It’s hard not to love avocados with all of the amazing benefits this fruit has to offer. I love avocados from improving my skin with an Avocado Honey Facial to enjoying it in my favorite guacamole avocado recipe, and for the many Avocado Oil Benefits. If you are using fresh avocados, you are left with the pits. Why not grow your very own avocado tree? It is actually very easy to grow avocado from seed. Here are the simple steps to growing avocado from seed with photos to show you how.
Tutorial For Growing Avocado From Seed (So Easy!)
Supplies Needed For Growing Avocado From Pit:
- an avocado seed (pit)
- 3-4 toothpicks
- glass or mason jar
- water
How To Grow Avocado:
This makes a fun little project to do with kids or without. It is cool watching the avocado seed send out roots and then split and send out a shoot. You start off growing the avocado in water and then transfer it to a pot with soil once the root and shoot have emerged.
1. Remove Avocado Seed
Cut and remove the pit or seed from your avocado. Rinse and wash the seed. Set it aside to dry while you enjoy your favorite avocado recipe!
If you use a lot of avocados, you will sometimes get a seed that has already got a bit of a root shoot coming out. These pits are already started so even easier to grow.
2. Insert Toothpicks into Avocado Seed
When the avocado seed is dry carefully insert 3 or 4 toothpicks into the pit. You’ll want the toothpicks to go in at the widest part of the seed so that it will be easy to suspend over a glass or jar of water.
3. Suspend Avocado Seed In Water
Fill a glass or mason jar with water and suspend the seed over the glass using the toothpicks. Place the avocado pit so the pointed, narrow part is facing up. The seed needs to be submerged in the water approximately 1/2″ to 1″. Place the seed jar in a sunny, warm area and maintain the water level.
I used filtered water. Though not required, plants just tend to do better the chemicals in tap water.
Within 2-6 weeks you should start growing avocado from seed. First you will see the seed sprout roots out the bottom of the seed. If the seed does not sprout by 8 weeks, it is probably a dud. You will need to try again with a new avocado seed.
4. Grow Avocado From Pit
After the initial root growth, the seed will begin to crack open a bit as it sends out a stem. Don’t worry about the avocado seed splitting open. That just allows room for the avocado seed to sprout and send up leaves. The seed should still hold together as the plant begins to grow. (If it does break, that just means it is time to plant it.)
I let mine grow for about 2 months in the jar before planting it. The avocado pit itself is food for the plant as it begins to grow so you don’t have to worry about getting it into the soil in any hurry.
5. Plant Avocado Seed In Soil
The stem will leaf again and when it does you can transplant the avocado seedling, root down into a pot of loose, sandy potting mix soil. Just dig a deep hole to drop the root into and fill in the soil around it. Leave the top half of the pit sticking out above the soil. Keep the avocado plant in a sunny location and water lightly often.
Occasionally, pinch back a few leaves to encourage new growth and to encourage the plant to thicken. Growing avocado from pit is pretty easy and you have already done all the hard work. Just set the pot in full sun and enjoy it as it grows. It makes a unique houseplant and has and the large waxy leaves that are pretty. Additionally, live houseplants offer lots of benefits, like fresher air.
Planting Your Avocado Tree Sapling
If you plan to plant your avocado outside you’ll want to acclimate it by taking it outdoors for a short time everyday. You should do this for 1-2 weeks before transplanting it outside permanently. It will need plenty of indirect sunlight, well-drained soil, and to be watered regularly. In addition, they need warm weather year round to survive well outside.
You should be aware that while growing avocado from seed is easy, an avocado tree plant can take 5-13 years to bear fruit and some never do! Whether your avocado tree produces fruit or not you’ll have a beautiful plant to enjoy for years to come!
We live in Tennessee so we just keep our avocado tree indoors in a pot for the pleasure of growing them and having a shiny, beautiful houseplant. You can see a pic of my sprouted avocado seed about 3 months after I planted it in soil on my instagram.
I have a funny story though on that subject. My daughter and I grew an avocado tree from a seed and when it was pretty big, we had it outside in a big pot and while we were sitting on the deck a squirrel came right up and plucked out the pit and ran away with it! After that, my daughter disliked squirrels for a long time. In conclusion, beware of hungry critters stealing your avocado pit!
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed these tips for growing avocado from seed. Have you ever tried to grow an avocado from pit? Do you want to grow an avocado tree for fun or fruit? What is your favorite way to enjoy avocados?
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When I first saw a friend doing this I had never heard of it before! This would be a great activity to do with kids when learning about plants… (and it’s surprisingly easy)