The Hungry MouseHow to Grow an Avocado Tree from an Avocado Pit
I said it the other day: I have gardening on the brain.
Now, being summer, we eat a lot of avocado-based stuff at The Mouse House. Guacamole. Avocado salad. You get the picture. Which means that we wind up with a lot of avocado pits rolling around in the kitchen.
Did you know that if you plant those pits, you can actually grow your own avocado tree at home? Even though trees rooted like this rarely bear fruit without help (more on that in a little bit), it’s still a ton of fun to plant your own tree and watch it grow.
And if you have kids, this is a great project. Here are detailed instructions for how to root and plant a tree from an avocado pit. All you need is an avocado, a little water and a few toothpicks, a sunny window, and a whole lot of patience.
Avocado trees grow best in warm, sunny places, but you can keep one quite successfully for many years in the right indoor environment. They can grow to between 20 and 40 feet, but are quite happy if you keep them pruned indoors.
I’ve managed to grow several trees over the years just like this. I usually wind up giving the saplings to folks as presents.
Here are two that I grew a few years ago, when I had a large rooftop garden. I started them on my windowsill in the winter, then moved them outside when the weather got warmer. (They’re the two in front.)
Not every pit is guaranteed to root, so you may want to try two or three pits at once, just in case.
Equipment List
1 avocado pit
4 toothpicks
1 small glass or ceramic dish, about the size of a custard cup
Yields: 1 avocado tree sapling, with patience and a little luck
How to remove the avocado pit
In case you aren’t sure how, here’s how to remove the pit from an avocado.
Cut a full circle longways around the avocado. Twist it apart.
The two halves should separate neatly.
Whack the pit with a sharp, heavy knife so that the blade bites into the pit just a little bit.
Twist the blade and the pit will come right out.
Do something really yummy with the avocado…
…then clean off your pit. Scrape off any avocado that’s still stuck to the pit.
Rinse it off under cold water, then wipe it off. You want to be sure you’ve removed all the avocado. The pit is going to be sitting in water for a few weeks, so you don’t want anything funky to start growing in it.
When you root the pit, you want to do it pointy side up. The stem and leaves will sprout out the top. And the root will push its way out the bottom.
Stick toothpicks into your avocado pit
Grab your toothpicks.
Push one toothpick into the side of the avocado pit. You want to get it in far enough so that you can pick the pit up by the toothpick.
Do this with the other 3 toothpicks. You want them evenly spaced out, like this:
Keep the avocado pit well watered
Place the avocado pit over your dish, so the toothpicks are resting on the rim of the dish and the pit is suspended over the center.
If it’s not sitting well, wiggle your toothpicks around a little so they’re tilted up slightly, like this:
Fill the dish with water so that the avocado pit is about halfway submersed.
Change the water every day or two, so that the pit is constantly sitting in water.
Keep your avocado pit on a sunny windowsill
Set the dish on a sunny windowsill. Keep an eye on it, and replenish the water frequently.
Remember: Until you plant your avocado sapling in soil, you need to keeping the pit in water at all times. No water, no tree.
How long does it take for an avocado pit to root?
For the first few weeks, your pit won’t really do much. It will just sit there, looking very much the same as the day that you first propped it up. You may start to despair. After all, you’ve been changing the water for days, so, what gives?
Well, Nature, as they say, takes her sweet time.
Then, after about three weeks or so, the top of the pit should begin to split open. (Nature is also kind of imprecise…this can take up to six weeks to happen.)
Over the next few weeks, a stem will shoot up, the first leaves will begin to grow, and roots will begin to force their way out of the bottom. In a few more weeks, you should see more leaves.
The whole process will generally take about 3 months, give or take.
When to plant your avocado seedling
When your tree is maybe 7-8 inches tall, nip off the top few leaves. (That’s right…pinch them off. It will encourage growth and help the tree branch out.)
Grab a 10-inch pot with a saucer and at least one drainage hole in the bottom. Fill it about an inch from the top with potting soil.
Dig a shallow hole in the center of the soil (just deep enough so half the pit is covered). Nestle the bottom of your avocado sapling in it, root-side down.
Cover the pit halfway with soil, so half the pit is still exposed. Press down firmly on the soil to secure it. It should be standing up straight, at attention.
Pour a little water into the pot gently, because the soil hasn’t settled yet. And…you did it! Set your tree in a sunny window. Keep it watered, and watch it grow!
Tips for caring for your avocado tree
Where should I keep my avocado tree?
Avocado trees like warm, sunny spots. If your tree doesn’t get enough light, it will get leggy (i.e. all stem, few leaves). Depending on where you live, you should be able to keep your tree outside in a sunny spot. If the temperature ever drops below about 45 degrees F, bring it back inside.
How often should I water my avocado tree?
Water it enough to keep the soil moist, but not muddy. You never want your tree sitting in a puddle of water once you’ve potted it.
If your leaves start to turn yellow, it’s a sure sign it’s getting too much water. If this happens, stop watering it for a few days until the soil dries out a little.
Should I ever pinch off any leaves?
Yes. When your tree is about 7-8 inches tall and ready for potting, pinch off the top few leaves. This will encourage your tree to branch out and be nice and bushy.
Will my avocado tree bear fruit?
Now, if you grow an avocado tree, it’s unlikely that it will ever bear fruit.
From what I’ve gathered from my (admittedly uncomprehensive and unscientific) research, you need to graft a piece of a fruit-bearing tree on to your seedling. I’m an avid and enthusiastic kitchen gardener, but sadly my botanical knowledge ends there.
If anyone knows more about this, by all means, pipe up!
Send me your pictures!
Like I said, this food project is a ton of fun—especially with kids.
Let me know if you give this a whirl! If you send me your pictures, I’ll post them up here—along with a note—so folks can share your experience. (Who knows? Maybe we’ll grow an online avocado grove…)
Happy gardening!
245 Comments on “How to Grow an Avocado Tree from an Avocado Pit”
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What a great post
I’ve always wondered if avocado pits could be planted 
Definitely would like to hear more about the grafting process as well – the markets charge crazy prices for them here!
IF YOU GO TO YOUTUBE AND WRITE ON BOX AVOCADO GRAFTING THERE ARE PEOPLE SHOWING ILLUSTRATIONS AND ACTUALLY DOING GRAFTS IT LOOKS EASY, JUST NEED TO FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY, THERE IS A LOT INFO ON THE WEB ALSO. I’M RETIRING THIS IS A HOBBY THAT I I AM INTERESTED IN. GO TO A FARMERS MARKET AND SEE HOW MUCH THEY WANT FOR A GRAFTED AVOCADO TREE, 4 FT TALL WITH AVOCADOS ON IT GOOD LUCK. WHEN YOU PLANT IT IN THE GROUND MAKE SURE YOU PLANT IT AWAY FROM SCREEN ENCLOSURES ETC. I HAD TO CUT DOWN A TREE THAT WAS ALREADY 10FT TALL AND APPROXIMATELY 5-7 YEARS OLD
You made a big mistake. It takes a while for them to come in. I have an avocado tree that hasn’t had any fruit for more than 7 years and now just recently I had more avocados on it than I could do with em! As a matter of fact, I’m giving away some to family because the neighbors got wise to it and stole some! Patience is a virtue!
Yes, I live in South Africa and we are always told that an avocado tree grown from its large seed can take up to 7 years before u see fruit grow on it…. so its a long time to wait but if u dont mind and love avo’s then its worth it!
)
i’m from South Africa and have a 5yr old tree planted from seed – looking so healthy and it has fruit but alas! fruit are about the size of small plums. What can i do to encourage more growth ?
Make some Seaweed Fertilizer (see on youtube), you can always try ORGONITE as well. Feed your tree
Goodluck
I lived in Florida where my mother-in-law had a 30-foot Florida Avocado tree. I planted one and sure enough 7 years later it started to bear fruit. It was about 20 feet tall by then. I had it in a pot until about 6 feet or so – about 5 years. I planted it about 10-15 feet from a canal that ran behind my house. In two years it shot up like crazy. The first crop yielded about 200 pounds of fruit! No kidding. Now trying to grow one in San Diego. I think I’m going to graft this time.
It’s a lot simpler than the initial post though! Just put the pit in a pot of soil about 3cms below the surface and keep it watered. Then wait 3 months. No problem every time! Ditch the toothpicks!
T
he easiest way to start a seed is to take a plastic coke (soda) bottle cut it around the neck where the tapered edge goes straight, turn the top upside down in the bottom add water then put the pit in it fat side first ( setting on the drink hole . make sure the water goes up to and touches the bottom of the seed place it in a sunny window . check water weekly add when needed. in a few weeks it will be on its way!
no need for grafting, after 5 years the tree will bear flower, the same goes for any fruit bearing tree (some take as long as 25 years to bear fruit) grafting is a tecnique used in bonsai to strengthen a certain tree that has poor rooting or weak rooting e.g grafting orange onto a lemon trunk as the roots for the lemon are bttr.
