Hi! I’m new… so I hope this is correct.
I have several avocado sprouts. I thought I read somewhere that to produce fruit, I would have to graft to another root system or to another top (fruit producing part). I’m totally new to this.
I did buy these clips that actually hold two parts of a plant together but haven’t tried it yet.
Any suggestions or help is appreciated. It took me a long time to get these going and curious if I can take it all the way to a planted tree.
By the way… I’m 7b but have corners of my lot that are warmer and cooler. However, the place I am thinking of putting a tree if started correctly is an open area with full sun but full winter winds and cold.
Thank you!
Michelle in NC
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I do not think you will be able to keep an avocado tree alive in your zone without significant winter protection (a cold frame/temporary greenhouse each winter, probably with a heat source for cold snaps).
If you did want to try zone pushing avocados (and I’m in no position to discourage that, it’s my obsession!), you will need to start by finding cold-hardy seedlings for rootstock. Grocery store “Hass” seedlings have not yet successfully survived in my 8b yard, above or below ground, so I don’t think they make suitable rootstock for zone pushing of avocados.
That being said, one thing you could start with is simply planting all the seedlings you have outdoors now. If any of them sprout from their roots next spring, they could be suitable for grafting low (below ground level) with a hardy variety, which will still need significant protection in your climate.
If none of them sprout in spring, you’ll know you need hardier rootstock.
Here’s an example of a “hardy” seedling (Mexicola Grande is the parent), starting its third growing season here in zone 8b, you can see the remains of the first and second season to the left:
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Thank You for the info… Would you suggest putting in a pot and bring in during the winter considering my 7b? Will it hibernate correctly if left in a 65 degree house during the winter? well, does it need to hibernate? hmmm. (it is tropical, maybe doesn’t need to hibernate…)
anyway, If I put them outside or put in a pot for inside… and one comes back, where would you get the top part to graft?
Thanks!
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You could do that for a year or two, but avocado trees are not suited to container growing in the long term. They will have stunted growth and will be prone to root rot unless their taproots are allowed to go deep into the ground, and their feeder roots are able to spread wide at the surface. It may be possible in a 30+ gallon pot, but by the end of year three, a healthy tree is usually outgrowing a 15 gallon pot, which is the largest size I’m willing to try to haul around, so I haven’t tried going larger.
Be aware that any avocado grown indoors (even near a sunny window) will become badly sunburned if placed directly into the sun outside, so you will need to carefully transition trees from indoors to shade to part sun to full sun in the spring.
Fruitwood Nursery sells a good selection of hardy avocado scionwood, but typically it’s only in stock for a brief period in early winter, so you’ll have to sign up to be notified when they are back in stock, and order them then. That will unfortunately not be a good time of year for you to graft to outdoor seedlings in your location, but you could graft to potted seedlings indoors any time of year.
“Poncho” is probably the hardiest variety they carry, but I haven’t tested all the others yet. Other hardy (allegedly to upper teens °F once established) options include Lila, Joey, Mexicola Grande, Fantastic. I plan to test all of them over the coming years, but have not yet. Poncho had no damage at 17°F with just an unheated upside-down flower pot for protection this winter. Here’s what it looked like a few days ago, the dark green leaves along the main trunk survived the winter, the light green and pink growth is new this year:
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