HOW TO GROW AND CARE

FOR AVOCADO TREES

March 1, 2019 by Gretchen Heber

Persea americana
We all know, of course, that letter carriers deliver the mail. But I
wonder how many of you know about the 1920s mailman who
“delivered” what would become most popular avocado in the
United States?

It’s an interesting tale, and I’ll tell you all about it in a minute.

In the meanwhile, read on to learn all about growing avocados

(Persea americana), the smooth-as-butter green-fleshed fruit that
cooks covet for guacamole, sushi, smoothies, and more.
 We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our
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But be warned: unless you live in Florida, Hawaii, California, or deep

south Texas, the prospect of walking out to the backyard to harvest
fresh avocados for a batch of guacamole is but a dream.

But what the heck, you like to learn new things, right?

We’ll bring the chips!

Where’d They Come From?

Unsurprisingly, avocado trees are native to Mexico — the south-
central part of the country, specifically.

Probably because they are truly the yummiest bit of greenness ever
grown, they are now cultivated commercially in tropical and
Mediterranean climates throughout the world.
They were brought to the United States in 1833 when horticulturist
Henry Perrine planted avocados in Florida. Several years later, in
1871, Judge R.B. Ord planted a tree in Santa Barbara, California.

Avocados became a US commercial crop in the early twentieth

century, and was popular in the states in which it grew. But it did
not gain widespread acceptance in this country until the 1950s,
when it became a common salad addition.

Delivering More Than the Mail

There are three main “races” of avocado trees: Guatemalan,
Mexican, and West Indian.

Mexican types are the most cold tolerant; West Indian the least.
The most popular variety in the United States, called the Hass, is a
Guatemalan x Mexican hybrid. Incidentally, Hass trees were a pure
accident.

In the late 1920s, a letter carrier and amateur horticulturist, Rudolph

Hass, purchased some seedlings from a Whittier, California, man. He
planted the seedlings, and as they grew, his children pointed out an
anomalous tree among the batch.
He thought to cut it down, but his children stopped him, saying
they preferred the fruit from the oddball tree to that of the other
varieties he grew, including the Fuerte, which was at the time the
most widely cultivated variety.

Naming the new variety after himself, the mailman patented the
tree and struck a deal with a commercial grower.

And now Hass comprise 80% of US-grown avocados, all of which

are direct descendants of what became known as the “Mother Tree.”

Most of the avocados grown in Hawaii, however, are a Mexican x

Guatemalan hybrid variety known as Sharwil.

Avocado aficionados claim Sharwil to be among the tastiest.

Unfortunately, fears that imports of these fruits will also bring

invasive and crop-devastating pests to the mainland has led to a
complex set of USDA import regulations.

This means the Sharwil is not available in all states.

About those Fantastic Flowers

While the trees can self-pollinate, they’ve developed an unusual
method of achieving genetic diversity.

The plant’s flowers have both male and female parts, but only one
“gender” is active at a time.
Type A varieties have flowers that open as a female in the morning
of day one, close, open as a male in the afternoon of day two, and
then close forever. Type Bs open as female in the afternoon of day
one, and as male in the morning of day two.

This complicated dance only happens when temperatures are just

so — above 70°F day and night.

And of course, it’s all for naught if there aren’t some pollen-hungry
insects in the area, willing to assist with cross pollination.
Not Sure How They Taste With
Cream, Though
Ready to try your hand at growing these fruits, which as are also
known as “alligator pears”?
Oh, wait. Before I get too far, I should clarify that the avocado is
technically a berry. A single-seeded berry.

Berries have a fleshy endocarp, a fleshy mesocarp… are you asleep

yet? Trust me: Avocados are, botanically, berries.

Back to the growing part!

If your area experiences occasional subfreezing temperatures,
choose a protected site. Some Mexican types can handle a bit of
freezing weather, but you’ll still want to offer them protection.

Avocado trees like full sun and they don’t like to be crowded, so
don’t plant them near other trees, buildings, or power lines.
The best soil for these trees is coarse and well-drained, though they
will tolerate a wide range of soil types. They aren’t particularly
choosy about soil pH, either.
But don’t try to grow them in soil with a high saline content. They
do not like that at all. (The salt comes later, in the kitchen!)

Dig a Big Hole

Don’t try to plant a pit from a grocery store avocado. I’ll get to the
reasoning behind this in a few minutes.Instead, purchase a seedling
from a gardening center, and plan to plant in springtime.

You can purchase Hass avocado seedlings from Nature Hills.

Hass Avocado Tree

Dig a hole three to four times the diameter of the container your
seedling came in, and three times as deep.
Remove any turf grass from the planting site, out to a 10-foot
diameter around the planting hole.

Backfill the hole with the dirt you removed. Do not add compost,
topsoil, or fertilizer. The sooner the tree adapts to the native soil,
the better.

Carefully remove the tree from its container and gently place it into
the hole. The root system is sensitive, and you want to take care not
to disturb it when transplanting.
Place the tree so that the top of the soil surrounding the root ball is
level with or a bit above the surrounding soil level.

Fill in around the roots with soil removed from the hole, gently
tamping down as you go.

Add a thick layer of coarse mulch, and water deeply right away.
A Little Food for Your Food
Continue to water your newly planted tree every other day for the
first week, and then once or twice a week for a couple of months.
Continue to water twice a week if no rain falls for 5 or more days.