I’m here in florida and have had a flower bearing apple tree for the past 13yrs. (the flowers are pretty though) But no fruit! I guess mine will go the full 25yrs. before it yeilds any fruit!
Shawna, It sounds like you need a pollinizer for your apple tree. In order for apple trees to bear fruit, another apple tree of a different variety is needed. Of course, the trees have to bloom at the same time. You have two options. One, if you know the variety of the tree in your yard, you can get online and find an apple pollinizer chart that matches varieties which best suit each others pollination needs. The other option is to plant an ornamental crab apple. The reason crab apples are used is the longevity of the bloom; making it a good pollinizer for many different varieties. It is best to plant it within fifty feet of your tree.
Now, if you have plenty of insects, bees and like (pollinators). Then your tree should bear fruit.
Shawna, It sounds like you need a pollinizer for your apple tree. In order for apple trees to bear fruit, another apple tree of a different variety is needed. Of course, the trees have to bloom at the same time. You have two options. One, if you know the variety of the tree in your yard, you can get online and find an apple pollinizer chart that matches varieties which best suit each others pollination needs. The other option is to plant an ornamental crab apple. The reason crab apples are used is the longevity of the bloom; making it a good pollinizer for many different varieties. It is best to plant it within fifty feet of your tree.
What a great idea. A fun project to do with kids
I was doing a little reading up on this, and one of the sites I found said that they won’t bear fruit in the first 3-4 years, but may after that, and that also, keeping a few trees/bushes near each other will help with pollination hopefully leading to more fruit.
Thanks for the post!
Avocados grown from seed do flower and produce fruit. I live in the tropics and that is how we plant avocados – from seeds.
Never did the water thing though, but I do not see why it would not work to produce fruit.
How many years before the tree bears fruit?
OK, this I would think be very fun to try. Just not so sure how to make the holes for the toothpicks without an accident.Would the tiniest drill bit in my husband’s drill work?
I bet the tree is very fragrant.
Great article- Jessie xox
Thanks, Bunny!
And, oh gosh, you can just push the toothpicks in by hand. (No drill needed!) The pits are relatively soft when they’re fresh. Kind of like walnut meat.
xo
+Jessie
I’ve read a lot of articles on this & all state to put toothpicks in & sit in water. This is not how mine happend! I threw a pit in my garden, it took root & 3 years later, I have a tree that is about 4 feet tall. I have put the soil it grew in, into a pot & brought it inside during the winter, the cold NJ climate would kill an avocado tree. This is my tree’s 3 summer & is sprouting new leaves & branches.
Also, grafting is not necessary, as it does not occure in nature, however, as another reader posted, if you have other trees, keep them close to help pollenate & let nature do it’s thing.
I spoke w/ some folks at the Rutger’s Agricultural Dept. & they informed me that not all seeds will grow fruit bearing trees… you tree may take up to 7 years before you can even find out if you will get fruit, so be patient
Most importantly, Enjoy!!
I put three avacado pits in a pot barely deep enough for them so the tops stuck out and they all sprouted. After I pinched the tops off, they started to get bark on the trunks. They are 4 feet tall and when the third one gets tall enough, I plan on trying to braid them together to form an indoor plant that looks nice. I will keep it to a short 4 feet if possible and hope for something to get it to flower. I give it indoor plant food and it does well.
The pit is soft if it is fresh. You know like you just used the avocado for dinner. So the toothpicks poke right into the pit. It’s easy, no need for drill.
You just get a good dry grip and push the toothpick in! 😉
I loved doing this as a kid…so satisfying to see something grow that you planted with your own two hands!
Thanks, Doug! (See, I knew it wasn’t just me!)
I’m ridiculously fond of trying to plant the seeds that come out of the things I eat–as nonviable an idea as that usually is.
Right now, I have a bunch of pits from prune plums that I’m going to try to get to sprout. I have *no* idea if it will work (but you know you’ll hear about it if it does…)
Cheers!
+Jessie
Always a fun event when you get them to sprout!
wow this sounds like a lot of fun to do, I wish I could grow an avocado tree
Jessie, is there a reason you can’t such as you live in an apartment? Even in an apartment or dorm room having a tree is easy. If you keep it in a pot it won’t get very big and you can carry it with you. My sister has a lemon tree that she puts on her balcony in the summer and brings it in in the winter! Go on and try it.
i keep meaning to do this, and i LOVE avocados
i was even just reading this post the other day, which also includes instructions on how to grow all kinds of other plants from our fruit & veggie tops/seeds/waste/etc.
http://womenscolony.squarespace.com/kitchen-table/2009/6/16/fun-for-grown-ups-and-kids-too.html
I haven’t done this in 25 years, I used to do it with potatoes, I think
Thanks for a cool blog post.
Mark at Anecdote
Thank you!
Ya know, I’ve never done it with potatoes, but I feel like you can cut a potato into chunks, stick the chucks in the ground, and they’ll sprout. (Anyone? Anyone?)
I did, however, grow a few sweet potato plants a zillion years ago.
I left a few sweet potatoes on the counter (not in water, just out on the counter) until the eyes sprouted, then planted the potatoes in pots. They make a very pretty, vine-y type plant (the leaves of which, if I remember correctly, are utterly poisonous).
Cheers!
+Jessie
about the potatoes….. take your potatoe that you buy at the grocery….. stick toothpicks in it and stick it in a jar of water just like the avocado’s, it will sprout and grow in the jar of water:) if your potatoes have eyes… toothpick’em and stick’em eyes down in the water and you will not be able to stop it…
You don’t even have to go through that much trouble. Potatoes are easy to grow. Whenever I buy a bag of potatoes in the grocery store, I usually end up with a few that sprout before they can get eaten. When I am peeling them, I try to work around the eyes, cutting a bit of potato off with the peel, with an eye in the center. Then I lay the peels on top of some dirt with the eye upward and cover them with a small layer of dirt. Before long, the eyes will sprout into plants. After a few months, the leaves will start to die back, and then it is time to dig in the ground for the new potatoes. Only yesterday, I dug up a pound or two of potatoes from peelings I had planted in a container about six inches deep.
The easiest way to grow potatoes is in old tires. Fil a tire with good potting soil mixed with compost and put whole seed potatoes onto the soil. Place another tire on top and fill half full with soil mix. As the plants grow, stack tires on top and fill with soil so that the plants stay just above the top of the soil. As each tire gets filled, where leaves had grown, potatoes will grow. Once you have 4 or 5 tires high, stop stacking and just let them grow. Once the plants die off, just lift off the tires and enjoy your crop without having to dig them up.
Jessie –
This gives me hope. I’ve tried it many times. Unfortunately never worked. I’ll try it again.
cheers!
Gabi
I tried this two years ago and it was great watching it root. Wish I had seen this posting then! Anyway, I tried rooting several ways, in water and right in potting soil. The water worked quicker. After rooting I transplanting the pit in potting soil and keep inside until the weather got warmer, then I sat is outside on the deck. The plant “was” so beautiful, but unfortunately died. What did I do wrong????
Hey Donna,
Thanks for stopping by! Sorry to hear about your tree! I totally agree: They’re so pretty.
Hmmm, ya know, this is the part of gardening that always gets me. I wish I could tell you what went wrong. :/ Unless it got some kind of pest or mold, the only thing that comes to mind that you might have watered it too much. I know they don’t like to sit in water. That or it didn’t get enough sun. I’ve killed a few in my day–always because I lived in apartments that didn’t get proper light.
Sigh. Let me know if you get one going again and we’ll keep an eye on it.
+Jessie
It may have died because the sun is too harsh for a plant that’s been indoors. You have to ease them outside. Start with a couple hours in the shade in the morning and slowly work until its in the shade all day, then add in partial sun in increments until tis fully aclimated.
I had a tree for a couple of years. It was about3 feet tall. Then my cat thought it was a great litter box… it didn’t last very long after that. Maybe a passing animal thought the same thing with your tree.. Just a thought.
Refreshing and inspiring, will certainly try this out. Will tell you the results in a couple years time =).
so how is your avocado tree doing?
Great instructions as always! I’ve never tried this for fear of failure
Thanks, Heidi! And ya know, it’s not a tragedy if a pit doesn’t sprout…it just means you need to make more guacamole and try again.
Cheers!
+Jessie
When life hands you avocadoes….
I’ve been meaning to do this for a while now, and your post reminded me! I will do this. This weekend. Or tomorrow. Or as soon as I eat that avocado I have! Great pics!
When I was in middle school I did a science fair project on growing avocados and tried many methods. The one I had the most success with (the tree grew to about five feet in our house before we had to plant it in my sisters yard) was growing it in soil in a warm dark place. It was the only tree that really took off, at least in my trials. Granted, it was winter and quite snowy, so my water trials were no doubt affected by the lack of warm sunshine.
hello! your pictures are so vibrant! i love to grow things and have recently started a blog documenting the growth of my avocado plant: http://avoblogo.blogspot.com/ perhaps it would interest you.
I did this as a project when I was a kid. I used one pit and it grew into a lovely tree with very nice fruit. It took about 6 years before we had good fruit, it was many years ago so I can’t remember exactly how long it took. It was a pitty I lost my tree when my parents sold the property! However, it is an asset to any garden if you have the space for it. Many thanks.
if we shift the sapling from one place to another will it affect the growth?
Found this article at e-how.com:
Instructions things you’ll need:
Sharp knife
Moist paper towels
Bowl of ice
Tips & Warnings:
You can find special grafting rubber bands at an agricultural supply store in your area. If there isn’t one, an everyday rubber band will do.
Don’t let the bud sticks or T-cuts dry out during the grafting process. Each graft is best done one at a time, rather than making several T-cuts in the rootstock branches first.
1 Select budwood from a healthy, productive avocado tree. The best buds are located near the ends of branches that are 1/4 to 1 inch in diameter.
2 Cut 6-inch lengths of healthy branch tips that each contain several buds with a sharp knife. Take six to eight cuttings, wrap them in damp paper towels and lay them in a bowl of ice to keep them cold and moist.
3 Make a T-shaped cut on a branch from the rootstock tree, about 12 inches from the trunk. The long part of the T should be about 1 inch long. Make a shorter, crossing cut that goes 1/3 of the way through the branch. Twist the knife slightly to slip the bark away from where the two cuts meet.
4 Go back to the bud sticks you cut and placed in the bowl. Choose a healthy bud, and cut it from the stick beginning 1/2 inch below the bud and ending 3/4 inch beyond it.
5 Bring the bud back to the rootstock. Slide the long end of the bud wood into the long part of the T-shaped cut, matching the bud to the horizontal cut in the T.
6 Wrap the budded graft with a rubber band, securing it above and below, but not actually on the bud. Repeat Steps 3 to 5 in different areas of the tree until you’ve used buds from all the bud sticks.
7 Remove the rubber bands when the bud unions have healed and buds begin to open, which should be within three to four weeks
Read more: How to Graft an Avocado Tree to Produce Avocado Fruit | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_8153967_graft-tree-produce-avocado-fruit.html#ixzz1Ix0qKRjw
I’m growing an avocado pit now; it’s still in the water stage but it’s going very well. The root on my plant is about four inches long but a stem hasn’t come out of the top yet. This was helpful as to how to proceed with pruning it and transferring to a pot which I will do later on. Thanks!
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great pictures! I am in the process of growing 5 of them right now… It’s only been 2 weeks, but I had a question, how do you know if the pit is rotten and won’t grow?
Hi! I am growing an avocado right now! I have tried probably 15 times in the past and this is the first one that has worked. I moved the pit to soil after the roots started growing, but when I was removing the toothpicks, I accidentally cracked the pit. I thought I may have killed my plant. Once it started producing a stem, though, there were actually 2 stems growing. Is this normal? They are about 4 or 5 inches tall right now. Should I transfer one of these stems to another pot or leave them together for a little while? I feel so clueless…any help would be wonderful!
Thanks!!
CAN YOU PLANT AN AVOCADO TREE OUTSIDE IN SOUTH CAROLINA?
Hi yes I have had success to but it was getting very frustrating. I tried four of the small huss ( I think that is what they are called, total disaster), Then I got a large green one from Guatemala and Whala fine white roots, and then a nice big tree came out and seven pretty leafs on it. Now the fun stuff, then I got to look at the Internet and found your website so know I’m going to try major surgery and lop of the top leafs and plant it out in a large pot, and set it out side hoping we are finished with the cold weather, as l live in Winnipeg Canada, wish me luck as I keep an eye on the weather. Wow did I hit you’re sight at the right time. Thanks Jim.
I agree, Jim – the large light green ones (Slimcados) do grow the best! I have 4 plants growing right now, and 3 more pits started in water. Have only had one pit so far that did not sprout. They sit on a table in my living room window and love the sunshine. Not much of a “green thumb”, but these plants do seem to grow well for me.
Hello
I never had any success rooting avacados until I tried using an organic pit. I think many conventional fruits and veggies are sprayed to make them not put out roots.
I’ve thrown potatoes that had sprouted into my compost pile and the next year I’ve harvested potatoes! You can buy seed potatoes from garden supply places, then cut them into pieces and plant them too. Right now I have some small potatoes from my compost pile sitting in a paper bag waiting for them to sprout then they’ll go back in the compost pile and next spring I should have potatoes again. I’ve also grown avocado plants since I was a little kid. My aunt had one in a mayonaisse jar of water that was about 6 feet tall!
If you have a problem with pests, don’t cut the potatoes before planting. You will have fewer problems planting them whole.
Useful and mostly accurate info. An avocado tree can produce fruit, if it has the right conditions, it’s thriving, and there are multiple trees near each other that are flowering. It just takes at least 3-5 years. I love avocados, though, and I think it’s worth the wait. I am in 8th grade, and currently growing my own avocado trees. I hope my tiny tidbit of info was helpful!
We had an avocado plant living on water for over a year, a few months ago we put it on dirt, noticed that the pit started to dry out but the tree hasn’t drop any leafs and them remain healthy looking and as big as 81/2 inches!!. I could send you pictures too! cheers!!
Any ways so is it normal that the pit dries out??
Hi, My avocado plant is about 2 yrs old. The seed is also drying out (dying). I was THINKING that MAYBE, the seed feeds the plant. Some plants do work that way. The two one-yr-olds’, that I have, seeds are still looking good, right now. Good luck to you & have fun! I am.
I left my pit sitting out for a few days and the outer skin peeled off. Is that OK or does the skin protect it in some way?
i did the same thing then took the skin off and put it directly into the soil 2 months later i have 3 stems growing, i was so excited.
I was doing this all wrong for years!!! So excited to do it the right way with my little girls!! It gonna be fun
My daughter and I started 3 seedlings and after they sprouted, etc. and she had gone back to school for the fall, they finally got large enough to plant. So, I planted them all in ONE pot hoping to eventually ‘braid’ them like you see ficus trees done sometimes. But, I haven’t really done that, but they are all 3 thriving!! We live in KY so the winters here are probably too hard (most years) to have a tree outside but I am hoping to get my deck covered in about a year and by then, I’m hoping my ‘triple tree’ will be large enough to roll out there for the summer and then back in, in the winter. I am going to try to keep it pruned and hope that the 3 of them will bush out and be a beautiful ‘homegrown’ tree!! I have a terrible green thumb and when she wanted to do this, I just saw another recipe for disaster. But, between that and the Poinsettia that my son’s girlfriend gave me several years ago (and the orchid she gave me last spring!) I have actually now had 3 successes in a row!! Well, the Orchid and Poinsettia made me hopeful for the Avocado!!
I can post pictures of it too. Just don’t ‘blog’ so I don’t have a site to do that.
Hi Mari,
It sounds like you are doing GREAT. You’ve come up with an awesome idea, braiding the three stems together. I’ve always loved those braided plants I see in stores. I would sure like to see yours, if you’d post it later, please. I plant ANY & EVERY seed and ANYTHING rooted I come across. I found three Japanese Maple Tree sprouts, about 1 1/2 inches long, including the root. I’ve had them for about 2 yrs, they’re about 6 inches tall, now. Have fun!
Maybe I should’ve said, Mari w/the Greenthumb.
I have 4 nice avacodo plants that I started from seeds. They are all in one medium Sized pot.
The tallest one is 20 inches. My question is……Is it too late to trim the tops so they will be bushier? If it’s ok how much can I trim off? I intend to keep them as house plants(sunporch) My thanks to anyone who can help me.
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I’m up in Alaska and am just starting my tree. My friend has a few he’s been growing for the past 4(?) Years and just got his first real fruit. I cannot wait till I get mine. How old are your tree’s? Thanks for putting up this site. Good luck with all of your gardening.
What a great idea! I am raising my 7 year old granddaughter. This would be a great project for us to do together! We had avocados last night for supper and I still have the seeds. We will start today! Will keep you posted on our progress! Thanks!
How to Graft Avocado Trees
The large seed inside an avocado can be used to graft avocado trees. The small seedling you will use to graft is known as a scion. You can either create scions from avocado seeds or cut them directly from avocado trees. Grafting avocado trees from seeds is most successful during the spring months, and yields trees that produce avocado.
Step 1
Place four to eight toothpicks in the avocado seed. Fill a small dish with warm water. Hang the avocado seed in the center of the dish, using the toothpicks as support. Place in a partially-sunny location. Repeat with each avocado seed.
Step 2
Empty the water dishes weekly. Allow the avocados to sprout roots and grow seedlings.
Step 3
Transfer the seedlings to potting soil when they are approximately 1 foot tall. Allow the seedlings to continue growing until it is a minimum of 2 feet tall.
Step 4
Select your strongest seedling to use for your grafting base. This seedling should be the largest and sturdiest one of the seedlings grown from the avocado seed. Cut all the leaves and growth off of this seedling, leaving you with a bare, strong center stem.
Step 5
Cut one of the other seedlings at the base with a knife. Make a 45-degree angle-cut at the base of the seedling stem. Cut a small incision in the grafting base branch (from step 4). Insert the scion into the branch joining the two areas that were cut.
Step 6
Wrap grafting tape around the two plants to join them. Repeat steps 5 and 6 with up to four scions on one base.
Step 7
Water regularly and keep the plant in an indirect light location. Allow the scion to join to the main plant for 3 weeks. Remove the tape.
Don’t add liquid fertilizer to the water mixture when sprouting the avocado seed. Don’t tape the scion too tightly and stunt the growth.
Things You’ll Need
2 to 4 avocado seeds
Toothpicks
Small glass dishes
Sharp knife
Potting soil
Grafting tape
References
Man, I wish I would have seen this just a few month ago. Our curriculum told us to do this, but didnt tell us how long it would take, so after looking at if NOT changing for about a month, I gave up and threw it away. I just guessed on how to get it started, as I had done it with a potato many times (and I was EXACTLY right on ALL of it). Patience is the key I guess. :/ Thanks for sharing this.
I did the same thing, and the website I found said 7-15 years… Hmm.
I’m growing three avocados plants right now, and they took about 2 1/2 month to start after I place the seeds in water, I will like to post the pictures here but I don’t know how, I already have one in a pot and is growing very fast, it’s on the window but ill will move it out to the back yard tomorrow. It’s a very fun project to do.
I am so disappointed….I did not read the line about the trees not bearing fruit. What is the point of an avocado tree if it does not bear fruit. I have had great success and have 12 growning now. I do not know if there is any point keeping them after reading this
Don’t be discouraged! Re-read the comments – with that many plants close together several people have had fruit bearing trees… and you can graft – it’s not difficult. As for the benefits of having a plant that may not bear fruit… Remember basic science? Plants help keep the air in your home clean – they also produce fresh and life giving carbon monoxide. Not to mention the best thing yet – there just darn right pretty! And that feeling of success for making something grow “from scratch” – it just feels good ….. And then of course you get bragging rights ….. you have successfully grown a tree – my goodness – you’re giving something back to the environment instead of take, Take, TAKING! Be proud of yourself and enjoy it…..
Don’t be discouraged! Re-read the comments – with that many plants close together several people have had fruit bearing trees… and you can graft – it’s not difficult. As for the benefits of having a plant that may not bear fruit… Remember basic science? Plants help keep the air in your home clean – they also produce fresh and life giving carbon monoxide. Not to mention the best thing yet – they’re just “darn right” pretty! And that feeling of success for making something grow “from scratch” – it just feels good ….. And then of course you get bragging rights ….. you have successfully grown a tree – my goodness – you’re giving something back to the environment instead of take, Take, TAKING! Be proud of yourself and enjoy it…..
Great idea growing from seeds,altho I don’t think “Carbon Monoxide”is something these plants give off,im sure you meant “Oxygen”..lol
You can eat sweet potato leaves. The young leaves contain protein and vitamins. I split a sweet potato in half and plant in a hanging basket just for that. I use the leaves in stir fry. Can grow inside all year ’round but will not grow outside until temps reach/stay 65 degrees.
Hope to help.
I planted mine about 6 weeks ago and it’s got a big white root growing out the bottom that’s about 1.5 inches long. However, it has no leaves. Should I plant it now or keep waiting?
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Hi,
I planted an avocado pitt after seeing one in a Bruce Willis film!! But checked up on line to see what do do after it had sprouted leaves and your site gave all the info I needed.
So its gone in a pot today in the greenhouse (as I understand they like humidity as well). So wish me luck. I’ll let you know how it’s getting on at the end of the summer
I had a great time doing this project at home. Well I am Puerto Rican and my family that comes over are shocked that I have grown a avocado tree in my home ..they keep saying that u couldnt grow a tree only in warm or hot weather. Guess Wat I’m in Chicago..
I’m going to try this again, the 1st time I didn’t have enough patience. I have a question, does it matter if I use a plastic bowl? I always use glass to grow my Ivy cuttings (& root them). I just don’t know if it matters if you use plastic or if I have to use a glass or ceramic bowl?
I’m not sure the bowl makes a difference as much as keeping fresh water in it…it requires oxygen to grow and will use up what’s in the initial water within a few days, depending on the size of the bowl it’s in (less water = less oxygen).
We LOVE guacamole! I serve it quite often and have tried growing a tree for a pit many times
over the years with varying success. I wanted to share that leaving an avacodo pit in your prepared guacamole will keep the dip from discoloring. It stays nice and green right to the bottom of the bowl.
I used to live in Ventura County, CA where avocados are grown in abundance. As I understand it, avocados will grow just about anywhere as long as you stay on top of it. In Ventura County, there is a lot of moisture coming off the ocean and seeps in as far as Fillmore, CA., where there are many groves of avocados and are very healthy. Those of you who are trying to grow their own, “patience” is the key to anything you grow. I went straight to the dirt process, keeping half of the seed exposed and set it in my windowsill. The trick to this method is keeping the soil slightly moist and then I “tent” it with a zip lock bag over the top of the small pot it’s in. This acts as a humidifier and helps with the process. Once I see the bud of the stem, I’ll take the bag off and let nature do its thing. BE PATIENT!
This is a cool article. We grow all types of seeds in our house, for fun, and the kids love it too. Our home grown Avocado tree is a couple of feet now, using pretty much the method described above. It took 3 months to produce a root though, so patience is required. You can also take the skin off, it helps some seeds to grow if they’re been stubborn. If you want fruit, there’s no need to graft, you just need another flowering avocado plants nearby. Oh and you can grow these plants in the UK as well….. we are!
I’ve grown a few avocado pits over the years; your information is so comprehensive that anyone should be able to do it. Thanks so much. am trying another one. Ann
Over the years I’ve tried this experiment. I now have one five ft avocado tree planted in my back yard and its flourishing. I also have a second pit ready for planting in a pot. Thanks for the tip on pinching back the leaves. Its a scary task since I’m so proud of the little plant but I can understand how it would better the plant.
As far as producing fruit, I’ve read you need two trees to cross pollinate. With my limited botanical knowledge, I guess we will find out in about 5 or six years!
OMG, i did this and my first pit didn’t turn out well so i tried a new one and it hard to be patient!!
I have started mine but am extremely confused it has begun to split apart but, there is a white root at bottom and the beginning of a green sprout at top what should I do as this is the third one that I tried and so far succeeding I thank you in advance for all you help
My current avocado is still in the living room (I live in Washington State) and its about 7 feet tall……..I have another sprouting because I did not pinch soon enough so the large one is very crooked.
I have 4 pits sitting in water in my kitchen window right now. All but one has roots coming out of them (one even has 2 roots coming out) but none of them have sprouted on top yet. One pit’s root is starting to get to big for the container and soon will either break or push the pit out of the water. Do I go ahead and plant it in soil without anything being sprouted on top? Please help me figure this out. Thank you so very much!
I put 3 seeds in a pot w soil, heavily watered, all of a sudden 2 months later i have 3 stems growing, i was so excited, i am now gonna transplant them to their own pots. I did not know about the pinching off process, so i will be doing this to. i have a real good green thumb and am excited to watch these grow over the next few years or so. thanks for the info on this site.
I put my seeds right into a pot already on my kitchen table by the window, I have two growing i want to know if i have to take it outside slowly putting it into the sun or can i just place it outside? Do I do direct sunlight or indirect sunlight.. I live in Calif it gets 103 or better in Bakersfield Thank you Barb
Afternoon Barb…Yes you have to take them outside gradually. This is called ‘Hardening’ them. It would be like living in a fine Hotel for 5-yrs then you were forced out to camp for a season…Shocking to the system
Place them outside in a covered area. Dabbled sun, a stir of a breeze, and mid-morning is best to start them off in. The temp is not to cold or to hot at this time. Don’t leave them out all day in the beginning, 2-4 hours a day is best for the first week. You have to love Spring. By summer time there shouldn’t be any problems.
Remember to check water often. It’s water schedule inside will be different from it living outside. Depending on your zone (dry heat vs. wet heat…I’m dry, very dry) the humidity given will depend on its thirst.
I live in No. NV Virtually no humidity with summer days up to 105 degrees and dry air/winds. Shade is not plentiful were I live LOL. So if you don’t have much where you live you will need to be creative (but that is the fun part!)
Have Fun and I hope all turns out just fine for you.
I have been growing my avocado pit for a while (I live in Minnesota). A couple of weeks ago one of the parts separated and I was happy I will have my tree. A little seedling started shooting up, but now the top of it is brown? I didn’t change anything with it? Is it dead? should I start a new pit or is there still hope?
What I did instead of planting the seed straight to a pot filled with soil, I slowly added a spoonful of dirt to the water it was sitting in. I did this daily for two weeks before putting in a pot and it was my most successful attempt at growing avocado trees!
Try it!
Happy plantings!
I didn’t read all the comments but I DID read your post. My avacodo “tree” started out as a sprout from a pit we threw in our compost. I just took it and threw it in a pot. My fiance kind of laughed at me and said it would never grow. That was in the spring. It is now full summer and it stands about 6-8″ high with SOME leaves. I water it every day, as I read they like “tropical weather” an I live in the desert. I never did anything else special to it. I DID read, however, that it WILL bear fruit, only it will take 15-20 years. I’m hoping my grandchildren might enjoy that some day…who knows. It’s still a beautiful plant!
I have been growing Avocados for years. The truth is that most avocados will NEVER bear fruit, those that do will likely not have fruit you will enjoy eating. Typically it is seven to eight years to see fruit, but can be more. You can graft at any time, and it is a relatively simple procedure. Getting wood from a bearing tree that you like might be more difficult. Go to http://www.avocadosource.com/ for an exhaustive list of avocado types, quality, etc.
http://www.gardenguides.com/82773-graft-avocado-trees.html This seemed to give easy step by step for grafting the seeds, it doesn’t necessarily have to come from an already growing tree you can graft your rooted ones together to get fruit bearing trees. Hope the link is easy to understand, seemed easy enough!
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When I was little bitty my planted an avocado pit. I was like 4 or 5. We did get some fruits from it and never had it grafted. Then she forgot it outside and that took care of the plant. I have a few now that are a couple years old and for now they are just pretty but hopefully I’ll get one to fruit.
I’ve grown a few trees without the “water” stage. I’ve simply put the pit in good soil and kept it well lit and well watered!
We had a huge avocado tree when I was a kid but it never bore fruit. My dad had a green thumb and grew a lot of the food we ate. He said that you need a male and female avocado tree to have fruit. Ours was a male.
i just finished and i pushed the toothpicks to hard and they kept breaking lol sorry avocado pitt
Seeds provide foor for all plants tosprout and grow. Once they sprout leaves photosyntehsys should take over to convert sunlight energy into sugars and nutrients as long as the plant gets minerals and nutrients and water fromthe soil it is in. Is your lant still just in water or have you transplanted it to soil?
Is it normal that my water turned red the next day? The spot where I root the pit also turned red
Unfortunately most avocado varieties are hybrids which means that a vast majority of their fruit is sterile. So if you want to do this you need to find an heirloom variety. If you are able to do this, good luck!
I have been growing avacado pits since the late ’70′s. Had a great one that went off to college with me! Some root, some don’t but I always have one I. The window sill. I’ve even just pushed a pit down into the dirt of an existing houseplant and been lucky. Mine are leggy though so I will try the pinching off of the first leaves next time. Thanks for the tips!
I live in Washington State about 50 minutes south of Seattle and we don’t have warm weather until July. I planted my avocado pit in November on Thanksgiving. We had avocados in the salad so I thought I’d try to grow a tree. My avocado pit grew little finger-like things after 3 months and started to split open. I added water every day from my Brita water pitcher to keep the water to the rim of the jar. Whenever the jar started growing algae, I switched to a new clean jar. It took until March for real roots to sprout. The top started to grow a tiny green shoot around May. Now it’s almost August and my tree is about 4.25 inches tall. So, keep in mind, if you live in a cool climate, it will take twice as long for your avocado to grow. I’ve been very patient and it has been worth it. So exciting to see it slowly sprout. In the past month we’ve had weather in the 70s and 80s and on nice days I put my plant outside in direct sun for 3-4 hours, making sure the water is still high in the jar. In the last month it has grown exponentially, from about 1 inch high to 4 inches high! I’m hoping my tree will be 7 inches by September so I can pot it in soil before it’s been an entire year in the water. I grew one of these as a kid with help from my mom so it brings back some memories.
)
I put a seed in water a year and a half ago and the plant is almost four feet tall. It is doing well I move it indoors in the winter and back out when it gets warm out. It is the first seed I have got to sprout. Just hoping one day it will produce fruit.
It even works in Germany, both ways..put a pit in my garden and next year tree was there..
took it out, put it in a pot and gave it to a friend. This is now 2 years ago and it still grows at her home..in the pot on the kitchen window shelf.
I take pit peel of before planting, it helps during splitting time. No fruits so far…..but I guess in warm regions it should work when you put two together, outside…
Hello!
I have been planting avocado’s as houseplants for years. When I moved back to India I thoght my mom …an avid gardener,with avery green thumb…would love to see one grow. So I germinated a pit. My mother was so excited. She would admire it all the time and show it off to her friends. after a few years I suggeste to her that we should plant it in the ground. Lo and behold the seven year tree began to bear fruit. But we move from the house and had to leave the tree behind. My mother passed away and the tree was forgotten.
One day I thight to mysrlf let me try it again. and I did eight years ago. Would’nt you know it I have a tree full of beautiful avocados!!!!
Try it people it works.
Banu
I have tried so many times! My 2 current avocados each have one long root, one is 9cm long! but neither has a sprout yet. There have been a couple fruit flies on them, and I kill them as I see them, but I was wondering if the flies somehow killed the sprout and that’s why it isn’t growing? Or do I just need to give them more time? HELP! Thanks!
I recently pulled about 30 avocado treelings from out compost piles. I gave them away to friends and strangers. Apparently they sprout like weeds if you have a compost pile and a mature 60 yr old avocado tree. I have pulled out some and put them into pots. At first they wilt and go into shock a bit, but after several days they perk up and start growing again. I do live in California, so it is probably easier to grow them here.
Esther, I have two avocado seeds sprouting right now and that is exactly how they look! They’re split open but with roots and stems growing inside. As long as you are gentle when you handle them (changing the water, planting them, etc.) they should be fine.
I started 4 pits in June, but I listened to mom and put them in water wrong side up, I thought it looked wrong at the tome, but you can’t disagree w/ mom… So I was checking out your post to see how long it should take to get results. I’m taking a chance that 1 of the 4 will sprout, I cleaned the jars and flipped em over!
I have 2 saplings about 1-1/2′ and they are leggy (no leaves up the stalk, only about 7 or 8 at the top). Did I understand one post to say, you pinch the top? Does that mean, pinch all the existing leaves off?
My family has one from seed and it is covered in fruit but I am under the impression it is because is gets hot enough on the texas coast and that it will not fruit in cooler climates
I tried growing avocados and I pretty much did what you instructed. I was told that it wouldn’t produce avocados just as you said, but they were wrong! We had beautiful big avocados on our trees in a few years. They tasted just as good as the ones used for seed, maybe even better!
Living in Hawaii has its benefits!
Bob
I was wondering. My seed did not have any leaves, just a very long root. If I still plant it will leaves finally start coming out? thank you. I have enjoyed this info.
Ok I’m going to give it a try, sounds like fund!
From what I’ve read, you can expect your tree to start bearing fruit after about 7-8 years.
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The person who waters the plants in our office just told me it can take 13-15 years for avocado plants to bear fruit. However, here in Southern California, one woman who works at my office has had success by throwing the avocado pits down the slope by her house and allowing the process to take place naturally. She’s grown two trees (both of which bear fruit) in this fashion.
I have always kept a planting pot in my kitchen and will bury an avocado pit any time on looks good. I water in any time I water the rest of my house plants. I don’t mark the date I planted them I just am pleasantly surprised when I get a plant sprouting up! This summer I have four in one pot. Time to transplant them. The pot will be too small for all four trees. They are already about 18 inches tall. The problem I have had is the larger of the leaves will get brown spots and get crunchy. I don’t have bugs on them or any other of my plants. I will just snap of the bad ones but I can not seem to figure it out. Any ideas ? I don’t ever expect to get fruit from them but they are nice looking house plants.
i am not good at remembering to water so started my avacado by putting the pit in dirt not buried just about half in then covering it after it was well soaked then put it in the shade this is my first try and now have a 7 inch sapling its kinda cool. still want to know though if it is self pollinating
I have not done this for to many years. I had been given a beautiful deep purple avacado, it was great. The pit is round and when it sprouts I will be really happy…it is a process, yep. It is warm here in the Hawaiian Islands and I should have super results…will let you know later.
Mahalo Nui Loa, Loke
Of course the planted avocado seed will produce fruit.
Where do you think avocados come from?
You need a male and a female tree of the similar specie of avocado. There are a couple different species.
The flowers from the female plant mature, are pollinated by various garden pollinators (wasps, butterflies, bees, moths) that visit both male and female trees. Sometimes this can be accomplished by the wind, so the male and female trees need to be in close proximation.
Sounds a lot like high school biology, doesn’t it?
Had an avocado tree that finally started to produce fruit on it and the neighbors stole the avocados! I was so mad and was only able to get 22 avocados from it! They stole like 8 of them! It has been more than 7 years and it finally produced fruit!
if you let an avocado overripe to the point where tan spots appear on the outside, often times the pit has already taken root inside the avocado (Harris Teeter avocados do this better than lower quality grocery store avocados). If you do this, cut the pointy end of the avocado in half like the tutorial says, and remove as best you can, leaving the meat at the bottom (rounded end) of the avocado. Now carefully remove this part keeping in mind there may be roots in there you dont want to rip off
I wish I had found this sooner. I came across how to do the whole process a few months ago and started one. No were on the directions I used did it say the seed would split so I thought it was bad and I threw it out. What a waste… guess now I know.
Many years ago I stuck toothpicks in 1 avocado seed and placed it in a glass. And it took off! So I planted it in a large pot. I didn’t know I was supposed to prune it so it only had one skinny stalk. It was about 3 feet tall with several leaves near the top when a 2 year old neighbor came by and broke it in half. For some reason I remained optimistic that it would grow back even though there weren’t even any leaves-just a brown stick coming out of the dirt. Over a year went by and I still had my stick in the mud (hee-hee) not doing anything. Then one day a new branch began growing from the side of my brown stick, about 1 inch from the top! After several years it had several branches and many leaves-it was absolutely the most gorgeous house plant I had ever had : ) Then an unexpected rare freeze hit. It did what the 2 year old little boy hadn’t managed to do : ( Ever since then (about 36 years ago) I have tried and tried to start a plant from the seed of an avocado with no luck at all!! Hopefully I’ll have some success after reading all this good information!
I live in an apartment, and do not get much sunlight. Does anyone know if the avacado will sprout in artificial light? I just put mine in water today, and was going to leave it under my stove top light.
Thanks so much for this article! My daughter and I just started our first avocado pit and are excited to track its progress in the next few months. Fingers crossed that it roots
We bought a grafted avocado tree and it grew to be really big but never bore fruit! Maybe one or two is all we got off of it. So we got disgusted and bought some more avocado trees. THEN all three of them bore fruit, and the original tree had so many we had to prop up the branches for fear they would break!! So apparently the cross pollination is a very important part of fruit bearing. The two new trees aren’t even the same kind of avocado as the original tree but that didn’t matter, it just needed company and then it had more fruit on it than we could believe.
I’m going to try grafting avocado seedlings from our original tree because it has the best fruit of all of them, and we want to be sure to have more trees like it if the old tree ever dies. Thank you for the instructions on the seedlings: it’s very helpful!!
I did everything as instructed except I did not pinch off any leaves. My plant is about seven inches and has nice green leaves. Should I pinch off leaves now or is it too late?
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Hi there! I found this post in June and started some pits on my windowsill. I got one to root and sprout but had to toss the other two. I spent the summer adding to them and now I have 2 that are ready to plant and 3 more with roots and a small sprout started!! The original plant has a massive root structure that grew in the water though and I’m wondering if I should bury all of the roots deep, or just coil them up below the pit when I plant it? I was given a small plant earlier this year that was already in dirt but I overwatered it and killed it ;-/ I’m so scared to plant my beautiful trees as I’ve worked so hard to grow them from scratch! Any pointers or hints would be much appreciated!! Also, my largest one is around 10 inches tall and has at least 6 large leaves on it, what leaves (if any at this point) should I pinch off? New growth or the big ones?
So, my boyfriend and I just had a big party and had four avocado pits left over from some tasty guac. I pinned this website a few months ago and gave it a try. Being a broke college kid…I don’t have toothpicks and I don’t have many cups to spare. I did have two ugly margarita glasses a friend’s weird mother gave me, so I used sewing pins (big crafter) and ugly margarita glasses to grow my avocado. I’m waiting ever so patiently for my stem to pop out.
I was cutting back my garden this afternoon and put all the clippings into a compost bin. When I opened the bin, I discovered an avocado tree growing inside. Apparently, I had put an avocado pit in there over the summer (the guacamole was amazing!) and it spouted in the warm moist environment of the bin. My tree had well established roots but had been ‘reaching’ for sunlight and so grew well over 20″ tall. I’ve moved the tree to a pot and will bring it inside as nights get colder. Given the height, should I clip the stem to encourage branching or should I leave the leaves?
What should I do if my pit splits all the way apart? It was already split when it was in the avocado. I put it in water with toothpicks, but I’m not so sure it’ll grow. Help?
I just started my avocado plants this summer, I made guacomole and wondered if I planted the pits anything would happen. Now I have 3 plants!! But what I am wondering now after reading some of the posts is I live in Wisconsin right next to lake Michigan and would I be able to years down the road plant the tree in my yard and not have to worry about the winter?, because I can’t see pulling a ten foot tree out every summer at some point it would have to be too big to do that. Also If you’ve started a plant in the climate your from won’t it adjust somewhat?
just wondering
So, unless I missed something in the replies, nobody has mentioned this.
I used to live in Northern San Diego County, in California. No beach for me, I lived in the foothills of the mountains… exactly where about 1/3 of the nation’s avos come from. Every little two lane highway is surrounded by citrus and avos… and this is what I learned there.
Plant the avos on the hillsides, where the ground is rockier and drains really well. Plant the citrus on the flat patches of land. They don’t “graft” their avo trees at all. But they do NEED the citrus trees (oranges). That’s how they pollinate. Something about the bees going back and forth between the two is what makes the spark. Beneath the orange trees, for a month every year, you will see millions of white box hives that have been brought in to do the job.
Don’t know if this really helps. But, if I were going to hope for my avocado tree to bear fruit… I would start with bees that can cross pollinate from something else.
Good luck!
Oh by the way… a neat little fact: Avos don’t begin to ripen till they are picked or fall from the tree. A rock-hard one, straight from the tree will ripen to perfection in about 36 hours if left on the counter in a crumpled brown paper sack.
So… I was reading more of the replies.
They cant survive repeated overnight hard freezes. Maybe the occasional frost would be okay. That’s what they get in Cali. When the weather gets crazy there and a freeze is expected, they use smudge pots to keep the groves warm.
I found my advocate pits had already sprouted while they were covered in the compost pile. These may have been there covered through at least one winter in the mid west. They grew to about 18 inches tall while in pots this summer, and now I hope I can keep them alive indoors this winter. Just a nice surprise to find int the compost!!!
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I am a beginner, well I planted the pit once before and I was quite proud. It had grown to about 4″. I placed it outside on the patio to get some sun and when I went to check on it (to bring it back inside) I found bits and pieces of the pit that the squirrels had left after their picnic!
So I started over. I have 2 that I moved from water into its pot. One is doing really well and the other is just a 12″ stem with tiny leaves trying to come on. I think from the suggestions I will trim it back. ?
I have 2 more pits in the window in their water. One pit has 5 growths coming from it? Will they all become trees and move into one tree? It is such a fun experience and lots of fun to share with others. I really do hope they produce the fruit because we all love the Avocado!
Thanks for the geat info and pictures. This was very helpful!
Avocado seeds do not grow because the ones that produce fruit are cut from the fruit producing tree. They are all hybrid as one would say. …and for many, many years all of the haas avocados you’ve had have been from the same mother tree.
My tree is almost 7 inches! I am very excited, cant wait to plant it. I started the process 3 months ago.
I have never ever been able to get an avocado pit to grow but I thought I would try again and lo and behold, I have two with good roots on the windowsill. The third one has been there a few weeks less. My question is this: after reading this wonderful article, I should be seeing a bud growing out of the tops. Instead I have roots but no tops. Is this normal? Will they eventually sprout up? Help!
If you want your tree to bear fruit you have to prune it back in the late winter or early spring before it’s usual fruiting season in the summer. The first year it flowers it will not bear fruit, only flowers. The following year it will have small fruit, and then normal after that. Other people on the internet say that pruning is bad for one reason or another. From actual experience with truck-loads of avocado from around my house, if you don’t prune, you don’t get much fruit.
However, I am from Hawaii where every avocado pit that I have ever planted eventually bore fruit. I don’t know about in the rest of the USA. It rarely never gets below 70 degrees in Hawaii, so I am sure that will have something to do with the growth cycle. Avocados do not naturally grow in temperate zones anyway.
Well then don’t grow a Haas avocado from those plantations (california). Get another kind, like those from Florida, Mexico, or local farmer’s market.
I have three small saps… Different age, non of them are growing right. I think. All of the leaves that do grow are very tiny, green but tiny with no new branch growths. Just leaves around the main stem. I live in cen texad even though its nov. Its still very warm and sunny.. I dont know what is wrng with these trees. Is it poor soil or maybe poor water, too much water?
My avocado pit, sitting in water, with the requisite toothpicks, has sprouted a very thick root, but no stem. The last time I started an avocado pit, after a few roots appeared, the stem and two leaves appeared and I dutifully pruned them. But not this time. What do I do?? Thanks!
….I am living in Goa, and common saying by the locals here is that a avocado tree bears fruit fter 8 years…….
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I believe you have to have a male and female tree in flower at the same time to produce fruit.
I threw 4 pits from different kinds of avocados into a pot with my jacaranda tree. One actually popped up within a month or two! I have no idea what kind, though. We also planted 5 different avocado type trees from a nursery in Miami. I’m not sure what kind of cross pollination will occur with differing trees. I just hope some bloom at the same time for cross pollination. We should have avocados from May through February! What will we do during March and April. They were 3 feet tall in July. Now they are 4-5 feet tall already! Even my mystery avocado from random pit!
I’m now looking for a Florida avocado that turns purple with smooth shiny skin when ripe. Any ideas where to find this avocado either tree or fruit? We are in Martin County Florida and are eager to find this smooth purple avocado.
Hi CJ – I’m in martin county too. Call this nursery and check out their variety chart. http://www.tropicalfruitnursery.com/avocado-viewer/index.htm
Also, the internet refers to a variety from Australia that is what you described – but it looks like the Oro Negro from the Pine Island Nursery would provide the same type of yield. Email me with any questions.
Sounds like none of you have considered using either hydroponics or aeroponics to cut that grow time down. I haven’t either but I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work. I expect it would simply be a matter of replacing the “plant in soil” step with “use *ponics here”.
I’m going for it ! wish me luck. get back to you all in a few month.
I’m going for it! Wish me luck. I’ll get back to you guys in 3 months to let you know how everything is. Can’t wait to see my tree bear fruit so I can make the best guacamole in the land!
I live in Washington DC, and tried to sprout two avocado pits in September. Nothing happened. I gave up in November. Thanks for your column. Now I know why: I had the pits upside down.
However, it’s now New Year’s Eve. I can’t put the plants outside, and the house I’m in has an open Florida room; the Southern windows face that room, and so get no sun. The jalousies in the Florida room are open, and the temp gets near freezing at night. Can I fool it with indoor lighting? Will it hurt if I put it near a light that’s on 24/7? The South windows in the kitchen are shaded by the roof of the Florida room, and cool enough that when I put a cup of bacon fat in the window, it went from liquid to solid in half an hour.
I grew one last year but I left it out side too long and the temp dropped too low.
I was really getting attached to it so I’ve been starting other seeds since then. I’ve got about 6 started in water for almost two months and nothing is happening.
sigh…
Hi! I’ve planted an avocado tree and it’s growing like crazy. Unfortunately I’ve forgotten to pinch of the top leaves, so now I have one tall avocado (about 15 inches). Do you think it’s better to cut it in half or just pinch of the top leaves?
Thanks!
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How well do avocados grow in the winter?
I’m getting good at growing my Avocado trees!
I’ve gotten pits to put down a tap root, but still had many many false starts because of different living situations. BY False start, I mean they died in less then a year of growing due to me moving and trusting others to care for them.. one year a few dried out, another year someone left a door open in winter and they cold shocked to death (were probably to dry to protect themselves anyway).
But this past year I’ve achieved my best yet! I started the pits about this time last winter, then they spent the spring summer and fall on the south deck. I’d bring them inside for weather below 45 degrees.. Over the winter now, they’ve found a home in a south facing window next to my bed.
I’m impressed at how well they’re doing! My best one has multiple huge foot long tropical leaves. Sideways, the things got a 2.5 foot wing span! It’s BEAUTIFUL. I really should make a video or post some photos.
Thank yuo for the advices! Got this address (link) from a friend and now I think I know how to succeed with the avocado
I rooted avocado seeds in water before and they grew well but I didn’t plant them. I have another one that I just put into water yesterday. This time I am going to plant it. I have a wonderful south facing sunroom on my house and as soon as it warms up a bit it will be going out there. I will come back and post pictures.
http://video.about.com/treesandshrubs/How-to-Graft-a-Fruit-Tree.htm
Is there a specific type of soil that avocados do well in?
I have an avocado pit that has been in the water for about 2 months. It has a root on it about 4 inches long but there is no stem in sight. What do I do?
My avocado is spherical and doesnt have a peak is that okay?
I do the same thing with red beans; they make a fast and fabulous vine.
Nice neighbours. But if you have any left, consider YOUR donating to a church or an aged care home and show the neighbours what you are made of
I would like to know how to grow an avodado tree from a pip.
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I know how to make an avocado tree fruit – I saw it on Gardening Australia and it was a tree grown from seed.
You make two half circle cuts through the living tissue of the tree bark about one metre (3 feet) from the ground using a pruning knife to stimulate the tree by making it think that it is dying which encourages it to flower and fruit to save its’ life.
The cuts are to be made one above the other 2mm (1/8th inch) deep, the purpose of which is to impede, but not entirely stop, sap flow. The second cut is made on the other side of the tree about two finger joints below the level of the first cut. That leaves a small amount of tissue through which some sap can flow. It seems like drastic action but it may produce ther required result – he didn’t say definitely. The cuts will heal and seal quickly and not affect the health of the tree.
Hope this helps people.
My avocado pit split within three days! Is that normal??
Does anyone know how far apart you should plant the trees from one another? I have 4 of them and I’m hoping I can get them to bear fruit by planting them by each other?
Thanks!
It depends. If you plan on keeping them pruned fairly short (6 feet or so) then you can plant them about 5-6feet apart. Most varieties can and do get very very large so be sure to consider how much light and air flow each one will get and you should be fine. .
I have two avocado trees growing in pots…started in water….now about a foot and a half to two feet tall. Started in Ma now in Fl. still thriving..also have two pineapple tops about ready to go into a pot.
Pineapple tops?…That sounds awesome, mind telling me how? How big do they get?
And also is it better to grow inside or outside
Hi, I have been growing pit in large see through plastic container. Have done the tooth pick etc. The root is now almost toughing bottom of long container. Nothing popping up from the top side? What should we do??
Same thing is actually happening to both of the pits I am currently working with… I’m getting so frustrated!!
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I’ve grown avocado pits from childhood and still do it as I was taught. I allow the outside skin to dry and separate from the seed for a few days before suspending in water with toothpicks as you described, except I use a tall brown glass or plastic jar (like an instant tea jar). They seem to sprout quicker without the outer skin. At least for me anyway.
I started avocado seeds just as you said to. Toothpicks in the sides in a small bowl of water…………………..patience!!!! They sprouted and I put them in small pots of dirt. One in a regular pot the other in a small clear plastic cup. They grow about an inch a day! It’s amazing and so much fun to watch. I can’t seem to throw away the seeds now when I buy avocados. I feel like I have to grown each one of them!!!! (^: Such a wonderul project. You just need patience when starting them in the water!
I have a 1.8 gallon betta tank on my office desk, and I regularly leave my ivy leaf junctions in the water, as they root super fast due to the nutrients from the fish food/waste. I decided to try the avocado pit. I stabbed the side with an open paperclip, and have it propped half in and half out of the tank water. It’s been 4 days and it’s already splitting. Fingers crossed!
hi i have growing 2 tree from a seed they are 3 ft tall now and have two babys that are 12 in tall i just want to have some fruit on them and need help on how to graft them if you can whan they are babby or when they are big now the 3 ft ones are 3 years old so any body know how to to the grafting and a vido of it i think they are buitfual tree to grow
I have been enjoying growing avacado trees have 12 seeds sitting onthe counter and 5 have roots one is 12″ tall and ready to plant. It is fun. takes along time just to be patient and keep changing the water
Re: Grafting
The only reason to graft your avocado with piece from a fruit bearing tree is to get true Haas avocados. The grocery store avocados are all from grafted trees that were bred to produce a very large fleshy fruit, so we could all enjoy lots of creamy green flesh without buying lots of avocados. These trees are hybrids of two or more avocado species, so the seed from the fruit doesn’t breed true. When you plant the seed, the tree you get is one parent tree or the other instead of the same variety you ate. These trees should produce fruit just fine after they reach maturity in 5 to 8 years, but the fruit will be smaller, usually harder and with less flesh. If you want your trees to fruit, make sure they get lots if sun, plenty of water (let the soil dry out, then soak it really well and repeat), and fertilize them regularly. When the tree flowers, put it next to another flowering avocado to cross-pollinate and give it a high phosphorus fertilizer to promote good flower and fruit production. Nitrogen will give you lots of good green top growth, but fruit and flowers need other nutrients.
I have been diligently attending to my avocado pit and it has grown quite nicely but has taken so long! I never gave up, however, and today I am planting my budding pit!! So excited to get to this point. It is a lengthy process but so rewarding when you get to this point!
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I’m so glad you posted a time frame for the pit to start sprouting! I though I was doing it all wrong and threw out the pits after a week or two of nothing. I’m going to try again and just leave it be. Thank you!
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I have a. Avacodo right now suspending but its split and not sprouted . I just learned it takes time to sprout after it has split ty
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Great post. Like Cindy I was glad you included a timeline for growth because I was quite worried all my seeds were duds! I’ve been tending to a windowsill full of avocado seeds for the last couple of months and have had a few successful root sproutings so far. Here’s a photo of my latest one (named Fred 1): http://theflyingone.com/snapshot-from-bermuda-4/
I will definitely be checking back to follow your planting instructions!
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Great Site, wonderful pics. I put two pits in water 6 days ago, they already have roots sprouting. Is this unusual? I would like to grow some nice plants. What do I have to do to get them to bear fruit, indoors. I live in an apartment, where the morning sun shines directly in, Thanks
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Thanks I may give this a try!
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Just started one today thanks for the post
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YEARS ago, Chi-chi’s used to put the pits they used every day in wax paper bags with instructions on how to do this. That was back in the 70′s and 80′s…
I was excited with the idea of growing an avocado plant, so I followed the instructions. I used two pits, each in its own container. However, I did this in February and so far no sign of any change. Actually, the only thing I see is the pits getting “moldy”, with black little spots on them. I feel quite discouraged and thought of tossing the pits away. Should the water be replaced every so often or just added to the existent?
Thanks!
I replaced the whole lot every day so that you don’t get bacteria that can affect the pit
Thanks, Helen. I have started the process with a new pit. Let’s see how this one evolves (or not…).
Wow I didnt think this was possible. I love avocado and have a few a week. I will start right away. 3 months is a bit too long though. Has anyone else tried it? How long does it take?
I’m wondering if I should pinch off the flowers that are forming on my avocado house plant. It’s about 3 years old. Do the flowers take away energy from the leaf growing process? Also, I know I need to repot. What’s the best kind of potting soil to use?
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I had success with my first avocado pit using the water method. But, I learned that planting it with part of the pointy end not covered by the soil, works faster, so my new pit will start in a pot with my backyard compost as the soil. My original tree was lush and lovely but began to have dark spots on its leaves and then they curled up, turning brown and fell off. I found out that my tree was sufering from a fungus called anthracnose. It’s easy to fix using a garden systemic used to cure diseases in roses like black spot, rust and powdery mildew. I hope my poor sad denuded tree will recover. I like the idea of a lot of sprouts getting friendly and fertile!
Did your plant live? The same thing happened to me. I had a 7 inch tall tree and when I replanted it into a larger pot, half the original pit broke off. Did yours live?
Does anyone else know if mine will?
I’ve had three avacado pits in water for about a month. One of them had the top split open not long after I put it in water, but has yet to have anything sprout out of it. I just noticed today that another has split on the bottom, but not on the top. Lastly, the third one hasn’t split open anywhere.
Two questions. 1) Is it normal for them to split open but not sprout? 2) Is it ok to split open on the bottom?
I’m trying to be patient, but I’m also concerned about the one that split open on the bottom.
Thanks so much for this post! I live in Florida and recently moved into a home on a canal. One day I was on our small dock admiring the water with my 4 yr old and what we thought might be a coconut came floating up to us. Being the curious sort we plucked it out of the water and brought it into the kitchen. Turns out it was the biggest Avacado I have ever seen! Thanks to this site we were able to root the seed. It took about a month but sprouted beautifully. Transplanted the new plant into a large pot and put on our patio. 4 months later we have a leafy tree about 4 feet high! I can’t believe how fast it’s growing and how healthy it is.
Question though, the main trunk has just split into two branches at the top. Is this normal? I’m not sure when we should move the tree from the patio to its final spot in the yard. Also I’m not sure where to plant because I don’t know how big it will get. Anyone know what kinds of Avacado might come floating up to me in Florida?
Thanks for the advice. This plant is exceeding all expectations!
The squirrel I feed every day left a half-eaten avocado from my neighbor’s tree lying in the wild half-shaded part of my backyard. I found it there lying on the ground; it had sprouted very quickly. I put it into the ground with just a little dirt around it and put a plastic half-gallon jug over it to protect it during the winter. I watered it by hand occasionally. When spring came, I put it into the ground in my sunny front yard. A year later (it is spring now) it is four feet tall and gorgeous. Its growth rate indicates that it will be at least six feet tall by the end of summer, if not taller. I did not prune it or pinch off the leaves or in any way mess with it other than to put the plastic jug over it and water it infrequently.
I started a few pits a month ago, and only one has rooted, but gone wild. I will try snipping off the top leaves today and plant t. Quite excited to see new life started- and have gotten friends on a “plant our avocado leaves race!”- game… Thanks for your informative info.
When I was a very young child my aunt & cousin grew a 6 ft. tall indoor avocado tree in a mayonnaise jar. I’ve grown small ones every since and right now have two seeds ready to go in water. My last one I gave away to a friend. They are easy to grow and if one doesn’t work it’s not a big deal. Buy another avocado and try again.
Hey there! I currently have 4 avocodo plants growing in the classroom and about 1 ‘ tall. Have trimmed them back and they all appear very health but just one problem. As new leaves grow, the older ones to some degree start to dry out on the edges. Have been snipping them off. The drying part of the leaf, is this normal?
Mike
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Brilliant post. I started this a couple of weeks ago. What’s happened now with the biggest one is it’s actually splitting COMPLETELY from the bottom. I can see everything starting to come out – roots and leaves and all, they’ve just yet to come to the surface.
My experience though: the water was rotting extremely quickly, even with frequent changing. Two days ago I had a look at the brown “peel” on the outside of the pit and it was completely loose and decomposing, so I picked off the whole peel – it was rotten in some places and like paper in others – so now I have two white pits with veins all over them and the rotting water problem has completely stopped.
Excited about getting these planted!
Grafting is only necessary if you have commercial interests in avocados. Grafting helps to maintain consistent size, appearance, texture and quality. It might also speed things up a bit. But for the home grower, it’s not necessary.
Thank you to everyone for all the great info. I have about a dozen seeds sprouting. I read on one site that it was helpful to cut the top and bottom of the seed off to help encourage sprouting, I did this and it works. The seeds I cut sprouted sooner, but I would not cut the top, it does not look that nice. I also had one that got lost in the back of the frig so it was riper, it started to sprout. I am excited to plant my first seed. It is now an inch tall and I needed to know when and how to plant once it had sprouted.
I found some great information here. http://www.weekendgardener.net/plant-propagation/plant-avocado-seed-090909.htm
I never got results with the pit-in-water method, but 14 years ago I just plunked an avocado pit in the ground near my front entrance. The tree grew higher than the house (we had to trim it shorter last year as it was blocking all the light from my daughter’s room) and has been giving us lovely, tasty avocados for the past 9-10 years.
One advantage to living in the subtropics
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Do u have to root the avacado pit inside? Can u do it outside too? I live in AZ so it gets pretty hot but my place faces north so I dont much sun coming in my windows.
I did this YEARS ago, but I don’t remember why I don’t have the plant anymore. I’m trying again with ‘John’s’ suggestion of planting the pit right in the soil. Sounds like an easier way to do it, you won’t have to transplant it later. Keeping my fingers crossed.