Avocado is an exotic evergreen plant. Many lovers of floriculture know that it is not easy to grow avocados at home, and even more so to wait for the harvest. Its unique taste fruits could please more than one florist. But, unfortunately, avocados with fruits at home are rather an exception to the rule. Although not always plant an orange or persimmon seed, hoping for a quick result. You can wait more than one year, hope and at the same time enjoy a fruit bush or tree.

With a strong desire, you can plant an avocado seed and patiently follow all the necessary rules for growing and caring. What if your dream comes true and you wait at your home for the harvest?

How to grow an avocado from a pit

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To grow this unusual overseas plant, you will need a ripe avocado fruit. Only the bone of such a fruit has a great chance of germination. This process can be carried out in two ways:

• The first method (closed) is usual and simple. Avocado seeds should be stuck into the soil with a wide underside to a shallow depth (about 2 centimeters). When creating favorable conditions, it should germinate in about 30 days.
• The second method (open) is interesting and even, one might say, exotic.

The bone before planting in the ground must be germinated in water in a suspended position. First, it needs to be thoroughly washed and cleaned. Then, approximately in the middle of the bone along the circumference line, you need to carefully drill three or four holes, into which you then need to insert thin wooden sticks (for example, matches or toothpicks). They will act as a support when the wide lower part of the bone is lowered into a container with water. These sticks, like retainers, will keep the bone at the required height. The main thing is to constantly monitor the amount of water in the container. The lower part of the bone should always be in the water.

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Instead of water for germination of avocado seeds, you can use special polymer granules(hydrogel). This polymeric material can retain a large amount of water for a long time. In this method, it is very convenient, you do not need to monitor the level.

It will take only 20-30 days, and the first young roots will appear, and then the sprout. The bone will be ready for planting in the ground when the length of the roots reaches 4 centimeters.

To begin with, you will need a small flower pot with large holes. The earth should not be dense. It needs to be loosened well to ensure the necessary air and moisture exchange. The bone is planted in the soil so that two-thirds of its part is on the surface of the soil. There is no need to remove the shell on the bone.

Avocado - growing and caring at home

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Location and lighting

Avocado is a light-loving plant, but penumbra is also suitable for it. That's from direct sunlight it needs to be protected. If in your house or apartment there is a room with west-facing windows, then such a window sill will be the perfect place for this fruit.

Temperature

Since avocados are native to the tropics, it naturally loves warmth. In the case of a sharp decrease in temperature or the slightest draft, the plant will begin to show its discontent - all the leaves will immediately fall. Therefore, even in warm summer weather, it is undesirable to take it outside.

And in the room, too, a constant temperature should be maintained. In the warm season, the high room temperature will be favorable for avocados, but in the cold winter time it will be enough 20 degrees Celsius.

The plant also has a period of rest in winter. If in winter the temperature drops to 12 degrees in the room, then the avocado will immediately react - the leaves will drop and switch to the "hibernation" mode. But with proper care and a constant temperature balance, this cannot happen. This tropical plant is considered evergreen.

Irrigation rules

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Watering avocados in conditions of home maintenance should be regularly and abundantly, but taking into account the temperature indicators and the time of year. Excessive watering can be harmful. In summer it is watered more often than in winter. After the top layer of soil dries, it should take another couple of days before you start watering the plant. Immediately only its upper part dries up, and inside the pot for about two more days there is moisture necessary for avocados.

Air moisture

Humidity is also of great importance. The room is almost always dry air, and this is very harmful to this plant. Daily spraying will help solve the problem. It is very important that during such water procedures only the air near the avocado is humidified, but not the plant itself. Even small droplets should not fall on its leaves.

There is another way of moisturizing - this is a special tray for a pot with moistened expanded clay.

Fertilizing and fertilizers

From September to March, the plant does not need fertilizing. But the rest of the time, once a month, avocado must be fed with fertilizer recommended for citrus or any other complex top dressing.

Avocado transplant

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In nature, avocados grow up to 20 meters in height. Although at home it will not reach such heights, but it grows quite actively and requires frequent transplantation. Very soon the first small pot will be small for him. As soon as the tree grows to 15 centimeters, it's time to transplant it into a large container. At a young age, avocados are transplanted every year, and in the future you can once every three years.

Of great importance for the development and growth of the plant is the land in which it grows. Specifically for avocados need any loose and light earth, but not acidic. In such soil it would be good to add wood ash or dolomite flour.

Transplanting the plant into a new pot, use the method of transshipment. Carefully carry the tree along with a lump of earth.

You can prepare a soil mixture useful for avocados yourself. To do this, you will need: peat (or humus), garden land and coarse river sand. All components need to be mixed in equal parts.

Pruning

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This tropical plant at home may well become a decorative decoration of the room. However, this will require a little experience in floriculture. For example, you can grow several plants from avocado seeds and plant them all together in one flower pot. And while the plants are young and flexible, you can intertwine their stems with a pigtail.

So that the plant does not stretch in height, but acquires splengness in the form of side shoots, it must be pinched. This procedure can be carried out only when there is a sufficient number of leaves on the tree (at least eight). First, pinch the top of the plant, this contributes to the development of side branches. And after they are sufficiently formed and get their leaves, you can pinch them.

Pruning is carried out in early spring. It is necessary to improve the growth and development of the plant, as well as to form the crown you need. It can be completely different. It all depends on the imagination of the florist.

Diseases, pests and other problems

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Avocados, like all houseplants, are afraid of the same pests - shield and spider mite. The voracious spider mite is able not only to destroy all the leaves on the plant, but also can transfer various diseases to other indoor flowers. The shield feeds on the juice of plants. After its appearance, only dry leaves remain. You can fight such pests with various folk methods or insecticidal drugs.

Among the diseases, the main danger to avocados is powdery mildew.

In the process of cultivation, other problems may arise:

The tips of the leaves dry. Reasons - the rules of watering (lack of moisture), insufficient humidity of the air are not observed. It is necessary to establish regular watering (only after drying the upper layer of the earth) and humidify the air in the room with the help of spraying.

The leaves fall. The reasons are drafts and a decrease in air temperature in the apartment. It is necessary to maintain an optimal temperature regime in the room and prevent drafts.

Pale leaves. The reasons are lack of lighting. It is necessary to find a suitable place for the plant or organize additional (artificial) lighting, especially in winter.