It's one of our favorite year-round staples: The Avocado Tree. Though this tropical, exotic favorite isn't normally associated with all-year growth, ours thrives from season to season because it's super versatile and is often grown indoors. So thankfully, climate doesn't matter.And it's pretty easy to maintain, but if you want to get as many avocados as possible, you've come to the right place.
Here are our 7 secrets to get tons of this creamy, rich-tasting super fruit.
1. Let There Be Light
First, it's important that your Avocado Trees get a good bit of sunlight. They tolerate partial sun, but areas that receive at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight per day are best. If your Avocado Tree lives indoors, place it by a large, sunny window - preferably one that faces South, since Southern-facing areas tend to get more light.
Also, it's important to space your Avocado Trees from other plants - at least several feet away give your fruit plants room to grow.
FGT Pro Trick: Rotate your potted Avocado every three weeks.The entire tree gets time in the sunshine with this method!
2. Water Schedule
It's important to keep your young Avocado Tree sufficiently hydrated. But do allow the soil to dry between waterings to avoid over saturation. Basically, a thorough watering once weekly is generally all your avocado needs. If you're not sure when to water, simply check the Avocado Tree's surrounding soil about 3 inches down - if the soil is dry here, it's time to water.
However, your Avocado Tree's leaves love humidity. Indoor Avocado Trees will perform best if misted daily, especially during the winter months when your heat is on. Alternatively, you can use a humidifier nearby for even more ease.
3. Balanced Nutrition
Another way to keep your tree healthy and productive?Fertilizer!
After the first full growing season has passed, feed your tree with a well-balanced blend four times per year, in the spring, summer, fall and winter. Space out fertilizing treatments by applying your formula in the middle of each season.
4. Temperature Control
Our Avocado Trees are hardy down to about 30 or 20 degrees, but if your area experiences colder temperatures, simply bring them inside.
Once your Avocados are safe inside, be careful not to place them under or over a vent, since the dry heat from a furnace can damage the plant. If your leaves do start to dry, just mist them daily with a spray bottle for extra humidity or place a humidifier nearby.
When it warms back up, and your Avocado Trees are ready for patio placement, ensure that you let them adjust to the heat. Move yourAvocado Tree outside for a few hours each day, gradually increasing the number of hours it spends outdoors. This helps to smooth the transition back outside for the summer.
5. Pollination
Avocado Trees are self-fertile, so you don't have to have another tree for fruit. But if yours is growing indoors, it's beneficial to shake the tree a bit to spread the pollen, since you will have no bees or wind to do it for you.
However, as with most fruit trees, your Avocados will each produce more fruit with two trees. Keep in mind, though: You will need to use a different type of tree for your avocado yield to increase. You want an A type and a B type tree to produce the most fruit. For example, our Cold Hardy AvocadoTree is a type B.To increase your harvest, you'd need a type A, like the Hass Avocado Tree.
6. Pruning
The good news: Little to no pruning needed for most Avocado Trees! You may prune yours lightly to maintain appearance, but the main benefit to pruning Avocado Trees is removing damaged branches during the first few years or growing seasons. Simply prune during the spring season for best results.
7. And a Bit of Patience
It may take a little time for your Avocado Trees to adjust to their new environment. Luckily, because we've grafted each of our Avocados and grown them for months ahead of time, your trees arrive ready to adapt and grow quickly. Smaller-sized Avocado Trees may take a couple of growing seasons to produce fruit, but our larger offerings (4 to 5-foot trees and up) arrive already bearing fruit.
Either way, the delectable taste of the Cold Hardy Avocado, Hass and beyond is well worth it. And with our tips and tricks, you'll experience home-grown avocados of your own in no time. Check out more about avocado trees!
