It's hard to believe, but avocados can be cultivated in room conditions.
The tropical tree is very unpretentious and can be easily grown at home from the seed of a delicious avocado fruit purchased at the store.
The overseas handsome man is not only pleasing to the eye lush greenery, but also perfectly purifies the air in the house.
Let's get to know this extraordinary overseas guest in more detail and learn how to grow it in conditions home garden from a not at all small, but very attractive seed.
What do we know about avocados?
Avocado or Perseus americana(Persea americana) is an evergreen fruit tree, belonging to the laurel family.
The plant's homeland is Mexico, where in the wild it reaches 30 m in height.
In room conditions Avocado grows up to 2.5 m, rarely blooms and does not bear fruit. Flower growers love it for its decorative bright green foliage and ease of care.
Persea americana has another name- this is an “alligator pear”.
Choosing a location and lighting
Avocado loves light, but at the same time it grows well in partial shade. Its leaves should be protected from active sun rays. In summer, the optimal temperature for avocados is from +18 to +20 °C, and in winter - not lower than +12 °C.
Watering and humidity
Water the plant you need to apply it generously, waiting for the top layer of soil to dry out.
During the cold season, it is necessary to reduce watering and allow the soil to remain dry for one or two days.
Avocado house plant needs high humidity air.
You can moisten the space around it or place the plant on a tray with wet filler so that the bottom of the container does not touch the water.
Transplantation and feeding
Avocado prefers loose and breathable soil. Best for avocados priming, prepared from the following components:
- 1 part humus;
- Part 1 garden soil;
- 1 part coarse sand;
- a little moss, expanded clay or peat.
Young avocados replanted annually, and adult plants - every three years by transshipment in the spring. The tree grows quite large, so you should choose a large container for it.
To combat these pests, insecticides are used: Aktellik, Aktara.
Avocados are susceptible to disease powdery mildew.
If signs of disease appear, the tree must be immediately treated with a fungicide.
Frequent problems that may arise if care rules are violated:
- leaves dry out and fall off - low humidity or drought in the soil;
- leaves turn pale and discolored- lack of light;
- leaves turn yellow and fall off- spider mites may appear.
As we see, avocado is adaptable to room conditions. A little of your work, attention and care - and a spreading indoor tree will decorate your home with luxurious foliage and will become the undoubted pride of your home “greenhouse”.
And for the most curious, we suggest you watch the video about avocado
In the fall, just for fun, I planted an avocado seed (this way I’ve already managed to get indoor lemon). The experiment was a success - the seed has sprouted and is gradually growing leaves. Tell me how to care for avocados at home? Does it need bright light or can the flowerpot be placed on a north window?
IN lately Among flower growers, lovers of exotic plants are increasingly found. Thanks to them, some cultures living in the wild have safely migrated to our homes and are doing quite well there. Take the avocado, for example, a tall evergreen tree with original green fruits native to distant Mexico. Its large bright green leaves are so popular among fans indoor plants that the exotic Mexican began to be used in decorative purposes for landscaping.
In nature, avocado grows up to 30 m in height, but indoors it grows in the form of a small tree (no more than 2.5 m), and does not bear fruit.
Growing an avocado is not very difficult. If you create conditions that are as close to natural as possible and properly care for it, you can get a very beautiful and compact plant.
Caring for avocados at home consists of a set of measures, namely:
- choice suitable place for a bush (with necessary lighting and air temperature);
- proper watering and fertilizing;
- formative pruning;
- regular transplant.
Where is the best place to grow avocados? 
Before identifying a flowerpot with a young bush on permanent place residence, it is worth considering that it does not tolerate direct sunlight - it causes burns on the leaves. But otherwise it is quite unpretentious and grows well even in partial shade, although it prefers good, but diffused, lighting.
You can put the flowerpot on the northern window sill: in the summer there will be enough sun for avocados, but in autumn-winter period just install additional lighting.
As for air temperature and humidity, the evergreen bush needs warmth, but is able to winter in unheated room with a temperature of at least 5 degrees Celsius, however, in this case it turns into a deciduous plant and sheds its leaves.
How to water and feed?
IN summer time Avocados should be watered frequently and sprayed regularly. In winter, the frequency of watering depends on the wintering conditions: the lower the temperature, the less often the bush is watered.
The avocado itself grows quickly, so it does not need frequent feeding, but it should be taken into account that the tree has a limited amount of soil in the pot and the nutrients there quickly run out. To replenish them, it is necessary to apply from spring to the end of summer (but not more than 2 times a month).
How to prune and when to replant?
In indoor conditions, avocados often stretch, so formative pruning is important stage in caring for him. To do this in the spring, you need to pinch or cut off the shoots after the 8th leaf to stimulate branching. Repeat the procedure all summer on each young branch.
Features of growing indoor avocado - video
A large 10 or 20-meter tree, and growing it on a windowsill from a seed will allow you to get miniature copy this exotic giant. Here we will look at the rules for planting an avocado, tell you how it is propagated, how to care for it so that the tree looks no worse than in the photo in gardening magazines.
Avocado planting
The fruit of the avocado is also called “alligator pear”, and the tree itself is called persea. In order for a plant planted at home to bear fruit, the conditions must be simply ideal. Most often they never appear. Geographically, there are 3 types of Persea:
- Mexican;
- Guatemalan;
- Antillean
At home, the first species is mainly grown - Mexican Persea. There are many varieties that, as can be seen in the photo, differ different shapes fruits Since the tree belongs to the laurel family, it will require appropriate soil: loose, moisture-absorbing, drained, with a neutral reaction.
Young plant
The soil mixture for planting can be prepared at home from pre-calcined sand, coconut fiber, soil from the garden, humus, a small amount of ash or lime. Next, you should take a container with holes for drainage, place expanded clay on the bottom, and pour on top soil mixture. Then they make a hole in the ground, place the sprouted seed there so that the sharp part remains above the ground, and water it using settled water.
After 10-14 days, the tree should grow to 11 cm. Now it needs large area nutrition, so a second transplant is carried out. After 3 months, the avocado will look like in the photo, and will grow up to 0.5 m. early age Persea is replanted every year, and later - after 3 years.
Tip: to ensure that your homemade persea bushes well, regularly pinch the tops of the shoots.
Avocado propagation
Exotic lovers propagate avocados in two ways: by pitting and budding. To obtain seeds, use ripe fruits. They feel soft to the touch and taste buttery. Dried seeds should not be used; they do not germinate well. For germination, you can choose one of two methods: in water or in soil. Having chosen the first method, perform the following steps:
Germinate in the ground as follows:
- soak the bone in water at a temperature of 50 degrees C;
- remove the shell, which should soften during this time;
- cut the bone 10 mm from the sharp end, having previously disinfected the knife, then treat the cut with any fungicide;
- planted in the soil, covered with a transparent cap, moistened, and ventilated periodically.
Planting an avocado seed in the ground
For summer budding They use a sleeping eye, and for spring - an eye from seedlings with a stem with a diameter of 7 to 10 mm at the age of 2 years.
Attention! Avocado pits and peels contain a toxin. allergic, so it’s better to work with this fruit with gloves.
Caring for avocado seedlings: fertilizer and feeding
In winter, for avocados, it is advisable to maintain a temperature of 13 to 18 degrees C and water moderately, in summer - from 24 to 30 at abundant watering. If during the cold period the air in the room is dry, then for normal well-being the plant needs spraying with warm water.
Perseus tolerates shade well, although it is a light-loving plant, but does not like direct sunlight. When the days get shorter, it's better to add some backlighting. Avocados grow quickly, so to avoid an elongated, ugly tree, you should use pinching, pruning, and form the seedling into a bush. The stem is pinched at a distance of at least 150 mm from the ground, leaving 3 to 4 shoots. When the trunk grows to 20 cm, pinch the tops of the branches above the 5th leaf.
It is very important that the plant receives enough light
When you set a goal to see fruits on your pet, but you cannot violate any of the conditions proper care, but this is not enough - pollination is necessary. Although avocados can pollinate on their own, it is best to help them cross-pollinate with a brush. This operation is carried out in the morning every 10 days for a month, and then fertilizer is applied. In addition, when a tree blooms, it needs to be provided good lighting for 15 hours. If, in response to your efforts, the plant begins to bear fruit, new shoots formed at the ends of the branches should be broken off. This will help increase the yield.
Avocados are fed 2 times a month from March to October. For this purpose, slurry or mineral fertilizers containing microelements are used. An adult persea needs nitrogen; it is added before the onset of spring and in June.
Diseases and pests, combating them
An avocado growing in a room is subject to pests such as: spider mite, scale insects. Remove insects by collecting by hand, wash the leaves soap solution, and if all efforts are unsuccessful, then insecticides are used. If the branches are severely damaged, it is advisable to remove them.
Falling and drying of leaves is provoked by excessive watering, drafts, low temperature
Sometimes drying of the edges of the leaves, loss of color, and spots of different colors are observed. All this is the result of mistakes made in the maintenance of the plant, most likely, insufficient moisture levels and poor lighting.
A frequent guest at the exotic is powdery mildew. As soon as the first signs appear, the tree should be treated with topaz or another fungicide.
Advice. When the leaves on a tree suddenly begin to turn yellow, you should spray it with iron chelate and add additional fertilizer containing zinc and iron.
Try growing an avocado on your windowsill. Suddenly your beautiful emerald green plant will delight you not only with its appearance, but with its delicious fruits.
Growing avocados at home: video
How to grow avocados at home: photo
Grow exotic plant at home it is extremely difficult. Despite this, the popularity of the avocado tree is growing every year, although edible fruits indoor option cannot give wood. However, if you only want to germinate a seed at home in order to transplant the rooted sprout into open ground in a greenhouse with open ground, etc., then you may well get the fruits after several years of caring for the plant. Before looking for answers to the question of how to plant an avocado from a seed at home, you should prepare carefully from all sides. First of all, take care of the soil, prepare the seeds correctly, and also do not forget about a suitable pot and caring for the plant.
To understand which soil to plant an avocado in, carefully study the laurel family, to which Avocado belongs. So, the soil for this plant should have the following characteristics:
- Deep drainage,
- Looseness,
- Good moisture holding capacity.
Of course, it is advisable to choose soil that is not prone to compaction, although the avocado tree can tolerate acid and alkaline reactions without consequences. However, this is difficult to say about a fragile sprout, so when planting a seed in open ground, you should take care of the quality of the soil. If on your personal plot the ground is far from ideal for such a tree, it’s worth preparing a suitable one yourself soil mixture:
- 1 part humus,
- 1 part of simple “garden” soil,
- 1 part lime sand (a mixture of sand and lime, where there is 3-4 times more sand than lime).
Humus can be replaced with peat in this case. Good aeration is very important for the soil when growing avocados, therefore the soil mixture, in addition to or instead of sand, may contain:
- Peat,
- Expanded clay,
Only when the soil is prepared can you ask yourself how to plant a seed. But it is worth noting that it is important to choose the landing site wisely. As a rule, the seed of a plant is first planted in a pot and only after a few months is planted in the ground. Here's how to choose the right avocado pot:
- Material – plastic;
- Size – small, about 8-10 cm in depth;
- Features: good drainage and enough holes for water to drain.
The process of planting a seed in the ground
The hardest part about planting avocados is the waiting process. Gardeners worry whether the seed will sprout, whether it will be possible to grow large tree with a dense crown and, most importantly, whether the result will be in the form of fruiting. A lot will depend on the seed. To ensure everything goes smoothly, you should undergo the preparation of the seeds:
- Soak the seed in hot water(not in boiling water!);
- Leave for about 30 minutes;
- Remove the shell from the seed - soaking will make this process much easier;
- Cut off the tip of the seed and treat the cut with an antifungal solution.
Now the avocado pit is ready to be planted in the ground. It is worth noting how to plant an avocado from a seed - the seed does not go completely deep into the soil mixture in the pot! The whole is placed in the ground itself, i.e. the uncut end of the seed. The narrow end of the bone is cut off so that the wide end sinks into the ground. The seed should remain in the ground no more than 3 cm, i.e. the remaining part of it is visible above the soil surface (1/3 or ½ depending on the size). This is important so that the seed does not rot, which can also be caused by flooding the plant with water too often and too much!
Note that it is important not only to plant the avocado seed correctly, but also to choose good location and care for potted plants. It's best to choose enough warm place with good lighting, but protected from direct sunlight. It is advisable to maintain the air temperature around the pot at 20-24 degrees Celsius, but not lower than 18 degrees, even in winter time year. Water the plant more carefully - it needs regular replenishment with fresh water, but watering should not be excessive. But in the winter season, watering the avocado tree, like the seed itself, costs much less than in the summer. It is better to humidify the air around the plant more often by spraying the leaves or soil with a spray bottle.