During the rainy season, reduce or stop irrigation.

Nourish your young tree with nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium,
and zinc. In general, use 10-30-10 mix that also contains zinc in the
early years, after trees begin bearing. Use ¼ pound of fertilizer
every two months.

As your tree matures, switch to a 10-5-20 fertilizer with zinc, and

apply 1 pound twice a year.

In general, these trees don’t require much pruning. Varieties that

develop spreading canopies need little to no pruning.
Other varieties that grow straight up can benefit from some careful
heading cuts to keep the trees from producing all their fruit out of
reach. Remove terminal buds to stimulate the growth of lateral
branches.

Party-Poopers
Avocados are plagued by a few pests, but not many are capable of
seriously damaging production.

Invaders to watch out for include scales, mites, borers, lace bugs,
caterpillars, and thrips.
To prevent borers, be sure to plant the right species for your area –
check with local extension agents. Keep your gardens clean by
pulling weeds and clearing away fallen leaves and other plant
refuse, and keep your trees damage free.

Bacillus thuringiensis
Treat an active infestation with Bacillus
thuringiensis (Bt), available from Amazon.
Organic Neem Oil
Or try TheraNeem Naturals organic neem oil, available from
Organix via Amazon.
Bt is effective against caterpillars, too, while you’ll want to use neem
oil for thrips and mites.
 Insect Killing Soap
Scales can be addressed with neem oil or insecticidal
soap, available from Amazon.
The damage from lace bugs is generally cosmetic, and unless you
have a severe infestation, your best best is to just ignore the bugs
rather than risk killing beneficials with any treatment.

Fungi are the biggest disease threat to these trees.

 Fungicide
If you see small, wilted leaves or general lack of vigor, consider
treating with a fungicide, such as this one from Amazon.
We Want MORE
How many of you have jammed toothpicks into the sides of a pit
and placed it to hover over a jar of water?

This is a lovely way to create a houseplant, but your tree probably

won’t yield fruit from this method of propagation.
Or, it won’t produce the type of avocado you purchased from the
grocery to obtain the pit in the first place.
And your hair will be gray. It will be five to 13 years before your
plant produces fruit, if it does at all.

Because avocados do not reproduce true to seed (meaning you

won’t get the same type of fruit as the avocado from which the pit
came), commercial avocado trees are propagated from cuttings.

Cuttings of one variety are often grafted onto rootstock of another

variety, to produce the best commercial outcomes.

Seedlings purchased from nurseries are almost the result of grafts,

as well.
But When Can We Eat Them?
In contrast to figs, which will not ripen once plucked, avocados
won’t ripen — or “soften”— until they are off the tree.
The trick is determining when they are mature enough to be picked.
Different varieties of avocados mature at different times, so that’s
the first piece of knowledge to have. Check your variety’s label for
specifics.

As the correct calendar maturation period approaches, watch your

fruit carefully. It will change color slightly, becoming somewhat
duller. Some varieties develop small, rusty-brown spots as they
mature.
Experts at the University of California suggest picking one of the
larger fruits and keeping it at room temperature for 3-7 days.
If it softens to a good consistency, “is not tough and leathery or
bitter, and does not shrink or shrivel” then it is good to eat,
according to the university extension branch.

You can then plan your ongoing harvests and fish taco feasts
accordingly, allowing a few days for softening.

If you need to hurry up the ripening process because you simply

must have some guac NOW, check out these tips from our sister
site, Foodal.
Get Thee to the Kitchen
I know this is really what you came here for. The eats.

Did you know that avocado is called “bơ” in Vietnamese? This is the
same word that is used for butter in that language.

Nomenclature perfected, and I couldn’t agree more.

Now for some “green butter” recipes:

Creamy Chilled Avocado Coconut Soup to

Beat the Heat
Photos by Kendall Vanderslice © Ask the Experts, LLC.
This cooling soup is meant to be served chilled in the heat of
summer.

Get the recipe on our sister site, Foodal.

Healthy Southwest Avocado Bean Salad
Photo by Jordan Cord © TheFitchen. Used with permission.
Two types of beans, tomatoes, roasted corn, and avocados come
together with spices and aromatics to create this hearty and healthy
side dish.

The recipe is available at The Fitchen.

Avocado Pesto Zucchini Noodles with
Blistered Tomatoes
Photo by Lauren Pariseau © Hunger | Thirst| Play. Used with
permission
Top zucchini pasta with pesto made from avocado, basil, lemon
juice, and more in this light dinner treat.

Find the recipe at Hunger | Thirst | Play.

Is Your Mouth Watering?
Thanks to the efforts of a mailman and the persistence of his
children, we are able to enjoy delicious Hass avocados throughout
the United States. Some of us also get to say aloha to Hawaii’s tasty
Sharwil variety.

Others of us might prefer the flavor of the old standby, Fuerte.

Whichever is your favorite, I hope you’ve learned something new

about this buttery delight.

Did I mention that at around 3 grams per each, these green

beauties have more protein than any other fruit?
Warmth, lots of space, no compost. A little patience — but a lovely,
up to 30-foot landscape tree in the meanwhile.
And the reward is so worth it. Avocados for breakfast, lunch, and
dinner. Who can complain about that?

Are you lucky eno