Today our class had the chance to learn a little bit about Costa Rican agriculture. We traveled about an hour up into the mountains to visit a chayote farm. For those who don’t know, chayotes are a member of the squash family. They come in several varieties, and are grown throughout Central and South America. It was fun to meet and talk with the farm’s owner, whose family has owned this land for over one hundred years. Most people up in the moutains live fairly simply, and are known for living long, healthy lives. We were excited to come home with a half dozen large chayote. Here are some pictures from today.

Here is a chayote. You can occasionally find them in grocery stores in the US.

To grow the chayotes, the farmers create a large grid of wire about five feet off the ground. The chayote plants grow up and across the wires, forming a canopy from which the actual chayotes grow and hang. The farmers can then simply walk under the canopy and harvest the chayote.

The views up in the mountains are breathtaking!

This guy is the farm’s owner. Believe it or not, he is 81 years old…and still working hard!