Grow an Avocado Tree from a Seed
Ranked #357 in Home & Garden, #5,471 overall
Avocados Are Awesome!
Growing a Tree from an Avocado pit is really easy. It just takes a good bit of time an patience. I think everyone should try it at least once in their life. I hope you enjoy my journey through the process.
2012 Avocado Trees in a Pot
My Current Attempt to Grow Avocado Trees from Pits
I used a pot that has a water catch on the bottom. This will keep water in the pot on those days you forget to water them. I also make the most of the days it rains by placing the pots out in the rain. The rain will then fill up the catch on the bottom and keep the roots moist for a few days.
About the middle of next month I am planning to get a larger pot.
Step 1: Buy Your Avocado
Time for a Trip to the Supermarket

Go to your local Grocery Store and purchase a nice sized Avocado. Depending on how cold the season was could determine whether the Avocado is 50 cents or 3 dollars. That is OK though. You are investing in a tree.
Personally I have not found Avocados under $1.50 in a while. Every once in a while I will find a bag of Avocados and Tomatoes that are about to go bad for $1.49 for an entire bag, but that does not happen often. If we do find one of those bags, we have to use the fruit that night or it will go bad, but that is a great time to get the avocado pits to start growing.
My favorite Avocado is a Haas. You have to make your own choice though.
How to Choose the Perfect Avocado
It is Easier than You Think
What I liked most was when he popped the nub off the top of the fruit. He said if the flesh under it was green, the fruit is good. If it is brown, then the flesh on the inside of the Avocado would be brown. If it is brown, then it is probably bad. Watch the video. It is great.
The Backyard Orchardist
A Complete Guide to Growing Fruit Trees in the Home Garden
Take a look at the information in this book. It will help in any fruit tree project you are starting. You can never have too much information when it comes to raising your own orchard.
The Nutrition of an Avocado
They Are More Than Just Great Tasting
It helps lower your bad LDL Cholesterol and raise your Good HDL Cholesterol. Basicly it a super wonder fruit. I just wish they weren't so expensive. I remember when you could buy them for fifty cents. Now you are lucky if you can find them for less than $2.
Buy a Tree Already Started
They Come Grafted and Ready to Plant
The fruit your 'pit started' tree may not have the taste you were hoping for and it may take a decade or so to find out if it tastes good or not. So if you are planting a tree to collect the fruits, take some time to look for a tree from a nursery. Otherwise let's go ahead and start our own tree.
Do You Know Where Avocados Come From?
Most People know where they are Grown Today
In America, most of our Avocados are grown in the warmer climates; places where they don't get freezing temperatures. You can find avocado groves in California, Florida and Hawaii. Do you know where they were found first before Modern Man found them and started growing them all over the world?
Step 2: Eat Your Avocado
There Are So Many Ways to Enjoy Your Avocado

Find a Sharp knife and cut the avocado in half along the longest circumference. You will feel the pit in the center of the Avocado with your knife. Just cut around it.
Twist the two halves of the Avocado and separate them. Pop out the pit with a spoon, set it aside, and then scoop out the flesh of the Avocado with that same spoon.
Cut the flesh of the avocado into bite size chunks. Sprinkle with Salt and Pepper. Enjoy. I love these thing all by themselves. mmmmmm.
How to Scoop Your Avocado
Can You Do It In One Scoop?
A Guacamole Recipe
Best Chip Dip in the World
1 ripe roma tomato, chopped
Small bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon sliced jalapenos
1 fresh lime, juice only
2 cloves garlic, minced
I feel there are two ways to prepare this. The first is to chop everything by hand. This is nice because everything looks nice chopped up in tiny squares and is not all mushy. The other way to make this is to put it all in a food processor and turn it into a kind of lumpy paste. It is nice a creamy this way, but is not as attractive. I would try it both way and decide which way you like it better.
A Tomato and Avocado Sandwich
Great for an Afternoon Lunch
Avocado Chicken Salad
Use Avocado Instead of Mayo
Got Avocado?
