: Imported mirlitons may not grow and fruit in the U.S., and if they do, they may have disastrous consequences for U.S. mirlitons landraces.

    Can You Plant Other Squash With Mirlitons–or is there a Danger They Will Cross-Pollinate?

by | Mar 8, 2026 | , ,

                         

Many people have asked if there is a danger of interbreeding (cross-pollination) if they grow mirlitons with other squash, like Cucuzza and luffa.  That’s understandable because the vines look and flower similarly.  The short answer is no, mirlitons and other squash species can’t cross-pollinate.

Mirlitons can only pollinate other mirlitons, and other squash can’t pollinate mirlitons.

But here’s an easy way to determine the danger of interbreeding with any combination of plants.

We usually use common names for plants, but the key to knowing whether they can interbreed is the scientific name, called the “binomial name,” which consists of two words: genus and species.  It is analogous to your personal name;  your last name is your genus (family name), and your first name is specifically who you are in the family (specie).

To determine the possibility of interbreeding, simply Google the common name followed by “binomial.” For example, if you Google “mirliton binomial,” your first result is Sechium edule, the binomial name you are looking for.  Then Google “Cucuzza binomial” and it will return Lagenaria siceraria.  Now you know the genus and species of both.

Mirliton: The Genus: Sechium. The Specie: edule

Cucuzza:    The Genus; Lagenaria. The Specie: siceraria                                                                                                                           

The two vines are in different genus (genera is the plural), and different genera seldom interbreed.

What if you have two plants in the same genus? Then look at the second name, the species.  If they are the same species, they can generally cross-pollinate-that’s how botanists define species- any plants that are capable of interbreeding.  There are exceptions, but to be safe, don’t plant them together until you contact a plant expert for advice.

Now,  practice  the  method  on  another  plant:

Find the scientific names (binomial names) for mirliton and cucumber.  Compare them. Are they the same genus? If not, then it’s safe to plant them together.

( Special  thanks to Dr. Joe Willis of the LSU AgCenter for his indispensable contribution to this article)

Vineguard: Protection From Sun, Rain, and Frost.

Vineguard: Protection From Sun, Rain, and Frost.

by | Feb 15, 2026 | , ,

 

1. Vineguard double-arched cattle panel trellis. This can be built using two 16′ panels, with the inside panel cut shorter to provide the canopy space between the upper and lower panels.

The same vineguard double-arched cattle panel trellis with plastic added to the top arch to prevent excessive rainfall from saturating the bed soil.

Here’s an idea. Design an arched trellis structure to protect mirlitons from excessive rain, solar radiation, and cold. I call it a Vineguard. It can be used to shunt rain away from the beds, shield the vine from intense heat, and protect it from frost. 

One structure–three purposes.  

We invite you to design and test the concept. (post your ideas and results on the Facebook group)

The concept is simple: An arching structure that you mount above the trellis, similar to the shade cloth structure that many of you already use–but sloped.  During periods of heavy rainfall, place a single sheet of clear 6-mil plastic on top to divert the water away from the bed and prevent waterlogging.  The single clear sheet will allow sunlight through and air circulation through the sides. In the summertime, replace it with a shade cloth to protect from the sun. In winter, you cover the entire trellis with plastic and enclose the vine to prevent frost damage.

The Vineguard can be built several ways.  If you are already using an arched cattle panel, arch another one a few feet above it. If you’re using a horizontal cattle panel trellis, install a PVC pipe arch overhead that slopes to direct rainfall away from the bed (see photo).  Or you can construct a similar pitched wooden frame with a pitched roof.

The Vineguard will work for both raised-bed and ground plantings, but it works especially well against waterlogging in tall raised beds. That’s because raised beds provide more control over soil moisture. Tall raised beds are less likely to wick moisture from the rest of the rest of the yard when its saturated.

(When you use the clear plastic rain guard, be careful to leave it up no more than two or three consecutive days, and make sure the enclosure is well-ventilated. It can generate additional heat that might harm the vine.)

We will be experimenting with Vineguards this year, and I invite all you Mirliton Wizards out there to create designs that provide the simplest, most effective, and least expensive model.

Special thanks to R. Ranjith at the Nesamony Memorial Christian College for his advice on soil hydrology and managing intense rainfall. 

Thanks to Buster Avera for the photo of his shade-cloth arch, which can also serve as a rain guard.

 

2. Buster Avera’s arched shade cloth structure could also easily double as a rain guard.

3. Corner view of Buster Avera’s arched shade cloth structure.

How to Prune Back a Mirliton in a Container

How to Prune Back a Mirliton in a Container

by | Feb 10, 2026 | ,

Although we recommend trellising mirliton vines while they are in 3-gallon containers, some people prefer to prune them back. Pruning is safe and will result in a compact, bushy plant.

 

The most important point is that when you prune, leave at least three plant nodes above the soil line. Nodes are the small protrusions at the joint of the vine stem that produce branches, tendrils, leaves, and flowers. If you eliminate too many nodes, you can hurt vine growth.

 

Follow the nodes up the stem and prune anywhere above the third node. A “branching node” is a node where a branch has emerged. Try to leave as many of these branching nodes as possible because they will produce a stronger, bushier plant.

 

Every part of the plant that you prune is edible.  Many people use the shoots and leaves in stir-frys.

 

Nodes will appear every few inches. Leave at least three nodes when pruning back.

Mimi Noug Prejean demonstrates how to prune a mirliton plant in this 90-second video here.

 

 

Lightweight Frost Protection: The Glore System

by | Feb 8, 2026 | ,

Michelle’s Glore’s lighted and heated row cover enclosure at night.