Seed to plant
Before planting an avocado at home, you need to choose the right seed. Of course, it is much easier to buy a ready-made sprouted version, or an already fruit-bearing plant, but then there is no striving forward, no effort and no goal. Therefore it is necessary:
- choose healthy seed,
- the seed should be fresh, not dried six months ago,
- the seed should not have damage or disease, at least visible,
- If the seeds you collected are still not ideal, you should use others, otherwise you risk encountering failure when growing a tree.
Remember also that there is different ways planting seeds, which will depend on the preparation of seeds in advance. It is important not to confuse this:
- To plant an avocado seed in open ground, the shell is removed from the seed. To do this, carefully make cuts along the seed with a knife and pull off the protective “film” around the seed;
- At open cultivation The plant shell is not removed, but remains in place. Instead, 3-4 thin holes are made in the bone for matches or toothpicks;
- If you want to plant a seed in the ground in a pot, then remove the shell from the seed and, in addition, cut off a piece of 8-10 mm from its end.
There is a very important and subtle aspect that not many people know about. When choosing an avocado in a store or market to remove the pit, be sure to look for overripe fruits! Remember that a hard fruit of a plant indicates that it is not ripe and, in fact, it is still “green”, but a soft fruit does not indicate that the fruit has spoiled, but that it is ready, i.e. it is ripe and tasty. This is exactly the option you need, but if there is little choice on sale, just wait until the fruit ripens at home. Once the pulp becomes soft, the seed can be extracted from the fruit - it is ready for planting.
The choice of avocado variety also plays an important role. The fact is that this plant grows in tropical and subtropical climates, and therefore for most regions of Russia it is very difficult to grow such a tree. In this case, we should advise you to pay attention to the Mexican race of avocados. This family can tolerate the cold quite calmly, being a cold-resistant plant. But in winter it is still worth covering the tree or growing it in a greenhouse.
Features of growing avocados
Proper care can even smooth out the situation when it was not possible to plant an avocado correctly. Ideally, of course, you should replant the seed or start the process from the very beginning, but you can also try to save the seed by bringing it to germination.
- Support optimal temperature for the avocado tree. On average, it is 20 degrees Celsius. However resistant varieties plants to the cold will be able to survive 16-18 degrees of heat without consequences.
- Be sure to fertilize the plant. This should be done in spring or summer. Use liquid mineral fertilizers as complementary foods, organic fertilizers for plants from the tropics or for citrus fruits.
- Pinching plants if you want to grow ornamental plants. Thanks to regular and timely pinching, the height of the tree will reach 2.5 meters, which will allow you to keep it even in an apartment.
- Humidify the air around the plant so that the leaves on it do not dry out. For this purpose in a simple bottle Fill up with water, screw a spray nozzle onto the thread instead of a lid, and spray water onto the leaves and trunk of the plant. You can also place a container of water near the avocado pot, or simply install a high-quality air humidifier nearby.
- Repot the plant periodically. On average, this procedure It should be performed once every 2-3 years, but not more often. It is not at all necessary to replant an adult Avocado - this is important for a tree that is just forming its root system, crown and fruits.
Don't be alarmed if you already mature plant shedding leaves! This process in a fast-growing fruit plant leaks all year round, which is the norm. Of course, excessively low or high air temperatures may also be the cause of excessive leaf loss, but it will certainly be extremely difficult to understand this if you are not a professional plant grower. And finally, how to do it right:
- Choose a ripe fruit - it is soft, but without external damage and suppuration,
- Using a knife, cut the fruit lengthwise until you hit the pit and cut across the entire surface of the avocado,
- Separate one part of the fruit from the other (one part will remain pitted),
- Remove the bone and use it to grow an Avocado tree or dispose of it as food waste;
- Remove the peel with a knife.
Now you can try the fruit. You can eat it just like that, add it to a salad, make oil, etc.
Fans of exotic house plants have probably thought about how to plant an avocado and grow it at home. Perhaps someone even tried to do this by burying a bone from it in the ground exotic fruit, but didn't get any results. And not surprisingly, it is unlikely that you will be able to get what you want this way. However, growing avocados is quite possible if you follow some simple rules.