A Great T-Shirt for Avocado Lovers

Got Avocado by foodtshirts
Browse other t-shirt designs made on zazzle.com
Avocado Shake
Simple and Tasty
Step 3: Nail Your Pit
I Use Nails, Not Toothpicks

A lot of directions say to use toothpicks to hold your pit above the water. I have found by trial and error that toothpicks are extremely difficult to get into the pit. They tend to break, hence driving me insane.
Take 3 long nails and stick them into the sides of the pit about 2/3rds of the way up the pit. The point should be on top. I like to angle the nails upward slightly. This will allow as much of the pit as possible to sit into the water. The more contact with the water, the better.
Heckava Haiku
Haiku About Avocados
Silky smooth green flesh;I scoop it out with a spoon
And cherish the taste.
It sits in water
Waiting for it's seedling to
Grow out of it's pit.
It drops it's tap root
Into the glass of water;
Drinking up its fill.
Download 'Hecava Haiku' for FREE
or Buy the Print Book to Support My Haiku
Let Me Show You How to Nail Your Pit
Recorded May 3, 2010
Step 4: Place on the Rim of a Tin Can
With the Water Level as High as You Can Make It

Find a nice quiet spot for your Tree to begin to grow. I find that a window sil or your desk at work is a great place to keep them.
As for a container to put them in, I found that Vienna sausage tin cans are the perfect size. You can keep it full of water rather easily and it is free after you eat it contents.
The picture shown is not very practical. The glass can be knocked over fairly easily. The first time I started a pit, I put it in a Vienna Sausage Can. That worked really well. This time I grew one in a glass to show you what the progress of the growth will be like.
Tip in the Dark
I find I have More Success when the pit is in the dark. That is why I suggest using a tin can or something that is not clear.
Gardening Books
Learn how to Grow a Garden
Step 5: Wait Patiently
It takes some time to start your tree
After three to four weeks the pit should split on one side and a root should shoot down into the water.
Note the Time it Takes
The first time I started an Avocado tree, it took 4 weeks for the tap root to appear. I have heard other people having it take two months to sprout. Make sure you wait long enough before you give up.
Step 6: Keep Waiting
Get excited. Keep topping off that glass. It will use the water now as it continues to grow. When it grows a number of roots under the pit, it will start to really use the water.
Avocado Tree Videos
You will be interested in some of these
Step 7: Pinch it Back
To Help it Branch Out
It is good to do this early while the tree is still young. If you do it later, the tree could die. By Young I mean within the first year. When I grew my first tree, I didn't pinch it off for the first few months of it's life. I waited because I didn't know I was supposed to pinch it back to make it grow limbs. When I pinched it back there were about a dozen leaves on it and the tree was already about two or three feet tall. It started to grow new branches, then I forgot to bring the tree inside before the first frost. It died because of the freezing temperatures.
Step 8: Give it Soil
After a while you will see a nice root ball starting. When you see this, it is time to move it to a pot.
Now that You Have Your Avocado Tree
You should have a Greenhouse
An Avocado Poll
There are a lot of different Avocados out there. Us Americans only eat a few of them. I think that is rather sad. We should be exposed to more of the varieties. They all have their own distinct favor and texture.
Great Avocado Links
Other Tips to Grow Your Own Avocado Tree
I find that you don't have to take my word for anything I might have said above. I find a lot of my information all over the internet and I think you will be able to find anything you might be looking for about Avocados or cooking the fruit in some of the sited I have listed below.
Home Fruit Production - Avocado
Home Fruit Production3 points
tropicamango.com
tropicamango.com1 point
Growing an Avocado Tree - and how to get a tree that produces avocados
Growing an avocado tree - and how to get a tree th more...1 point
The Amazing Avocado » Home
This is the Amazing Avocado home page!1 point
Avocados & Guacamole | California Avocado Commission
Avocados & Guacamole1 point
www.growquest.com
www.growquest.com0 points
How To Grow An Avocado Tree : TipNut.com
How To Grow An Avocado Tree0 points
Avocado Growing in the Florida Home Landscape
Avocado Trees Get Huge. Check Out all the Great In more...0 points
Photos of Avocados and Their Trees
Beautiful Tree for Your Yard
There are millions of Avocado Trees in the worlds. Some people have groves of them, some only have one tree in their backyard. Many of them take pictures of their trees. I can't wait till my tree is large enough to grow fruit. Then I can photograph them and post the pictures like the rest of these wonder people.
