Google+ Organic Gardens Network™: How to Sprout & Plant an Avocado Tree

Saturday, March 19, 2011

How to Sprout & Plant an Avocado Tree

by wikiHow

Here is a fun Spring project. Kids love to be part of making things grow. Buy enough Avacodos so each child can sprout and grow their own tree. You can keep them in the house or eventually plant them in your garden. Here are the steps from wikiHow to starting, sprouting and planting an Avocado tree. Visit the site for photos of the steps in process. Please share your tips and successes with this fun project. Enjoy!

Step 1
Cut into the avocado carefully, so as not to injure the pit located in the fruit's center. Carefully remove the pit, and set it aside.

Step 2
Wash the avocado pit gently, removing all avocado flesh. Do not remove the seed cover which is light brown in color.

Step 3
Holding the pit "narrow" (pointed) side up, stick four toothpicks into the middle section of the pit at even intervals, to a depth of about 5 mm.

Step 4
Add water to a small, slender container (preferably glass) until it reaches the very top rim. Your container's opening should be wide enough to easily accommodate the full width of the avocado, but not too wide.

Step 5
Set your avocado pit (with inserted toothpicks) on the top rim of the container. The toothpicks should sit on the rim of the container, while keeping the pit only half-submerged in the water. Make sure the pointed side is up while the rounder end is in the water or your avocado will not grow.

Step 6
Set the avocado-topped container in a temperate, undisturbed place - near a window or other well-lit area - to begin the rooting and growth process.

Click here for the rest of the steps and more great tips for this fun do-it-yourself project.




18 comments:

  1. avocado seeds contain random genes.. the chance that you get a tree that produces fruits as lovely as the one you just ate and are about to seed is not very likely.. for this reason, root stock- which can be any avocado sapling is typically spliced with a climate appropriate produce variety..

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    Replies
    1. What is the best root stock to splice it with to get fruit?

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  2. Tried this method several times and no successes, however puting the sead (fruit 'disposed' of) in a pot of soil, so that just the top of the seed was showing, and keeping this damp and warm, resulted in it sprouting within 2 weeks. the sead splits in 2 and the root and shoots come up/down through the middle.

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  3. Thank you for the tip about putting the pit in soil. Hadn't tried that method yet.

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    Replies
    1. I tried the tooth pic method and it took about 6 weeks for the root to peer from the bottom of the pit. I them potted the pit and the tree was off and running to 151/2 inches in 10 weeks total. I then put a pit 1/2 buried in the soil and in 2 weeks the pit is showing a good sized crack. So I have learned the plopping the seed in soil is more than likely the better, quicker method.

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  4. I have a huge Avo tree,bears big avos.My opposite neighbour's avo tree is taller than their house but does not bear fruit.I pick the avos from my tree and leave to ripen (tried with some bananas and even wrapped avos in paper towels) but it's not working.The skin turns hard and black,it doesn't get soft.What am I doing wrong? From Cape Town, South Africa

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  5. Wow, you are very fortunate to have your own avocado tree! We have always just left an avocado on the counter to ripen. We buy a few at a time and get them when they are green and hard.... put some in the frig and leave on the counter what we need to ripen. Depending on how green it is, it usually only takes a day or two to ripen. The outer skin does turn dark brown to black color when it gets ripe. I cannot imagine why yours are not getting soft, have never heard of that before. Best of luck!

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  6. Method approved! Started in January, now have a plant of 5 cm in height!

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  7. Excellent, good for you! We still have not been successful. Not sure why our avocado pits will not take, even though we follow these steps as presented.

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  8. Hi there! Would you mind if I share your blog with my myspace group?

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    ReplyDelete
  9. Sure, please do share with your group. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi! Thanks for tip! Best from Poland

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  11. I have tried the water method several times with no luck. My sister just put her seed directly into the ground and hers is growing. I think I will follow the dirt method next time.

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  12. If you place a few apples in a paper bag along with your avocados they will ripen quickly!

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  13. I have gotten 5 to sprout. I have two that are over 2 feet tall. Now what do I do? lol

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  14. The seed needs to dry for some time before trying to sprout it. You can't try grow it strait from the fruit.
    Plants are intelligent and know if it is the right time or season to grow but can be tricked if you have the know how on how to simulate the seeds natural sprouting environment.
    I preferred planting direct as replanting your sprouted seed pretty much will damage it's root, there are microscopic fibers on roots we can't even see that damage easily.
    Also make sure that the Avocado fruit that you get your seed from is not a Hybrid or Genetically Modified (GMO). Some also irradiate the fruit, expose it to radiation, to kill bacteria/bugs which kills the fruit and the seed. If the avocado is imported then it has been irradiated/exposed to the radiation of at least 700 000 two view chest X-Rays.
    I had the best luck ever though with a sprouted seeds in a jar that I transplanted into soil that I had mixed used kitty litter granules into. Gross but sh12 worked like a charm...

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  15. I have experimented 20 avocado seed using the toothpick method, they were all successful and are very healthy, half are 30" tall. Now my problem is what should I do with all these. I have a big backyard but 20 are still many puls they are no t grafted. I would like to try grafting them but I don't have a budwood.

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