Jan–MarApr–JunJul–SepOct–Dec
Planting
Days to maturity
Seasonal yields
Sow indoors · Direct sow · Transplant outdoors
← Explore Plants
Plant · P-220
Pepino
Solanum muricatum
Pepino is an Andean fruit crop grown for a sweet, honeydew-melon-flavored fruit eaten fresh - low in calories, high in vitamin C, and harvested just before full ripeness so it keeps for several weeks at room temperature. The plant tolerates summer heat but stops fruiting once temperatures climb past about 86 F during flowering, so it produces in two windows, a spring crop before the heat sets in and a fall crop once nights cool, rather than bearing all summer. It is frost-tender and does not overwinter outdoors below about 27 F, so growers usually take cuttings in autumn or keep a container stock plant under cover to carry it to the next year.
Record at a glance
Growing profile
- Sun
- Full Sun
- USDA zone
- USDA 9–12
- Soil
- Sand · Loam · Clay
- Moisture
- Well-Drained · Moderate
Vertical layer
Herbaceous- Soil pH
- 6–7
- Plant type
- Annual
- Mature height
- 24–36 in
- Mature spread
- 4 ft
- Plant spacing
- 18–24 in
- Root type
- Fibrous-shallow
- Spread pattern
- Seed
Keep exploring
Similar plants
Discover more plants with shared forest layers or growing conditions.
Adzuki Bean
Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi & H.Ohashi
Adzuki is the odd one out among the beans in this group: a very hot summer is actively too hot for it, since heat above about 35C damages…
Herbaceous · USDA 3–11
African Eggplant
Solanum aethiopicum
African Eggplant, also called gboma or scarlet eggplant, is a West and Central African relative of eggplant that gives two harvests from one…
Herbaceous · USDA 8–12
Alfalfa
Medicago sativa
Alfalfa is a deep-rooted perennial legume grown worldwide as one of the richest forage crops available, its taproot running six metres or…
Herbaceous · USDA 4–11
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera
Aloe Vera is a stemless, clump-forming succulent with thick, spiny-edged leaves that store a clear gel used to soothe burns, wounds and skin…
Herbaceous · USDA 10–12
Alsike Clover
Trifolium hybridum
Alsike Clover fixes nitrogen in wet, acid ground too cold and heavy for red clover to thrive in, and its flowers keep bees working all season…
Herbaceous · USDA 5–9
Amaranth Greens
Amaranthus tricolor
Amaranth greens are one of the few leafy vegetables actually built for peak summer heat rather than one that just tolerates it - sown once…
Herbaceous · USDA 2–11
The deeper layer
Plan what comes next.
- Primary
- Locked ecological function
- Secondary
- Locked ecological function
- Byproduct
- Locked ecological function
Behind the record
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference