I, too, am looking to purchase a home that comes with a grove of Avocados. While I have no interest in becoming a farmer, if I purchase this home, I would feel obligated to become a good steward of the land. I would want to hire a grove manager and hope to break even with all the costs involved in taking on this responsibility.
I understand you focus on avocados, but some of the properties we have found have other types of fruit. Can you speak to other types of groves too? Would you be willing to talk me through some things?
Hi Charley,
Thank you for your blog and so much valuable information!
I am about to purchase an avocado grove in
Fallbrook area and was wondering if you would be available for a consultation.
Thank you!
Jerry
Hi Charley-Im considering buying a home with 250 Hass avocado trees semi-densely planted on it in Fallbrook CA. Assuming the trees and irrigation are in average shape, roughly how much time (per week/month/or other) should I need to put into the grove if I manage it myself (I would outsource harvesting)? Any rule of thumb or range would be appreciated. Thank you in advance! Kevin
Kevin, I really don’t know if your question is answerable. Part of the answer is in the age of the trees. General comment is that a younger tree will require more attention. Bottom line is that if you are planning to hold down a full time job and manage the orchard and do the work it probably not doable. Sure it may get done but there will always be tasks that were not completed or not done correctly because of a lack of time. If you are retired and take this on, I will tell you you will become a slave to the grove.
Good luck, Charley
Hi there. In very early stage of planning to purchase an existing avacado grove or starting from scratch in Temecula area. Would you be kind enough to speak to me for a while?
Hiten, Yes I can help you with purchasing decisions for avocado property. I do that on a consulting basis. I will send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charley. I have 500 avocado trees in Moorpark CA. After 7 years I plan to harvest this year and sell the fruits. Where can I sell them and how do I know the right price to sell them?
Roe, I’m surprised it is taking seven years to get to the first harvest. The fruit is normally sold to a packing house. All the major packing houses serve the Moorpark area. You should be able to find their phone number in the yellow pages.
I’m working on a history of the avocado industry in California. I’m a journalist and also grew up on an avocado farm in Carpinteria. Can we find a time to talk on phone? I’d love to hear your stories and insights.
Many thanks!
Monique, Sorry your email got skipped. I will send you my office phone separately. My Office Manager can find a time when we can talk. Let her know how much time you will need.
Hi Charley!
is it true that Hass prefer to be planted on a high elevation like 1,200 ASL? and it prefers Cold Weather? What really is the ideal growing conditions for Hass Avocado (Elevation,Temperature,Humidity,Soil Type etc.) And lastly what are the conditions that triggers the Hass Avocado to flower and set fruit?
Denden, You have received information about growing avocados from a strange source. Elevation is not critical. Temperature is important. No they don’t like cold weather. Mild temperature preferably without a wide swing from winter to summer. Lastly a well drained soil is important. The tree does not like to wet feet. I never think of a trigger for the tree to flower. It is a function of the tree’s growing cycle. For example the trees flower at a different time in different countries.
Hello Charley,
I live in Palestine/Israel but my farm is in Jericho – dead sea area the temperature can get to 45C and as low as 5C the water isn’t available all year.
but I would like to know a few things:
1. what’s the best number of trees to start with “to test grounds”
2. How much attention do I have to give the trees? cleaning, pinching, fertilizers … etc.
3. How much water does each tree require? roughly of course
4. when do I breakeven
5. can I grow anything from the “mother tree”
Thanks and apologies if I’m not using the correct terminology
Abdallah, I wouldn’t bother with test trees. The avocados will not survive over time based on the temperatures you have provided. I don’t know how to answer the question about how much attention is required for the trees. More attention means better trees. In a Mediterranean climate a mature tree would need about 450 gallons a week. I don’t know when you might breakeven because I don’t know what the production cost are nor do I know what the market is for the fruit. You can’t grow from the “mother tree.” Producing avocado varieties must be grafted to a seedling. With water not being available all year I suggest you look for either another crop or another location.
Hello Charley, I’m considering a 13 acre 1500 tree orchard in Santa Barbara. I’m told trying to calculate total costs for the farm and understand the water, fertilizer, management and picking fees. What I cannot find is howwhat value each avocado trees can be depreciated for tax purposes. I cannot find any information on how to calculate appraisal values. Can you share what a normative range is for an avocado tree or point me to a tax resource so i can understand the true costs of managing this acreage?
