Sechium edule is native to Mexico. Although a native species, it is rarely found in the wild in Mexico and few wild populations can still be found in Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo and Oaxaca (Lira, 1996). This species has been widely introduced and now it can be found cultivated and naturalized across Central and South America, the Caribbean, Southern Asia, Africa, Macaronesia, Australia, New Zealand and other islands in the Pacific and the Indian Ocean, but is most important in tropical America. It can hardly be found in South Asia and is not very popular in Africa
