Can I grow an avocado tree grow in a pot?
We aren't going to live here permanently, but we really want to grow a tree. Can we keep it in a pot, or do we have to plant it and then dig it up?
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
19 Answers
Yes! I have done this a couple times. However, it takes many years before they will actually bear fruit--but they do make lovely plants.
here's how you do it: take the pit from an avocado, fill a cup with water and place the avocado butt-down in the water--you will need to put a few toothpicks in it to prop it up so that the top of the avocado is out of the water and the bottom is in the water. Then, stick in a dark place for three weeks. The avocado pit will grow a long root, and then you can take it out of hte closet. The pit will then grow a long stem. Here's the weird part. When the long stem gets to be 7 inches long, cut it with a scissors down to about 3 or 4 inches. This has to do with the "apical dominance" of the plant (sp?) which means that the plant thinks it can't grow up anymore, so it grows out.
if you don't make that cut, it will grow one very long stem with a couple tiny leaves on it. If you do cut it, it will grow a bunch of branches with more leaves.
once the stem is growing, you can pot it in dirt.
again, it won't grow other avocadoes for many years, but it will look pretty, and it's fun to grow the pits from scratch.
Or, if you just want an avocado tree in your back yard, you can buy one from a nursery that is closer to fruit-bearing age.
i think the ones in the nursery that bear fruit also are grafted. i'm not sure the store variety pits will yield fruit
and i think you can grow 'em in big pots on the porch, but they are *quite* heavy to move.
Yes, one of my sons rooted a pit when he was 2 years old... He is now 26. "Planty" has been has tall as 12 feet, but we have to keep pruning him/it back to fit into our living room. The plant lives on the deck all summer and then gets to come inside just before the first frost (we're zone 5) It takes 3 adults to lift the pot each time we makes this move. We've never had avocados.
I have seen "Planty;" it is like Audrey II - scary and don't ever turn your back on it. And when Wanda says that it takes 3 adults to move it, she neglected to mention that two of them must be well-muscled males still in their twenties. "Planty" has a fraternal twin - a banana tree that also doesn't grow fruit, is not winter-hearty and grows about 2 feet a day...
Can one also grow a pineapple tree from root end of pineapple in a similar manner?
Yes--but you cut off the very top of the pineapple (where the leaves are) and put it in water--it will grow roots and you can plant it. also, you can do a similar thing with a yam by cutting it in half and putting it in water (using the toothpick method) within a month it will grow beautiful yam vines and leaves. different kinds of yams will yield different kinds of leaves and plants. Very pretty.
FYI - I was told avocado trees have male and female varieties. One tree by itself won't bear fruit unless it's been cross-fertilized with another tree.
Make that cross-pollinated.
Since I have an avocado orchard I thought I’d jump in with a suggestion or two…
@ lilakess, do this first before you put the toothpicks in the avocado. At the bottom of the seed (the roundest part) Take a sharp knife such as a paring knife and carefully peel off the dark skin (this will help in producing a stronger root alot quicker. Do this under running water. I have never put my seedlings in the closet. Mine were started in the kitchen bay windows.
I have twelve trees at various stages of growth, The shortest being 10 inches and the tallest perhaps 15ft. I have given many away once they get to about 5 ft in height. I have 1 that is bearing fruit. And this will be it’s third time. And boy it has hundreds and hundreds of baby avocados.
I have a neighbor who lives directly behind me but down the hill, anyway he too has an avocado tree, that bears fruit as well. But, I digress. All my avocados trees are put in clay pots once they reach approx. 15inches and as they grow so do the pots. Some will be put in a 3’x3’x3’ square wooden container.
Oh! I also keep a log of when and what type of avocado type ie: Haas: sm, med, or lg fruit and date it was replanted. Okay , I said I would jump in with a suggestion or two, not write a novel, sorry I got carried away. Good luck!
hey everyone i am new at this but i would like to grow a few house plants like and avocado and banana trees but i dont know how to start a banana tree from scratch but thanks to all of yall i know how to do a avocado and now i am gonna save my pits when i make my favorite food mexican lol please would someone help me out with the banana tree also i would like to know what you call that plant that grows in water not soil i know i sound crazy and some think i am but i would appreciate your help thanks again
growing up in the tropics avocado trees were always in the yard, so i didn’t feel that just because i moved to Canada i should be deprived of this beauty. Now i have two trees sharing a 24” pot. And are 6 to 7 feet tall and kept pruned. i drag then in and out of the house with the seasons. All the instructions for starting the seeds are fun and cute, nothing is mandatory though. plop then in soil, keep moist and at indoor temperature most pits will produce a plant.
If that’s too much work watch what grows in your compost heap in the summer! every year i spot a few in there.
Answer this question 
This question is in the General Section. Responses must be helpful and on-topic.
Composing members:
0