Winston, Your question is frequently asked. Just for the record the trees along with the irrigation system can be depreciated. The land and a home cannot be depreciated. My suggestion to answer the question is to take the total purchase price and allocate portions to the four categories above. Allocate as much as you can to the two depreciable categories. Ask your accountant if the allocations are reasonable. For example you can’t have the value of the home to be unreasonable. Irrigation systems at today’s prices can be as high as $7500/acre. Trees can be $500 to $900 depending on age and condition. Just remember the allocation must be reasonable. You might want to go on the University of California Extension web site. A number of years ago we did some work to calculate the value of a tree for fire damage claims. It would be helpful. Good luck, Charley
I am from Sudan I would like to grow Avocado in sudan and I have three options one is to grow Avocado in Marra mountain in Darfour it has good climate and for growing avocado with atitude over 3000m and rain over 2000mm year around but the problem is that it’s not safe and very far from the port the second option is in Southren Kurdofan state the atitude over 600m with a lot of good water amount of water very fertile land and 4 monnths of rain tepmretrur can exceed 100 for tow months and the last one is west of the capital Khartoum with a lot of good water but temperature can exseed 115 for months I need you advice
Tajelsir, My first reaction is that you will have a difficult time being successful with avocados in the areas with high temperatures. I assume the numbers you quoted were centigrade. In high temperature areas you have to apply more water. Unfortunately in the conditions you described no matter how much water you apply the tree can’t move the water from the soil to the tree. Remember the rule of thumb is that the avocado tree is happier in a Mediterranean climate.
Thanks Charley but I think I can move my project to South Sudan At the higher altitdued of thr Imatong maountains in the border with Ugand the climate there is sutible it is at the 30th at altitiude over 1000m and rain more than 2000m
Sorry Charley what I mean by temperature In Kartoum can reach high as 115F wich is 46.111 Celsius In Marra Mountain the climate is Mediterranean and Avocado is all ready growing there with cetruse,apple and many mediterranean trees
Thanks Charley, In Marra mountain in West Darfour avocado grow well and produce good fruit, because of the good climate and abundant amount of rain water specially at the Elevation between 1000m and 3000m above sea level.Also there is another place close to the capital Khartoun cold Nouba mountains the alivation is between 600m to 1200m above sea level and themaxemam temrerature in March to May between between 35,37,36 Celsiuse with rain fall from Jun to October up to 800mm do you think avocado can thrive in this condetion and what verities do you recommend?
Hi Charlie,
I am in S. California and have a large amount of property with Oak trees. I know they are protected but someone told me there is a provision to allow cutting or moving of oak trees if you are replacing with a farm. My questions are as follows:
1 – Is this true and if so, how expensive (round about) would it be to change my property from oak to avocado?
2 – What is the minimum number of avocado trees to be considered a farm and get property tax breaks in ventura county?
3 – Do you even think this is a viable option?
I don’t just want to do this because of financial reasons but I am also highly allergic to oak trees so it would be much better for my health to not have so many of them on my property.
Delicia, I am not aware of any provisions in Ventura County law to get exemption to cutting oak trees to be replaced by agriculture. The conditions would normally be spelled out in a grading and clearing permit. The county may require mitigation for the oak tree removal. I am also not aware for tax breaks for a farm in Ventura County. It may be a difference in how the land use is coded. I would suggest moving oak trees would be cost prohibited. I would suggest you explore the possibility that you may be able to get special consideration because of your allergies. Eventually you will have to go to the county to get answers to your questions. Good luck.
Hi! What are the chances of having an avocado grove/orchard in the State of Massachusettes? Considering that it gets cold in the winters and the weather is very schizophrenic. Can any avocados grow in Massachusettes? I am willing to be the first to ever try.
Jerry, Unfortunately the answer is no. The avocado is a tropical plant and would not survive in Massachusetts. Before you ask I don’t believe you can grow it in a green house.
there’s a few local variety that able to grow and produce fruits but the taste doesn’t good as hass had… Maybe there’s good taste variety you may recommend. thanks charley
Hi Charley
We are all aware that Avocado is a Tropical plant as what you have also mentioned. You also said on one of your comments here that “Remember the rule of thumb is that the avocado tree is happier in a Mediterranean climate.” Having those two you mentioned, if i have a chance to grow avocado on both climates Mediterranean and Tropical Climate which climate will avocado grow best?
Denden, Referring to the avocado as a tropical plant is probably the easiest way to make sure people immediately know you can’t grow avocados in Montana. You may be splitting hairs between Mediterranean and tropical. How about warm and sunny?
Just found your website. I live in Southern Calif and have one avocado tree in my backyard. For the 2018 spring (that’s when my avocados ripen) I had 785 avocados. This year for 2020 I am sure that there are over 1000. So I’m wondering how I can go about getting some kind of certification to sell them this year. I have a Bacon Avocado tree and they are wonderful.
Hi Charley, first of all, a great 2020 for you and your family. We have a farm in Brazil, Northeast, with the follows conditions:
Temperature: 24°C to 37°C
Dry weather
C2S1 Aquifer water
700 m altitude
Is it possible to cultivate Avocados in that farm? If possible, wich kinds?
Marcelo, You can grow avocados in the area you describe. You will need irrigation and will have to pay close attention to the trees water needs at the high end of the temperature range you described.
