Close-up of avocados growing on tree
Avocado (Persea Americana) is an evergreen, low-branching tree with an open canopy of leaves. Avocado trees can reach 60 feet tall, but commonly reach heights between 35 to 40 feet. Other common names for avocado are avocado-pear or alligator pear, and aguacate (Spanish).
Avocados produce pear-shaped, up to 10 inches long, edible fruit. The fruit is classified botanically as a berry and consists of a large, hard seed surrounded by a thick, buttery pulp. Fruit skin texture and thickness vary and range in color–green, purple, black, or reddish at maturity. Generally, avocados ripen after harvest or after falling off the tree.
Avocados in scientific studies have been claimed to lower cholesterol aid in heart health and prevent stroke. They are known to be high in vitamin E, antioxidants vitamin K, dietary fiber, potassium, folic acid, vitamin C, and other trace elements.
Tropical America is the native habitat of avocado. There are three ecological races of avocado, including Mexican, Guatemalan, and West Indian. South Florida produces most of the avocado in the States, but avocado can also grow in central Florida in protected locations.
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The avocado originated in Mexico, in the area now known as the state of Puebla, located in the southern tip of the country near Mexico City, where its use has been determined dates to at least 10000 B.C. The native variety is a small blackish fruit with a large seed.
Through the selection and breeding process, it has evolved into the varieties commercially available today. In the United States, for example, the Hass variety of avocado selected and developed by a mail carrier and amateur horticulturist, Rudolph Hass, from whom its name is derived. The Hass avocado represents in excess of 90% of the avocados commercially marketed today.
The avocado is a member of the genus Persea with the species name of Americana in the Lauracae family which contains species such as cinnamon and bay laurel. It is the fruit of a hermaphroditic tree; that is one that contains the flowering elements of both male and female concurrently.
The avocado is also, because of its dichotomy, in that its flowering male and female elements are generally not concurrently present, and its long juvenile state which takes place at anywhere from three to five years, in which developing of progeny is excepted, not readily susceptible to self-pollination. Thus, grafting has become the general method of plant propagation.
Avocados which generally begin to flower around September, bloom in successive stages, at least four or five of them. That means there are four or five opportunities for pollination to occur, although the process is complicated by the nature of the flowers which open one day as female and the next as a male.
To facilitate pollination in an orchard which is fickle because of the changing gender of the flowers, use pollinizers to help cross-pollinate. These are other avocado varieties that bloom with intense clusters of flowers and the bees go straight to these ones first.
After that, they work their way through the rest of the orchard. Polliniser varieties include Ettinger, Zutano, and Fuerte and these trees are planted as part of the orchard, spaced every eight or nine of the main crop variety trees. As the canopy becomes larger, we will need to bring in more bees. They are usually brought in for ten weeks with between six and ten hives per hectare.
Temperature changes during the pollination stage which rely on warm temperatures can mean that pollination doesn’t occur, so you will have to wait for the next flowering stage.
Avocados also do well on volcanic soil which provides good drainage.
They suffer under frost conditions which can easily kill very young trees but if trees are going to die, it is generally in their first year. Avocado foliage will grow at a rate of 500mm, both out and up, every year, and will sustain this level of growth with very little need for water.
In conditions where water becomes short, the trees bear only as much fruit as they can hold. When fruit is left on the trees, especially under dry conditions, they will begin to flower and produce even more fruit.
Pruning avocado trees will help manage size. Periodic fertilization and regular watering, along with control of insects, disease, and weeds, promote vigorous growth and good fruiting.
Some varieties of avocado are “A” type and others are “B” type (referring to reproduction)–plant more than one avocado tree variety to ensure good pollination unless there are other avocado trees present in the neighborhood.
In the home landscape, a good early variety is Simmonds (June 25 to September 15). Miguel is a mid-season producer (July 22 to September 15), and Choquette produces late in the season (October 30 to January 15). Varieties such as Meya, Marcus, and Lula have high cold tolerance. Visit reputable garden centers and nurseries to locate good varieties for Florida landscapes.
For the home gardener, who may have tried with success planting seeds of various plants such as watermelon, cantaloupe, and various forms of squashes, etc. with success, the frustration experienced in starting an avocado tree from seed presented in the biology above gives some explanation, but several methods have been tried successfully including suspending the seed in water with the aid of toothpicks and placing the seed in a plastic bag with moist humus until sprouting occurs.
You then rest the seed atop a drinking glass, so that the avocado seed is halfway immersed in water (the pointy half out of the water; the flat half in the water). You may put the glass on a window sill. Keep it in a warm place but out of direct sunlight.
