How to Tell If an Avocado Tree Is Going to Bear Fruit
Avocados are enjoyed throughout many cuisines around the world. As a new grower, you are probably eager to know when you can start enjoying your own harvest. Avocado trees take time to mature enough to the point that they can set fruit, but once they reach this point, they consistently produce a avocados as long as they are healthy. By watching for a couple of telltale signs, discover when your own avocado tree is getting ready to bear fruit.
Look for small, greenish-yellow blossoms that appear on your avocado tree branches from January through March. Flowers open and close in the span of two days and are a good indication that your tree is getting ready to bear fruit.
Watch for bee activity around the tree blossoms. On the first day, an open avocado blossom is female and receives pollen, while on the second day the flower is male and releases the pollen. Bees are a good sign that flowers are being pollinated, which helps produce avocados.
- Avocados are enjoyed throughout many cuisines around the world.
- By watching for a couple of telltale signs, discover when your own avocado tree is getting ready to bear fruit.
Note the temperature during the January to March time span. A range of 65 to 75 degrees F is ideal for avocado fruit set after the flowering cycle.
Monitor the flowers to see if they are beginning to swell. Avocados come out of these blossoms and continue to grow until maturity, which may be six months or more, depending on the variety that you are growing.
Make An Avocado Tree Bear Fruit
Avocados are healthy and delicious, so it can be disappointing when your tree fails to produce a crop. drymifolia_ and _Persea americana var. Otherwise, the tree's age, pollination requirements or growing conditions could be to blame. If you grew your tree from an avocado pit, it won't bear fruit until it's at least 10 years old, and you may have to wait up to 15 years. For the best yields of fruit, two avocado trees are required. Avocado tree cultivars produce either type A flowers or type B flowers. For example, 'Day' is a type A avocado that's hardy in USDA zones 9 through 11, and 'Pancho' is a type B tree that's hardy in USDA zones 8b through 11. Poor drainage and flooding are harmful to the trees. Older trees require an extra 2 pounds of fertilizer per year for each year of the tree's growth up to a maximum of 20 pounds. Spray the young trees six times per year. Apply iron chelate soil drenches between early and late summer at intervals according to the manufacturer's directions.
- Note the temperature during the January to March time span.
- Avocados come out of these blossoms and continue to grow until maturity, which may be six months or more, depending on the variety that you are growing.
Tip
An avocado tree from a garden center typically produces fruit in one to two years, while a tree planted from seed needs eight to 20 years.
References
- University of California: Avocado Flowering Basics
- California Rare Fruit Growers: Avocado Fruit Facts
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Avocado Growing in the Florida Home Landscape
- California Rare Fruit Growers, Inc.: Avocado
- Master Gardener Association San Diego County: Avocado Production in Home Gardens
- Arizona State University: Persea Species
- Texas A&M; AgriLife Extension: Home Fruit Production - Avocado
Resources
Tips
- An avocado tree from a garden center typically produces fruit in one to two years, while a tree planted from seed needs eight to 20 years.
Writer Bio
Brandy Alexander has been writing professionally since 2001. She is a glass artist with a Web design and technical writing background. Alexander runs her own art-glass business and has been a contributor to "Glass Line Magazine" as well as various online publications.