I’m so glad I found you blog. I have a couple of avocado trees that I grow in my backyards. Sir Prize and Reed. I bought them from a nursery in the Bonsall/Fallbrook area in March of 2019. These were in a 15 gallon containers. I planted them in the ground in April. Now the trees are having problem with salt burn due to salty water and nutrient deficient. I went to ucavo.ucr.edu and it said that a young avocado tree needs about 1 lbs of nitrogen a year. Since I like to use organic fertilizer, a typical 10 lbs organics fertilizer box has an npk of 6-3-3. so to get 1 lbs of nitrogen a year, I need about 17 lbs of organic fertilizer to satisfy the nitrogen requirement for each tree? Is this a correct calculation? For this year, I only used about 2 lbs of fertilizer. But 17 lbs of fertilizer is a bit much don’t you think? Is it possible to use synthetic fertilizer in conjunction with organic fertilizer to meet annual requirement of nitrogen? For example, for each fertilization application, I will apply half the amount of nitrogen from an organic source and half the amount of nitrogen from a synthetic fertilizer?
James, Yes you can use both organic and commercial fertilizer on the trees. That is assuming you are not trying to produce organic fruit. You also need to look at your irrigation practices to compensate for the salty water.
charley I live on hwy 150 aout 1-mile from hwy 33 across the bridge. can I grow avocados hass or lamb hass at my home or is there another type of avocado that will work. Zack from Ojai ca. thank you charley.
Steve, There is some avocados grown in your area. You have to be careful though. There are some cold spots. Look at what is growing around you. We are late in the year I suggest you invest in a minimum reading thermometer and check the temperature this winter. It is not foolproof but it would give you an idea.
Love the blog and just bookmarked it. My question is… I just moved to Bonsall from Sacramento region and our water bill for our house is very expensive (Rainbow Water District). How do all these farmers and growers afford water for their large agricultural properties? Thanks
Brian, Your question is often asked. The answer is really quite simple. You have to farm precisely and aggressively to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. The demand for avocado now and for the foreseeable future is so high that profit can be made if you do the above. Charley
I live in Las Vegas, Nevada and own a 12 acre land in southeast Nigeria that I would like to follow my interest and grow avocado. I have been taking in so much information from the web and find your blog to be the best. I need a mentor who could guide me. Would you help me?
Echezona, If you have not found it, I encourage you to go to the University of California Extension web site,http://ucavo.ucr.edu. The information is complete. You would have to adjust it for the conditions in Nigeria. If you sent me more information about the land, soil, terrain, climate I may be able to give you more detailed comments on a consulting basis.
Hello Charley!
Greetings from the Philippines!
I came across your website while looking for a possible answer to my question, which search engines cannot help me with by the way, regarding growing avocado from seed.
Five months ago, I “planted” two avocado seeds using only water, two containers and toothpicks (to hold the seeds in position). After a month and five days, the first seed produced ONE (emphasizing the number) seedling or sapling (I don’t know which of these two is the right term to use for a young plant) which grew taller by the fourth month. The second seed produced one seedling or sapling without visible roots and when it produced THREE seedlings or saplings on the last week of the fourth month that was when its roots became evident from the seed itself.
Five months and 17 days ago was my first time planting seeds with nothing but water. I have limited knowledge about planting. I am open to learning more about planting. One of the things that I know is that a seed bears a seedling or sapling so I am surprised that my second avocado seed bore three seedlings or saplings.
My questions are:
1. Is it normal for an avocado seed to bear three seedlings or saplings?
a. If yes, would it affect its growth once it is planted on the soil?
b. If not, what should I do?
2. Do you have any recommendation/suggestion/advice for a first timer, like me, when it comes to planting fruit seeds?
Therese, The first point you need to acknowledge is your seedling probably won’t produce fruit. It has to be grafted. If it does it will be something from the parent root stock. If the seed produced 3 seedlings one would normally keep the strongest one and cut the other two off. The seedlings will give you a nice looking tree but no fruit. I would not plant the seed with the three shoots. Get more avocados and experiment with starting the seeds to root.
Charley,
We are a small farm (farmers market customers) in the santa monica mountains of ventura county looking to add enough avocados to yeild at least 1200 a month as much of the year as possible on our steep south facing slope on which we have limited available space. What do you suggest in terms of variety selection, quantity, spacing and any other factors you think relevant in starting our small orchard? We are currently looking at gem and carmen haas.
Thanks so much for the advice, Chris
Chris, If you mean getting 1200 pounds per month, you won’t be able to do that with only one variety. The tree doesn’t produce that way. A selection might be Fuerte for the winter maybe a Bacon too. Then get Hass for spring and early summer and Lamb Hass for late summer maybe a Reed and Gem to try to carry you into fall. The Bacon, Reed, and Gem trees grow straighter and not so wide as Fuerte and Hass. Obviously they can be planted closer together. Good luck.
I am from SoCal area and have now retired early and have a few towns in Italy very interested in exploring avocados as a Corp to bring visitors and commerce to their area. They are in an area below Lake Garda – which is in between Milan and Verona Italy.
I have no background in agriculture however all the Italians do as most have vineyards, corn, figs etc.
I figure the first step is to see if their weather permits for the corps to grow. If you could send me a direct email address I can send you the weather for the area and you can let me know if this conversation is worth having.
Jeff, You don’t need to send me the weather. Being in northern Italy I don’t believe it will get too hot. On the other hand it may be too cold in the winter. If temperature in the area go below freezing in the winter avocados will not do well. Depending how cold it gets they may not even survive a winter. The crops you described would be able to grow because they are seasonal.
We’re looking at a 10, possibly 20 acre property north of Escondido. They say they have 800 trees, produced 175,000 lbs, make a small profit but seem unwilling to say anything more. They are saying that they can’t provide more info without a serious offer. But how can I place a meaningful offer without more info? Your thoughts on that? And what might your costs be to manage it? Thanks, Lance
Lance, I’m taking your numbers at face value. If there are only 800 trees that is nominally about 8 acres. If that is true that means there was over 21000 pounds per acre production. That is exceptional. It would have to be a planting of high density Gems to get that kind of production. There is no requirement in the law for a seller to provide production records to a buyer. the best production information is from the packing house. To your point he can’t provide more info without a serious offer, the counter is as you said you can’t make a serious offer without more info. That will tell you if he is serious about selling and is being honest with the info. Good luck.
Charley, thanks for the prompt reply. What might one expect to get per LB in the Escondido area? And am I correct with water costs being $6.29 per 1000 gallons? And general management costs if I were to contract that out? Thanks again.
Drae, You didn’t say where you are. I recommend you go to the University of California Extension website, http://ucavo.ucr.edu. If you are not in California you can adjust the information to your location. All the information you need to begin is there.
Lee, Thanks for the info. I have checked and can find no problems on my end. In fact I just replied to one of your questions on high density plantings.
Hi Charlie, clonal plants will arrived in Nepal within 15 days. All documentation has almost finished. So could you suggest to handle these properly by replying these queries?
1. How long micro clonal plants are safe in transit?
2. How could we extend plants life in transit?
3. Can we hold plants in 7kg polypot for maximum 6 months at holding nursery?
4. What is the preventive measure to prepare 7 kg polypot and what is the mix of this?
5. Do we cover plants by polythene sheet to prevent cold in winter? ( Minimum 8 degree Celsius )
6. Manual sprinkler is better than fixed sprinkler to distribute water in plants?
7. How we know the requirements of pesticides and fertilizer for plants at holding nursery?
8. What are the major guidelines for holding nursery? Any publication of avocado holding nursery management is available in web?
Dear Charley,
Plants are growing well in 50% shadenet. Only 2% was damaged in transit and another 3 % are not well due to hardly withdraw of plants from container. It’s winter season so we hesitate to apply more water.
Himal, Congratulations it sounds like you did well in the transport. Season of the year is not the criteria for irrigation. The soil moisture for the plant determines whether they need water. Time of year dictates the length of interval between irrigations. You need to check the soil in the containers.
Himal, Your questions are difficult to answer because there is not enough information. I will comment on each question.
1. I don’t recognize the term “micro clonal plants.” I believe they may be ungrafted seedlings. You didn’t say where they were coming from by what mode of transportation.
2. Same comment.
3. You should be able to hold the plants if you give them proper care.
4. The pots should be sanitize and you can use regular commercial potting soil.
5. If you cover the plants with plastic remember you are creating a green house and you can burn them. They should be OK at 8 degrees Celsius.
6. I am considering manual sprinkler to be hand watering and fixed sprinkler to be an installed irrigation system. The installed system would be better because the water will be distributed more evenly.
7. You would need to know how they were being fertilized before you received them. You have to know what kind of pest are present before you can decide any pesticide requirements.
8. I would recommend searching the web for University web sites from producing countries for nursery operation guidelines.
Good luck on your venture, Charley
Dear Charley, i appreciate you taking the time to read this. Me and my father are interested in converting our profitable citrus farm of 10 hectares into a avocade farm. What are the essentials when making the plan for the convertion.
Kendrick, First I would verify that there will be no temperature problems in the area. The citrus can take a little colder temperatures than avocado. You didn’t say where you are so you need to verify that there are handlers or at least a market for the avocados. You also need to identify a source for trees and what the lead time is to get delivery. Taking the citrus trees out will probably damage enough of the irrigation system that you should plan on installing a new system set up for the spacing of the avocado trees. You will also need to evaluate how you are going to get rid of the removed citrus trees. You said the citrus was profitable. I assume the avocado would be more profitable. You need to evaluate whether the additional profit off sets the capital investment to convert to the new crop. You may have to increment the conversion. Good luck. Charley
Patrick, Tree spacing is driven by different considerations, the country, the slope, cultural practices. New and converted plantings in California have gone to high density. Even that has a range of different spacing. The groves I have planted recently have been 12×12. That’s 12 feet between the trees and 12 feet between the rows. High density plantings require annual pruning to keep the trees low and open.
Dear Charley,
What is the max height area (from sea Level) to planning Avacado? How you feel, is Nepal’s some hill can grow Avacado of not? My area is 1600M from sea level. Please advice me. Thank you very much.
Mahesh, Elevation is not the critical consideration. Temperature and wind is more important. In some locations temperature increases with elevation. In other locations temperature decreases with elevation. You have to have the Mediterranean climate year round.
Indrajit, To get started study the information on the University of California web site. The information won’t be specific to India but you can apply the information to India. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
Thank you for being here, great to find your site.
I’ve been invest in income properties in southern CA, managing tenants myself. I’d like to change my field to avocado farms. I check many properties in Temecula, Fallbrook, and San Luis Obispo, talking to many owners and agents, still, I can use your assistance in searching the right piece of farm. I want to attend conference or meetings for this industry to enrich my knowledge. Please help.
Patricia, You are making quite a leap. The best source in searching for the property is the local realtors. Once you find a property I can help you evaluate it on a consulting basis. I would suggest you go to the California Avocado Commission web site where many grower meetings are listed. Good luck.
Hi Charley, Thank you for the hint. I check with California Avocado Commission, there’s no posting of their meeting. There are many growers listed, but I think it would be odd for me to contact them. I will check with local realtors.
Do you think a well is a must on property? Since we have water issue in souther CA. As a starter, should I look at a established or empty lot better? I talked to McMillian management , they told me it’s very common these days, that owners are absent; doesn’t mean I prefer that scenario. I’m getting all pieces of puzzle from everywhere. It’s quite a closed society mostly family operated.
Charley,
Heartened to see you answering all these questions – thank you for your time.
I am considering purchasing a plot of land and growing avos. It is between Santa Barbara and Ventura in a community where others grow avos. It is directly on the coastline at 1000’ and is open southern exposure. I estimate that 10-15 acres are arable.
Can you give me an idea of dollar yield off organic avos per acre? Does this land seem suitable? It’s highly exposed. Are irrigation costs in the area extremely high?
Jordan, Your questions cannot be definitively answered. The dollar revenue will depend on tree density, the variety, and how well you farm it. The area you describe should be suited to grow avocados. I don’t know what extremely high irrigation costs are. It depends on what you are comparing. You would have to identify where the water is coming from to get a ball park on water costs. Good luck.
Hi Charley,
I am looking at growing Avocados in Scotland… Yes, Scotland. With new incentives for heat and new technologies I feel that I could control the climate to make this possible. I would be keen to discuss this matter further with you if it would be of any interest. It will be a challenge but one I feel could be interesting to pursue.
Regards,
Tom
Tom, You and others seem to be determined to grow avocados in a green house. Heat is only one of the elements to be considered. Remember the avocado is a tree not a bush. Keeping it small would require pruning. The pruning will stimulate vegetive growth. The biggest challenge is pollination. In the field done primarily with bees. I don’t know what bees would do in the green house or if there is an alternative. These factors need analysis before starting the venture. Charley
Bees would be no problem as many people buy them to be pollinators which a lot of soft fruit growers do in the uk. It is also what many hydroponic places use as pollinators
Hi Charley, I’m a PCA/Agronomist and grower in Moorpark, originally from Santa Paula where my family has been farming avocados since the 1940’s. I really think your post is great. What are your ideas on alternate bearing hass, and how to get the trees out of an alternate bearing cycle. I believe I have found the answer, but I’d like to know your opinion. Also how important do you think phosphate is in setting fruit and strengthening the fruit stem to help prevent fruit drop during strong winds. Not phosphite, because we all know that is a fungicide with no nutritional value to the plants at all, but phosphate. Also what are your thoughts on potassium fertilizer for fruit size, how many units per acre to reach 48’s across the board for an early harvest around February, so not to hold the fruit on the tree into bloom.
Kyle, Alternate bearing occurs on all tree fruit crops. Eliminating it is a world wide concern. A couple of years we almost had an international consortium to work on the problem. Unfortunately it fell apart. There is some current research addressing strategies to control the opening of the flowers. The hypothesis being that may be the pathway to reducing the alternate bearing. Research has established that phosphorous is a flower stimulant. You can’t get fruit without flowers. Yes potassium contributes to fruit size. I don’t know of any research that establishes the number of units to obtain a specific result. I would suggest you review the research that has been done at UCR on potassium.
I and some friends are trying to start importing avocados from some African producing country and export them to the USA. Would you be able to share some knowledge on the avocadoes buyers in USA? tHANKS
Kelvin, To import avocados into the US you have an import license. I would suggest going to the USDA web site to look for a list of buyers. It may all be effort spent that can’t be executed. There are no African countries approved to export avocados to the US. Sorry. Charley
Khun, The frequent description of weather for avocado is that it be a Mediterranean climate. Another way is no freezing temperatures and not too hot. You can go to the University of California Extension web site to find basic information about growing avocados. You may have to modify the information to fit your location.
Charley,
Ok so don’t laugh: I am seriously looking at growing avocados in the UK.