If you don’t want the sheer joy of watching the avocado roots grow, you can always plant it directly into the soil, which according to horticulture experts is the best way to start the seed.
Growing an avocado tree from seed in a glass of water is a popular home project. It makes for a great science project for children. The tree puts out roots and grows a small tree, then withers away and dies. It is possible to transplant the tree to a pot for indoor growth or outdoors in subtropical and tropical climates.
Don’t expect to get avocados from the tree any time soon, however. Trees grew from seed often take from 7 to 15 years to produce fruit, and the fruit may not be as flavorful as the parent seed. Most avocado trees are hybrids and the seeds usually will not have the superior characteristics of the parent tree.
Avocado trees are a beautiful addition to the garden or patio. When grown in the ground, they become quite large, so allow plenty of room between trees, buildings, and overhead obstacles. When mature the tree will be between 30 and 60 feet tall with a large canopy. Grown in containers the trees will be limited by the size of the pot, but can still grow fairly tall.
Put the pot in a sunny window and keep it watered. The soil needs to remain moist, but not soggy. Good drainage is essential. When the roots are well established and the tree has begun to grow, start fertilizing the plant with a water soluble fertilizer formulated for houseplants. Fertilize every two weeks until transplanting outdoors.
Pinch the top off the tree when it reaches approximately 12 inches in height. This encourages branching and a stronger tree.
To start the seed in water, place three or four toothpicks into the avocado, equally spaced around the middle of the seed. Place the seed, pointed end up, into a glass or jar of water. The water should cover the bottom of the seed by about an inch.
If you start avocado seed in water, change the water every few weeks to keep it oxygen-rich and clean. Replenish the water as necessary to ensure the bottom ¼ or ½ of the seed stays covered.
You can speed germination in soil by removing the seed coat and slicing a thin layer from both the top and the bottom of the seed prior to planting.
The wide portion of the avocado seed is the bottom. Plant bottom down and pointy side up. Your shoots will come from the top, pointy side. Your roots will grow from the flat, bottom side.
After a couple of weeks, you will notice a stem emerging from the top. When the stem is six to seven inches long, cut it back to about three inches. This will encourage branching and a stronger tree.
Once your root system is 2-3 inches long and the stem has leafed out again, plant it in rich humus soil, leaving the seed half exposed or about an inch above the soil surface. If you plant it in a pot, it should be at least a 10-1/2″ diameter pot. Keep the soil moist over the coming weeks (not wet!) If your seed hasn’t sprouted by two months, get a new one. (This is the reason wise gardeners always plant more than one seed at a time!)
If you plant the avocado seed indoors in a pot, place it to get a great deal of direct, bright light. Horticulture authorities recommend the ideal placement at the ‚”brightest window in the coolest room.” An indoor avocado plant will most likely never bear fruit; however, it can grow into an interesting houseplant.
If you want your avocado seed to become a fruit-bearing tree, transplant the small avocado tree into a 10 inch pot of potting mix. Plant so that the seed is peeking out the soil at the top, about half exposed.
Consider the needs of the mature avocado tree when you choose your location. This will be a fruit tree, and not a plant and will require considerable space for its roots and its branches. The avocado tree needs much sunlight, so don’t plant it where it will be shaded by your house, outbuildings, other trees, etc.
Under good conditions, it normally takes many years – up to a decade or two- to bear fruit. Plant a whole fruit orchard if you choose. The avocado nutrition and taste are well worth the time investment.
Harden the tree off before planting it outdoors by moving it outside for a few hours. Increase the time outdoors gradually over the course of a couple of weeks, until the tree is ready to be moved outdoors permanently.
Remove all grass and weeds from the area under the tree. Grass and weeds compete with the tree roots for nutrients. Use mulch to keep the weeds away, but do not allow the mulch to touch the tree. Mulch touching the bark sometimes encourages rot to set in.
Water the tree thoroughly during the first few weeks after transplanting. Taper off water gradually so that the top few inches are allowed to dry out between watering. Avocados need consistent water during fruiting and do best with regular irrigation. Fertilize the avocado tree with a balanced fertilizer containing zinc several times a year.
Tree limbs easily break in high winds and if carrying heavy loads of fruit. Under wet conditions, avocado trees are highly susceptible to root infection caused by Phytopthora fungi. Other problems of avocado are mites, scale, and avocado scab, as well as several other diseases.
In conclusion, avocados are a fruit, plentiful in supply and make a nutritious addition to summer meal planning. And hopefully, some of the information presented here demystifies as to why there are so hard to grow from the seed the gardener finds at their core.
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