Tell Me About Your Avocado Trees
And Anything Else Avocado Related
I want to know what you know about Avocados.
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sihemkhalil
May 25, 2012 @ 6:08 am | delete
- I didn't try growing avocado but am working on growing my first apple tree, and my first red berry tree!!
Thanks for the info am gonna start my avocado tree ASAP
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kindoak
Apr 22, 2012 @ 1:10 am | delete
- One of the better grow tip lenses I've seen. Nice job!
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jared-deel
Apr 17, 2012 @ 11:28 am | delete
- Awesome sandwich! Thanks Robert!
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Aryadi
Apr 17, 2012 @ 12:59 am | delete
- what about if the avocados grow faster in salt, sugar or regular water
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Alex-45
Apr 12, 2012 @ 6:15 pm | delete
- I love avocados and your lens too! Very helpful - thank you.
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GeminiDragon
Apr 7, 2012 @ 4:37 am | delete
- Freekin' awesome lens! So complete! Must have taken you a week to get this right!
Hungry for some dip now...mmmmm.....
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Chinajoy
Mar 28, 2012 @ 9:13 pm | delete
- I remember doing this with my kids, but now that I live in South China, I can grow one from a seed and not have it die at first frost. YeaH!!! Thanks for a great lens.
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Julie H.
Mar 23, 2012 @ 2:38 pm | delete
- In order to fruit, an avocado seedling must be grafted with a scion or bud from a mature fruiting avocado tree. I recommend a google search for this process- there are a lot of video tutorials out there. While this is fun and avocado trees also make pretty indoor plants and outdoor, they won't fruit just by sticking the seed in water :)
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sam
Mar 21, 2012 @ 10:33 pm | delete
- my friend is growing a seedling i potted it already, its growing a healthy stem but no leaves yet, the stem is already at least 10" long what should i do? is there something i can feed it to help leaves come?
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SunnyDaze
Mar 18, 2012 @ 10:15 pm | delete
- Great lens. I love avocados. I craved avocados with my fourth child. I ate so many avocados during that pregnancy, I was sure he was going to be born green! Blessed by a Squid Angel.
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jercow75
Mar 16, 2012 @ 9:22 pm | delete
- I was excited to try this, and then I realized I lived in New York. Time to move. Great lens.
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bratosin Mar 15, 2012 @ 9:26 am | delete
- Good luck ,Great post,y love you.Thanks for the info it had cleared out too many things in my mind. Your recommendations are really good.
http://www.areavocadosfattening.com
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MelonyVaughan
Mar 13, 2012 @ 10:36 pm | delete
- What a great lens! Thanks for the step-by-step instructions on how to grow an avocado from a seed.
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Irenemaria
Mar 11, 2012 @ 3:29 pm | delete
- I have a plant now but it looks really bent and weird. I cut the top off like you said and a new sprout took off at the side. So now it looks like a L hehehe
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Michey Feb 28, 2012 @ 10:19 am | delete
- I love avocado but I never grow up one... Thanks for recipes *(I have to try the ones I don't know until now), and a great presentation
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NAIZA
Feb 28, 2012 @ 1:11 am | delete
- I love avocados! We used to have an avocado tree planted in our backyard. Terrific lens with a lots of information and tips. :)
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Bruce
Feb 19, 2012 @ 6:55 pm | delete
- I used to be able to sprout avocado seeds from the grocery store about 20 years ago, but now, no one I know has been able to do it. I wait for at least a month, after which they usually rot. They must be doing something that keeps them from sprouting. Where can one get viable seeds these days?
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Bruce
Feb 21, 2012 @ 7:04 am | delete
- I read somewhere that organic avocados will sprout. Next time the store has them, I will try again.
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Julie H.
Mar 23, 2012 @ 2:40 pm | delete
- If you know someone that has an avocado tree, that's a good place to start! i have planted all of my avocados from family and friends' trees! (Especially from the avocados that I ate that were the "best avocados I've ever tasted"!
