Avocado is one of the healthiest fruits in the world, and they are great for everyone.
The fruit has so many uses, and the highly adaptive plants can be grown pretty much anywhere.
Avocados are considered terrestrial plants that grow outdoors and grow up to 20 feet tall. But what if we told you that you could have an avocado as a houseplant?
You’re going to learn how to grow avocados indoors in this article.
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The general profile of an avocado plant
Around the world, there are over 1000 varieties of avocado, and each grows in a specific environment.
The botanical name of an avocado is Persea Americana.
All avocados are green when raw, and ripe avocados can have a green, black, or thick navy-blue outer skin depending on the plant species.
All avocado species, however, produce delicious greenish-yellow flesh when ripe.
Avocado plants bear fruits after 3-7 years and grow in a pH range of 6.0-6.5.
Avocado trees can grow up to 50 feet tall.
Are you wondering how you’d grow such a plant indoors? We’ll get to that soon enough!
Types of avocados suitable for growing indoors
There are over 1,000 avocado species, but some can’t be grown indoors. The following avocados grow well indoors:
Holiday avocado
This species of avocado does not correlate to the holidays we know.
The plant matures at just 10-12ft tall, making holiday avocados suitable for growing indoors. The leaves of the holiday avocado get pretty long and form an umbrella shape.
Planting a holiday avocado plant should give you avocados in 5-13 years – the skin will be thick and bumpy! Plus, these plants can survive harsh conditions, which makes them perfect for growing indoors.
Gwen
If you’re not new to growing avocados indoors, you’re sure to know about Gwen avocados.
They grow to 14 inches at maturity.
The fruit remains green when ripe and can withstand temperatures of 16-30 degrees centigrade.
It might take 8-20yrs for the first fruit to come, but it’s worth it. Gwen produces avocados between February and October.
Wertz
Wertz is a hybrid cross between Mexican and Guatemalan. It grows up to 12 inches tall when mature. Branches get pretty dense, and they produce fruit from May to September.
Conditions necessary for growing avocado indoors
You need a checklist of things to get right if you want to learn how to grow avocados indoors. Like how to eat an avocado! Just kidding!
Lighting
Avocados are green plants, so they rely on sunlight to grow, and they do best in sunny climates. It’s best to put indoor plants near a window, but that’s not always enough light.
It’s better to put them under a skylight, so they get 10 hours of sunlight a day.
Temperature
Different avocado species thrive at different temperatures – which should remain constant since plants have difficulty adapting to fluctuating temperatures. They will shed leaves or even die.
You’ll want to keep a steady temperature of 16-30 degrees centigrade.
Humidity
You should keep your avocado plant’s humidity above 50% if you want a high yield. In low humidity levels, the plant will wilt.
Watering
Water your avocado plant according to its growth stage. Water the plant regularly, at least every two days in the early stages of growth. Eventually, you can reduce this to once or twice a week.
Step by step guide on how to grow avocado indoors
Avocados grow from seeds (also known as pits!) just like other plants. There are large pits in avocados, though. So here is our question for the day: how do you grow avocados indoors? Here’s how.
Sprouting
Avocados start with sprouting, and we’ve got a couple of ways to get them going!
Toothpick method
• Clean the seed with cold water after removing the avocado. Feel free to dry it with a towel though this is not always necessary.
• Find the top and bottom of the seed – The seed has a pointed top! Push in a network of 2-3 three toothpicks running horizontally.
• Suspend the seed on glass or container with water so that the bottom points down and is half-submerged (this will be about 1 inch.)
• Allow it to sprout; it will take a few days.
• Once it’s 6 inches long, move it to a pot or directly into the earth. Bear in mind that avocado roots grow deep.
Soil/compost method
• Make a compost mix, then press the avocado seed halfway into the mixture.
• Water the mixture and make sure it’s soaking wet.
• After a few weeks, the seedling will sprout, and you should transfer it to where you want.
2. Caring for the avocado
Avocados aren’t easy to grow if you don’t know how to take care of them. Plant support and feeding are parts of indoor avocado plant care.
- Steady the tree to keep it straight and sturdy as it grows, and you’ll need to transplant it when it outgrows the pot.
- Whenever you see suckers growing, trim them.
- Frequently rotate it for it to grow evenly and use organic fertilizer.
- When the soil feels dry, water it a little.
3. Watch the tree grow to maturity
If you do all the right things, your tree will grow to maturity. However, you will need to be patient because it can take up to 10 years for the plant to produce fruit.
Photo: Matthias.
Photo by weerapatriatdumrong