I am basing this on most or part of the orchard being under glasshouse or polytunnel (depending on cost and tree size).
I am currently running an economic model to try and better understand the viability of this and, at first glance it may be more economic than one would think (there is huge demand in the UK and all avocado produce is shipped in at huge environmental and financial cost).
So my questions are: Do you know of any reason (except cost) why Avocado’s won’t grow in a greenhouse?
Do you know of any variety that is commercial, but has small tree size and or is cold resistant? (Pinkerton? Bacon? Zutano?)
In terms of getting started, and I understand I will need (a large number) or grafted seedlings, is there a rootstock/producer combination that might be ideal for this climate and do you know any major rootstock providers? I have contacted Brokaw already.
Thanks for your time and I would bee keen to hear any/all of your opinions on such a venture!!
Regards
Simon
Simon, Yes I am laughing. Folks keep asking me your question. Here is why I don’t believe it will work. The plant is a tree not a bush. It needs to be planted. Even if you put it in a container it will be stunted because it can’t develop enough roots. You will have to keep the tree height down. The frequent pruning will stimulate leaf growth vice flowers and fruit. The flowers have to pollinated. The usual method is bees. I don’t know if the bees will work if they are confined in the green house. They would be needed when the weather is cold so they can’t be outside. You can’t leave the bees outside. Even if you could you can’t open the green house or you will damage the trees. I’m sorry I can’t give you some good news. Charley
Hello Charles,
We have a small farm in Medellin Colombia 8-10 acers in the region that is well known for growing Hass avocados but we live in the Virginia.
My uncle and dad are telling me to start growing Hass avocado in my farm because it’s a growing business and very profitable and more so now that the U.S agreed the import of this fruit from Colombia.
My questions is do you recommend farming Hass Avocado or is their other kind of avocado you would recommended? How long should wait to see a profit and do have any tips for us new farmers.
Luz, The avocado choice is good. You need to check the market requirements. The US accepting avos from Columbia is only a part of the answer. You need to check all of the conditions to be able to ship. If you use a high density spacing you might want to consider planting part of the acreage with Gems. If I could predict the point in time for profitability I would be a millionaire. It will be about four years for the trees to reach commercial production. Obviously whether that is profitable depends on how much you receive for the sale and how much it cost to produce it. The tip most important is to take care of the trees from the very beginning. You have to have the resources to care for the trees while you wait for revenue. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley.
I am very happy to find your site. I am interested in purchasing a property with an avocado grove, but have not had experience with managing a grove. Do you still take on management of other groves (or are you available for intense consultation during a new owner’s learning curve)? And/or do your take on interns to learn helping you at any of your groves?
Peggy, Yes still manage groves and have the capacity to take on additional groves. Intense consulting in the beginning is tough to get started from ground zero. The nature of the business does not offer enough time to help interns. I will send you my contact information separately. Charley
Dear Mr. Wolk, I’m from Guatemala and got back to take care of my family’s farm just a month ago. It has a 4 year old avocato plantation and I see a few problems con it. Probably the worst is the wet soil mostly containing clay. I’ve hear that adding sand and organinc compost to the soil may help. Is that right?
Nadia, Adding sand and organic material to the clay soil before planting would have helped. Before planting that material can be tilled into the soil. Applying it to the top now will have little or no impact now in the short term. An aggressive organic material program will improve the soil condition over time. I would also suggest you start applying gypsum to improve the soil. The biggest consideration is proper irrigation practice. If you put too much water too frequently, you will drown the trees. Remember the clay soil holds the water. Good luck. Charley
I live in Orange County, CA with a fairly large backyard and I’m excited about growing some avocado trees. I planted three 15 gallon trees a month ago on the backside of my property (Reed, Sir Prize and Hass). I don’t have a neighbor behind me because it is a steep slope down to an elementary school. This slope is infested with gophers and I think they are entering my yard. After doing a little research it looks like gophers can be a real problem for any young fruit tree especially avocado trees because they eat the roots. I am going to try to catch them and mitigate them from my property but I was just wondering if there is any trick to dealing with them? I found out about gopher cages made from chicken wire. Should I construct one, dig up the trees and replant them within the chicken wire to give the trees a fighting chance? It doesn’t look like there are gophers in any of my neighbors front lawns (or mine) so if I could convince my wife, should I replant the trees in the front away from the gophers? Any information is greatly appreciated and will ease my nerves a bit…
Eric, Yes gophers like young avocado tree roots. You have to accept the concept that the solution to a gopher problem is to kill them. You can do that with bait or traps. The traps don’t catch them. I believe you may cause more stress to the trees attempting to transplanting them or installing the chicken wire. Keep the trees healthy so they can deal with the gopher attacks. Good luck. Charley
Hello Charlie,
My name is Carol and I live in Oceanside CA about 5 blocks form the beach. I started a seed AI think a reed or nobal avocado seed from water. I transplanted it in my back yard and its gorgeous. I think it’s around 8 or 9 months old. I want to Evergreen nursery. They told me that it won’t produce unless I grafted it. I have no clue how to graft. I did Google and look it up on the Internet. But I was thinking I should hire someone professionally to graft it for me. Do you have any suggestions? I want my fruit!! 🙂
Carol
Carol, Yes you can’t grow avocado trees with fruit from a seed. I don’t believe you will find anyone to come and graft one tree. I would suggest you go to the University of California Extension web site. they have a cook book section on how to graft using several techniques. I am confident you can do it. The problem you will have to solve is where to get the bud wood. You might get some from a friend, but you have to know how to cut it. The alternative is to let the tree you have grown from a seed be a shade tree and go to a nursery and buy a grafted tree. I know it won’t be the same but at least you will get fruit. Charley
Hello Charley,
I want to start an Avocado farm in Nigeria. I don’t have experience neither do i know an expert who can put me through on A-Z about Avocado farm. Can you help? or recommend an expert to me.