First of all, you need to pay attention to the choice of the fruit from which you are supposed to extract the seed for planting. It should be absolutely ripe, but not spoiled. This is checked this way: you need to lightly squeeze the avocado with your palms on both sides, and then loosen your grip and look at the result. The fruit of the required degree of maturity will quickly restore its shape.
If the avocado is not ripe enough, it will simply not shrink and will be harder to the touch. In principle, you can take this one and put it at home to ripen in a warm place. The speed of this process can be positively influenced by yellow bananas lying nearby.
Avocado planting
After the fruit has reached the required condition, it is necessary to plant it as soon as possible. To do this, you first need to peel the fruit and carefully remove the seed from it. There are then three possible options.
- The unpeeled stone is placed in the ground. In this case, its blunt end must be at the bottom. About a third of the pit should be left unburied. Further care consists of regular watering once a week. It is also recommended to cover the seed with polyethylene until the sprout appears.
- The cleaned bone is placed in water. The sharp end should remain exposed to the air. After the sprouts appear, which will happen in about a month or two, you can plant them in a pot.
- This method is almost the same as the previous one, only here you need to take the seed unpeeled. To secure it to a vessel with water, you can make special supports. To do this, the peel is pierced with toothpicks, just above the place to which the bone should go into the water, and it turns out to be strung on them. You can make three or four such fastenings, equidistant from each other.
To grow avocados at home, it is better to take a seed. large size. There's more to it nutrients, which will significantly increase the chances of success.
Conditions for avocados
Avocado is a tropical plant, and therefore heat-loving and very sensitive to humidity levels. It must be planted and grown at a temperature of about twenty-two to twenty-five degrees Celsius. If the air in the room is too dry, the leaves must be sprayed. In addition, in this case it makes sense to place the pot on a tray in which moistened moss is placed.
Illumination is also very important factor for the full growth and development of avocados. It is worth placing the pot with the plant in a bright place, but under no circumstances in direct sunlight.
The accumulation of liquid in the soil and the tray of the pot is unacceptable. Water for planting and watering should be settled and at room temperature. IN normal conditions there is no need to spray the leaves. It is advisable to add a little woody or activated carbon as a fertilizer.
The soil for growing avocados at home should be loose and always moist. A mixture of humus, sand and ordinary garden soil in equal proportions is best. You can add moss, peat or expanded clay, as well as lime. This tree is very sensitive to soil acidity; it should not be high. Be sure to use drainage.
Features of care
Growing avocados from seed at home is not too difficult. The main difficulty lies at the very beginning of the process - before roots and shoots appear. It is important to choose the right fruit, carefully remove the seed from it and plant it very carefully without damaging it.
Then everything will be quite simple, but there are a number of nuances. The plant should be watered abundantly, but not excessively. On average, it is recommended to do this once a week. But in order to accurately determine that it is time to water, you need to lower your finger into the ground up to the second fold. If the soil is dry, then it is time to moisten it.
Avocados need to be fed with complex mineral fertilizers at least once every two weeks. In order for the plant to be not only tall, but also lush, it is worth pinching it from time to time. Annual transplants are also required, usually carried out in the spring.
Avocados grown at home may be susceptible to attacks from pests such as scale insects and spider mites. In such cases, it is necessary to carefully treat it with special preparations, strictly following the instructions. In addition, the tree may shed its leaves. Usually this natural process, occurs from time to time, but can also serve as an indicator that the room temperature is too low.
Conclusion
Growing an avocado from a seed is a fairly simple process. Although, of course, it requires some effort and has some features. The most difficult thing will be to germinate a tree and choose for it correct soil. It is also very important to monitor the humidity regime.
It should also be said that the avocado is a fairly large tree, sometimes reaching twenty meters in length. To avoid such growth at home, and at the same time to give the plant splendor, it is worth pruning the upper shoots. Unfortunately, this exotic will not bloom and bear fruit in a city apartment. But it can act as an unusual decorative element.
The best time to plant and replant avocados is in the spring. In winter, the tree is quite vulnerable, and therefore needs more careful observation and care. It is at this time that it is especially important not to forget about fertilizers and maintenance high temperature air. If you follow all the rules described above, then this is amazing. tropical plant will thrive at home.