If you are an avocado or avocado lover, surely you have ever imagined how good it would be to have your own tree at home. Many say that this is practically impossible, but the reality is that with patience and dedication you can achieve it.
Before starting, it is important that you know that you will not have fruits in a short time. It takes a few years for the tree to grow and start bearing avocados. But the wait will be worth it!
Here we tell you all the steps you must follow to achieve it. You will also find some tips that will help you to be successful and some points that you should be particularly careful with.
Cut the avocado very carefully, avoiding damaging the pit. Extract it and use the pulp to prepare some delicious dish. If you can’t think of anything, here are some options.
Then wash the pit under the tap to remove all the pulp. It is very important that you do not remove the skin of the seed, which is light brown in color.
Holding the pit with its narrow point up, insert four toothpicks halfway up at equal intervals. You must insert them to a depth of 5 mm.
Fill the small, shallow container you chose with water to the brim. It should be deep enough to accommodate the entire seed without difficulty, but not too wide.
Then, place the pit with the toothpicks already inserted on top of the container. The toothpicks should rest on the walls of the glass, in such a way that only half of the seed is submerged.
Make sure the narrow, pointed part of the pit is pointing up and the wide, rounded part is well submerged. Otherwise, the plant will not grow.
Place the container with the avocado in a warm place, near a window or other lighted place, so that it begins to take root.
Change the water every one or two days. In this way you will avoid contaminants, such as mold, bacteria or fermentation, which can spoil the growth process of the avocado. Make sure that the base of the pit always remains moist and submerged in water.
Be patient!
It takes several weeks for avocados to start taking root.
After Two or three weeks, the brown outer layer of the seed will begin to dry out and wrinkle, and gradually slough off. Immediately afterward, the pit should begin to crack at the top and bottom.
After three or four weeksthe root should start to come out of the base of the pit.
Continue to change the water regularly. When doing this, be very careful not to damage the root.
If you don’t want to soak the pit, you can also plant it directly in a pot during the warmer months. It will take three to four months to start sprouting.
plant the tree
When the roots are of considerable size and the stem has new leaves -after at least one pruning-, the avocado tree is ready to be planted in the ground.
To do this, take the sprouted pit out of the container and remove the toothpicks one by one.
Use a 20-25 cm terracotta pot and fill it with soil up to 2 cm below the top. For the substrate, it is best to use a mixture of equal parts of earth – topsoil – and coconut fiber.
Gently pack the soil in and add more if needed. When you’re done, dig a narrow hole that’s deep enough to accommodate the roots and pit of the avocado.
You want to bury the seed so that its top half is above the surface of the soil. Doing this is important so that the base of the trunk does not rot in the ground.
You should water the plant daily or enough to keep the soil moist. You must not overdo it, for the earth must not turn to mud.
Three important indicators
- Leaves with brown tips: the tree needs more water.
- Yellow leaves: The tree is getting a lot of water and needs to dry out for a day or two.
- Branches and thin stems: it is necessary to prune. It can also be a consequence of lack of lighting and inadequate irrigation.
Keep taking care of your plant and in a few years you will have a beautiful low-maintenance tree.
tips for success
- Simulates natural growing conditions
Avocado pits can take time to sprout. To simulate natural growing conditions, you can expose the top half of the pit to light and cover the other half – the water container – with aluminum foil or some other opaque material.
During winter or cold temperatures, it is best to transfer the tree to a medium pot rather than plant it in the ground. This will allow you to have the plant near a window where it receives good lighting.
There is a variety of avocado that grows particularly fast from its seeds and produces wonderful fruit. This is the black shell silver from Sabinas-Hidalgo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Its shell is soft, very thin and can be consumed, as it has a high nutritional value.
There are many who say that two trees are necessary for cross-pollination, but this is not always the case. There are some varieties that have both male and female flowers and are self-pollinated.
warnings
- Let the bottom of the pit dry
This will prevent the avocado from sprouting properly. It may even never sprout.
- Do not change or add water
This can cause contaminants to form in the water or on the roots. Mold, fungus, and fermented water can quickly poison the entire plant. You should always keep the water fresh and at an appropriate level.
If you prune too much or too often, it may deteriorate or stop leaf growth. After the first pruning, cut only the ends of the leaves on the stem and/or branches. For the branches and trunk, pruning makes for fuller branches and thicker, stronger leaves.
- Beware of store avocados
Growing a tree from a store-bought avocado will not necessarily result in a fruit-bearing tree. Many of the avocados in the stores are genetically altered and just produce a nice looking tree, but you can’t expect fruit to come out of it.
Have you ever planted an avocado? Share your tips in the comments.
Font: