How to Grow Avocado Trees
In Australia home gardeners and commercial orchardists both grow a number of avocado tree varieties. So how to grow avocado trees and selecting the right avocado tree for your garden depends on a number of factors
- climate
- time of maturity
- size of tree
- type of fruit
Different avocado varieties meet these requirement in different ways. However ALL avocado trees have these requirements for good growth, a humus rich well drained soil and a sunny position with some protection from wind
So where can you grow avocados in Australia ? Commercial orchards are in Queensland, NSW, Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia. We have heard of home growers in Tasmania as well.
Conditions required are moist, but not wet and certainly not dry, avocados are fussy about soil moisture, to wet and they will rot at the roots, to dry and they will die of thirst.
Can you grow avocados in pots or containers.
Yes you can, look for smaller growing types, we have seen Wurtz, which is a smaller growing tree anyway being sold as a semi dwarf.
Then we have Avocado varieties
Avocados come as Type A and Type B, in many cases you will need both for good pollination. They also fruit at different times of the year.
Below we list both A and B Varieties with approximate fruiting time, which will vary depending on climate.
Type A Avocado cultivars:
- Hass – September to January
- Hazard – Sept – December
- Jalna – April May
- Wurtz January February
- Reed – November to March
- Rincon – July to October
- Gwen – September to January
- Lamb Hass – December to April
- Pinkerton – June to August
Type B Avocado cultivars:
- Edranol – August to October
- Fuerte – June to October
- Millicent – September to December
- Sharwil – August to November
- Ryan – November to January
- Sheppard – March to June
- Zutano – March to July
- Bacon – June to July
- Shephard – March – May
- Llanos Hass – July – October
Bacon is well worth considering for cooler climates, Wurtz has a smaller growth habit, and lots of others with different fruiting characteristics are also available.
Time from planting to fruiting.
In warmer climates (read Queensland) avocados will fruit in around 4 years, the colder it gets (further south) the longer it will take, around 6 years in Victoria.
In cooler climates it may be best to have a cross pollinator, Bacon and Wurtz or Haas are a good combination.
How to grow avocados in summary
- lots of sun
- good drainage
- keep moist, but not wet
- maybe 6+ years to fruiting in cool climates
- cross pollinators may be required
Growing Avocados from seed
You can grow an avocado tree from seed, the problem is it may or may not fruit, and the quality of the fruit may be poor. You will certainly be able to grow a tree with great glossy green foliage, however as the wait from seed to fruiting can be 10 years, you may be disappointed.
We recommend buying grafted trees from reputable growers.
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