Thank you.
Hycent
Hycent, The best place to get started is on the University Of California Extension web site. They have a section on growing avocados. They start in the beginning. You will have to adjust the information to conditions in Nigeria. Good luck. Charley
Carol, I am here in NE Florida and planted an avocado tree from a pit. Everyone laughed at me since they thought t would never grow. Well it almost didn’t since we had some tough winters and I covered it and placed a light in it. When we finally got a mild winter my tree shot up and I no longer covered it. I wanted to graft a branch for it to grow fruit since it was almost seven yrs with no fruit, but I kept feeding it, watering it etc. This year without grafting, it has nice size avocados. My suggestion is take care if it, wait since it takes up to 15 yrs. to bear fruit and yes, you can grow avocados from a seed. If you want a picture of my tree send me an email. PS, go on line since there are many suggestions for growing avocados but pick a tree that will grow in your area.
Edwin and Carol, Yes some times you may get fruit. It will not be the variety of the seed you planted. It will be something from the parent of the root stock. It may or not be edible. Good luck.
Contacted to Westfalia nursery and Allesbeste nursery. Both are positive to supply Micro Clonel plants. I get knowledge about plant quarantine procedures of Nepal. Its not possible to fulfill all requirements by imported plants, I must have to graft them.
I read lost research paper, manuals, guides so i feel confident to get successful grafting plants. Then I called tropical horticulture centure to know about avocado grafting but they aren’t successful on grafting and also don’t know why its fails.
Please reply my queries-
1. Grafting is success only on greenhouse?
2. It’s only suitable only on winter or spring?
3. can we graft in all seasons inside of greenhouse?
4. Is there any chanses of fail grafting after 4-5 years later?
5. Grafting expert who have good successful rate in mango, citrus, Walnuts can familiar in Avocado grafting?
6. Are locally grown rootstocks are suitable for grafting or any specific variety rootstock required to avoid root rot diseases?
7. Compost fertilizer, gipsum, agricultural lime can neutralize the micro nutrients on soil.
Himal, Here are the answers to your questions. 1.Grafting does not have to be done only in a greenhouse. 2.You can generally graft year round, but not recommended during extreme weather. 3.Yes. 4.Yes if the bud wood and tree were not compatible. 5.It will depend on the individual. 6.The only root rot resistance I know of is root stock propagated clonally. Locally grown root stocks my not necessarily be compatible for grafting. 7.These materials applied at recommended rates should not neutralize micro nutrients in the soil. Charley
Dear Charley,
I am Himal from Nepal.
I got inspiration from your past response. Today I bought 30 seed grown plant for trial plantation. We have about 50 acre well draining land. I committed to plant Hass, Future variety which has high demand in market. But I need mother tree and grafting expert for that.
I dont want to loss 1 year for trial grafting which has higher chances of unsucessful. Can I hire foreigner expert who will guide grafting ideas and also visit our country. I will pay for that.
Himal, You have a challenge. I would suggest you go to the University of California web site. They have excellent information you the techniques to graft avocado trees. Of course you will have to identify a source of bud wood. Shipping the bud wood may require government permits. I would suggest contacting the avocado industry in South Africa. I believe they are closer and may be able to help Wesfalia is a big grower shipper and they have nursery operations. I would try them first. Good Luck. Charley
We saved a seed last year and sprouted it in a bowl of water to show the kids. Crazy thing is, it survived the long winter soaking up what limited sun we have through the living room windows, and now we have a 24″ tall skinny stem with three or four leaves on it at any given time. We repotted it into a much larger pot, but the problem is it only wants to grow up, not out or “fuller”. I recently read that you’re supposed to trim the top 6″ or so to get it to “branch out”, but that’s where all the leaves are. Will it kill it to do that?