Growing mirlitons can be physically challenging for people like me, who have health or age problems that limit our ability to get around. Putting up frost protection can be a real headache.   Michelle Impastato Glore invented a solution: She uses lightweight row-cover frost cloths that one person can easily mount and unmount with the aid of bamboo sticks. And her frost-protection enclosure keeps her mirlitons safe even when temperatures drop to 20°!

Most mirliton growers build temporary frost-protection enclosures using 6-mil plastic or Visqueen. Plastic works well, but it can be difficult and unwieldy for some people to manage the constant covering and uncovering of a trellis. A high trellis can be especially challenging for people with smaller stature or older adults (like me) with balance or walking impairments.   Instead, Michelle chose to use multiple lightweight fabric row covers and bamboo canes, which makes the task easier.

 A single frost cover will not retain enough heat to prevent frost, but multiple ones will. Make sure to layer three frost cloths, as Michelle does, to prevent damage.  Additionally, row covers allow you to use clips to more easily secure them to the trellis.  She also uses heat lamps and incandescent Christmas lights to heat the enclosure.

Here’s how she removes the frost cloths from the trellis using a bamboo stick.

Here’s a video of her explaining the materials she uses.

Here’s a video of how she disassembles the enclosure.

And here’s a video of the vine the morning after the temperatures were  20℉.

These are the tools for her lightweight frost protection:

Fabric row covers (frost cloths ) 10’x50′:

 

Fabric row covers.

Fabric Cover Spring Clips: 5” long:

W

Wireless remote thermometer.

Buyer Beware! How to Sell and Buy Mirliton Seeds, Sprouts, and Plants

by | Jan 5, 2026 | ,

 

The Mirliton.Org Facebook group serves as a market for people to sell or gift mirliton seeds and sprouts. We want to ensure that only viable seeds are transferred so that people are guaranteed a successful growing experience. We don’t want to mandate standards and prefer to make recommendations, with the hope that people will cooperate.

Buying Seeds and Sprouts:

We categorize mirlitons advertised on the Facebook site as either seeds or sprouts. Seeds are defined as the normal unsprouted mirlitons that you use for cooking.  In contrast, sprouts are defined as fruit that has begun to sprout— to extrude the soft inner seed through the large end of the fruit. This is commonly referred to as “sticking its tongue out.” The “tongue” is where all the roots and shoots will grow from.

Not all mirliton seeds are viable. They may look like mature, healthy seeds, but vines can bear fruit that lacks the inner soft seed that would produce a new plant. We call this a “parthenocarpic” fruit.  It occurs when a female flower is not successfully pollinated and has an unfertilized ovary.  The seed will never germinate, and if you get one of these, you will be getting a dud.  Only sprouted seeds are viable and will grow into an entire plant. 

That’s why we recommend that, if you are selling or buying a seed, use only sprouts — the ones with their tongues sticking out.

A mirliton sprout. The soft inner seed has begun to extrude and is “sticking its tongue out.” This means it is a viable seed and will produce a mirliton vine. (Andres Barcelo photo)

Buying Certified Varieties:

We are the only organization in the U.S.A. that certifies mirlitons as Louisiana heirlooms. We maintain a list here of both named and unnamed varieties, along with their sellers. If you have any questions about whether the variety you are buying is a certified heirloom, contact lance@mirliton.org.

Buying From Garden Stores or Online?

Don’t do it.  Garden stores generally refuse to disclose the origin of their sprouts or plants. They’ve been known to sell imported chayote as Louisiana heirlooms. Only buy one if the store provides you with the name of the certified variety and the grower’s name. Online purchases are even riskier. 

Here’s a list you can check to determine if the store is selling officially certified heirloom mirltions. 

No Guarantees:

If you buy a seed online from the Mirliton.Org Facebook group, the site does not guarantee any claims made by the seller. It is up to the buyer to verify that the seed is viable and a certified heirloom variety. The guarantee rests with the seller.

 

 

Click here to see all posts in Mirliton’s Blog

Recent Posts

How to Use a Soil Sampler to Prevent Watering Problems in Mirlitons

May 15, 2026

If you felt feverish and wanted to check your temperature, you wouldn't guess; you would get a thermometer and take your temperature. Your garden soil is no different, and we now have a way to determine exactly how much soil moisture your mirliton has available: the...

Checklist for Transplanting a Containerized Mirliton Plant

Mar 20, 2026

  Checklist for Transplanting a Containerized Mirliton Plant ✔ Harden off the potted plant before transplanting--or erect a shade cloth for the first week ✔  Plant in fast-draining,  composted soil ✔  Add manure or slow-release fertilizer ✔ ...

Vineguard: Protection From Sun, Rain, and Frost.

Feb 15, 2026

  Here’s an idea. Design an arched trellis structure to protect mirlitons from excessive rain, solar radiation, and cold. I call it a Vineguard. It can be used to shunt rain away from the beds, shield the vine from intense heat, and protect it from frost. ...

How to Prune Back a Mirliton in a Container

Feb 10, 2026

Although we recommend trellising mirliton vines while they are in 3-gallon containers, some people prefer to prune them back. Pruning is safe and will result in a compact, bushy plant.   The most important point is that when you prune, leave at least three plant...

Lightweight Frost Protection: The Glore System

Feb 8, 2026

Growing mirlitons can be physically challenging for people like me, who have health or age problems that limit our ability to get around. Putting up frost protection can be a real headache.   Michelle Impastato Glore invented a solution: She uses lightweight...

Buyer Beware! How to Sell and Buy Mirliton Seeds, Sprouts, and Plants

Jan 5, 2026

  The Mirliton.Org Facebook group serves as a market for people to sell or gift mirliton seeds and sprouts. We want to ensure that only viable seeds are transferred so that people are guaranteed a successful growing experience. We don’t want to mandate standards...