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b.Niki
Feb 16, 2012 @ 11:59 am | delete
- I started my tree the old fashioned way from a seed. Its now about one foot tall. I pinched it the other day. There are little thick white leaves on the bottom of the stalk. Or should I say there were because I pinched them too. Was I supposted to do that?
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acie
Feb 14, 2012 @ 1:02 am | delete
- I sprouted my avocado tree and I'm so proud I never planted anything in my life it took about three months but patience paid off my tree is about two feet tall I put it in soil and it looks good :)
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John_Michael Feb 7, 2012 @ 10:32 pm | delete
- I had three pits sitting in water for over a month and nothing / nada ... so I tossed 'em
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Lifeboost Feb 5, 2012 @ 2:10 am | delete
- I love avocados! But hadn't thought of growing them because of the winters here... well, and the summers lol. Great lens. Blessed by a Squid Angel. :)
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malzeke
Feb 4, 2012 @ 4:50 pm | delete
- I love avocados. I just never thought to grow one. This article really lays out the steps so clearly that I think I am going to give it a try.
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Sara W.
Feb 3, 2012 @ 3:55 am | delete
- Thank you very much, i have been searching for a more detailed explanation of when to "pinch" my avocado, it's already about 10-12 inches and just started sprouting the leaves, i was afraid to trim it wrong... i'll just pinch the top leaves growing, do u think that will be alright since it's already that tall?
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HarmonyArtMom
Jan 20, 2012 @ 11:43 am | delete
- This is awesome....I am going to add an avocado to my windowsill garden. Thanks for all the great avocado goodness.
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Jenn
Nov 28, 2011 @ 7:56 pm | delete
- So tonight while I was cooking dinner my dog ate the only 3 leaves off my Avocado Tree. I had left it out on my coffee table for it to get some afternoon sun and forgot to put it back on its plant shelf. So now I have an Avocado stick!! It looks very sad, however she didnt get the new growth on the top... Should I pinch my tree or leave it?? Please HELP
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rgasperson
Nov 30, 2011 @ 4:47 pm | delete
- You could do one of two things. You can wait to see where the new growth will come from. Then decide if you need the avocado stick or not. Or you can force the plant to grow again from the base of the plant and pinch it back. Either way you have about a 50/50 chance the plant will survive. Just keep nurturing it.
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Jenn
Nov 30, 2011 @ 7:43 pm | delete
- Okay... That sounds like some hope 50/50 chance. I think its going to live. Tonight I looked in the dirt and there is about a 3/4 inch of a new sprout. Should I chop the old and hope that the new ones comes in??
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rgasperson
Dec 1, 2011 @ 9:32 am | delete
- If you already have new growth, I would go ahead and chop off the old stick so the plant is working on your new growth. That is fantastic. I look forward to seeing pictures.
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GonnaFly
Nov 24, 2011 @ 6:51 pm | delete
- Just returning to say that this lens has been blessed and added to my Growing Vegetables and Herbs lens.
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Amoonlighter2011
Nov 17, 2011 @ 8:52 pm | delete
- FANTASTIC!!! I have been wanting to do this forever....now that my little one is eating them regularly I have pits...so next one here we go a planting!
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John_Michael Nov 14, 2011 @ 8:29 am | delete
- will it bear avocados?
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rgasperson
Nov 14, 2011 @ 4:37 pm | delete
- Eventually it will. Avocado Trees can take up to 10 years to start fruiting. Then you may not get the same quality fruit as the one you got the pit from. Most people like the look of the tree. If you live in an area where it freezes, you will have to make it an indoor plant during the winter. If you live in a tropical area, you can have a large tree with thousands of avocados in 20 years or so.
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John_Michael Nov 14, 2011 @ 8:28 am | delete
- I have one that's already beginning to peek out ... so this has been helpful
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cashstudent101
Oct 19, 2011 @ 10:11 pm | delete
- i tried this before with my kids but i guess we did not wait long enough. I will try it again. I love avocados and would love to have a tree in my back yard.
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Internationaltenders
Oct 11, 2011 @ 2:28 am | delete
- Beautiful pics with very wonderful information. Good work dear.
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BendORlove
Sep 29, 2011 @ 12:15 pm | delete
- I've been growing an avocado plant for a while now and its been going pretty smoothly. But not too long after I planted it in potting soil it began to sprout new stems out if the pot next to the main stem. I was wondering if I should clip out the other ones so the main one gets the most nutrients, or just let them be and prune the leaves accordingly? Right now the main plant stem is about 5 or so inches tall with a few small leaves and the other stems are maybe an inch shorter. After the squirrels came and stole my other avocado out of its pot shortly after planting it, I've been babying this one everyday and don't intend on losing it!!!
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rgasperson
Sep 29, 2011 @ 1:03 pm | delete
- I would let the other sprouts grow. You can always cut them back later if you don't like how they are growing. That is my opinion at least.
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bosie
Sep 19, 2011 @ 2:52 pm | delete
- I have tried so many times to do this but always failed. Thanks to this great lens I think I now know what I have been doing wrong - not giving them long enough to root. Time to try again I think! Thanks for the info - recipes a bonus! Squidlike from me.
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TransplantedSoul
Sep 17, 2011 @ 6:45 am | delete
- It's too cold here to grow them, and I've never had luck getting them to sprout, but they sure do taste great.
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zdaddyo Sep 9, 2011 @ 5:28 pm | delete
- We eat avocados all the time in our household. I should try this!
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Anders
Sep 4, 2011 @ 10:06 am | delete
- Thanks for all the tips on how to grow an avocado. I have a question about pinching the tree, you wrote that "Make sure you pinch it back right above a couple of leaves", what about if I have a 6 inch stem but with no branches or leaves except for at the top? It have about 7-8 leaves at the top, but no branches or leaves along the stem. Should I wait to pinch it back then?
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rgasperson
Sep 6, 2011 @ 7:35 am | delete
- I have pinched it off about half way down the stem. There is a possibility the plant will stop growing, but more likely the stem will put off new growth from where you pinched it off or near the base of the tree making new trunks. The first time I grew one I let it grow for a while before I pinched it off. By that time it was a foot or two tall and had a bunch or leaves.
You could just let it grow how it wants, but I have heard of them getting 10-15 feet tall without branching out. That is why I suggest pinching them off.
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Lauren
Aug 30, 2011 @ 1:23 am | delete
- I have had success after a long long period of time!:) Such a happy day, although I used a couple of methods to encourage the little root systems to show their lovely faces, and the technique I had success with was different to the technique described above! But, now I am about to plant the little bubba in soil, and my research suggests that I should plant the tap root part in the soil, and have the other root part out of the soil. However, I am confused as to which part I need to plant (which part is the tap root)...Is it the long root with no extremities, or the shorter curled root with many extremities branching from it?? I look forward to hearing from you:)
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rgasperson
Sep 6, 2011 @ 7:31 am | delete
- The part that has been in the water for the past few weeks is the root system. It should be the part growing down. The tap root is white and long and pretty thick. Not long after the tap root appears, you will start to get a mesh of thinner roots that will be looking for water. This is the part you should plant into the dirt. You should leave the top part of the pit above ground., just enough to let the part with the leaves grow freely.
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RecipePublishing
Aug 26, 2011 @ 11:06 am | delete
- Yummy, what a treat!
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betsuzie
Aug 16, 2011 @ 1:50 pm | delete
- I am sooo doing this! I'm crazy about growing things and I'm crazy about Avocados! :) Great lens!!
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Laura, Scotland
Jul 13, 2011 @ 4:39 pm | delete
- I decided to grow an avocado tree last year. It took me four attempts before I was successful, It has live through the neighbours brats pulling off its leaves, me knocking the top off (which made me so angry) and competing for space on its windowsill with the tomato plants I have. Now at 8 months old its leaves are starting turning brown, curl, dry out and fall off. This is making me very sad. I came across your wonderful blog on a search looking for answers, remedies, a cure for my baby. Wish us luck.
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SocialpathFree
Jul 11, 2011 @ 7:24 pm | delete
- I've often looked at avocado seeds and wondered if I could grow a tree from it. Thanks for the tips.
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