Jeff, It sounds like the tree is growing to the sunshine. If you have it in solarium that would do it. You are right you don’t want to cut those leafs off. They are what makes the plant function. What you should do is use your finger nails and pinch the very end/top of the growth. If you check the sun light source with this action it should develop side growth. Put the tree in a window and rotate periodically. If it all fails, get another seed and start all over again. Good luck. Charley
Charley I live in Harvey la west band of New Orleans I have a 5 yr old hass avocado it has over 200 hass on tree my question is far my climate when should I start picking them and do they really stary on the tree far 6 months. The tree was 4 yr old and I picked 19 that were very good. Started in oct. but ran out of them by end of dec. can you give me a I dear when to start picking.
Mr. Baldassaro, I believe your climate around New Orleans is similar to southern California. Yes the fruit will stay on the tree for 6 months. I’m surprised they stayed on until December. You should sample a few at Memorial Day. If the taste and quality is good pick what you need. Just remember this fruit will take longer to ripen than the fruit you picked in October. For good quality you should be finished by Labor Day. Thanks, Charley
Charley thank you far your reply but my avacado are not in line with Cal. I thought they would be. But they where 51/2 oz in nov. and 7 or 8 oz. in dec. so I guest I was picking them right they are only about 1/2 oz to one oz now. I will try to see if they will hold far 6 months I will leave some on the tree. I,m looking at dec. start and April end.
Charlie, I am interested in buying avocado land- either with existing trees or maybe even to develop myself. How is the market looking these days? Can you direct me to a broker? Thanks John
John, There is not enough information to answer your questions. You didn’t say where you wanted to buy land. I assumed California. But looking for land in Ventura County is different than land in San Diego County. You asked about the market. In context I don’t know if you mean the avocado market or the real estate market. The avocado market is strong and I believe it will stay strong in the future. I am really not qualified to comment on the real estate market. Good luck on your venture. Charley
Hi charley,
I have a couple of questions some might be difficult to answer so whatever you know is helpful. (I have very little knowledge at avacado farming.)
So my father planted around 600 avacado trees in roughly about 3 acres in Michoacán Mexico about a year ago now and My first question is about how long does it take for it to produce?how much profit could you get out of it? What’s the process and how hard is to export your product directly to the US? Always been my father and i’s dream to own a profitable farm.
Jay, Normally it will take 4 to 5 years to reach commercial production, that is enough fruit to have it harvested and brought to a packing house. The trees will have fruit earlier but not enough to be a commercial crop. We have planted trees with fruit on them. The profit is obviously the difference of how much you are paid minus how much it cost to produce the crop. I don’t know the specifics of cost and prices to the growers in Michocan. To export to the US the grove must be certified for US export by Mexico for US standards. I don’t know how you do it directly. I believe you would have to be approved as an exporter. Seems to me it would be easier to use one of the approved exporters in Michocan If you export it, you have to have a buyer. You just can’t send it. Good luck. Charley
I am new to Avocado farming and the demand is increasing day by day in my country. Is Avocado farming suitable at an altitude of approx. 1700 meter and the soil is brown red mix(more brown)?
looking forward to your response.
Deepesh, Altitude is not the critical element in growing avocados. It is the climate. So depending where you are the altitude has different impact on the climate. Some times going higher it gets colder in other locations higher elevations it gets warmer. The tree requires a mild climate, not too hot in the summer and no freezing temperatures in the winter. The tree requires a well drained soil. Your description sounds like your soil may have a lot of clay. If you plant you will have to manage your irrigation practices very carefully. Good luck. Charley
We have a 40+ year old Bacon Avocado tree. It was really full and produced well over 300 avocados every November-January. The past 4 years, it’s gone really bare progressively and lost nearly all its leaves. Some new sprouts and branches are coming off the main trunk. It’s about 35 feet tall now, should we top it to about 15 feet? Thanks for your advice and thank you for your service.
Michele, You didn’t say where you are and how you irrigate the tree. It sounds like you have an irrigation and nutrient problem. You are probably not giving the tree enough water or you could be drowning it. If you have not been giving it fertilizer the tree is starved. The mature tree will need about 450 gallons of water a week in the summer time. Cutting the tree down to 10 to 12 feet will help, but it is not a substitute for adequate water. Good luck. Charley
Hi, Charley. This is carl from China. You are so professional and great! I want to buy avockdo from your farm by container . Show I discuss with your assistant by email? Thanks!
Carl, I do not sell avocados. There are shippers from California, Mexico, Peru, and New Zealand who ship to China. They have representatives in your country so you should be able to find them with a computer search. I trust this will help.
I purchased an half acre and my wife and I are considering planting a dozen avocado trees is their one book you could recommend. We live in La Mirada, California.
David, Sorry for the delay in responding. Doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day. For the best source of growing avocados for the beginner is the University Of California Co-operative Extension web site. It has information from beginning to end. I believe the address is Avo.uced.com. If that doesn’t work just search it. Charley
My wife and I are new to the Avocado grove business. We purchased a grove up in De Luz 2 years ago. My question is do you know or have any suggestions about how to write off trees that have died on your taxes?
Hello, I like your blog. I’m evaluating an investment in a Panamanian avocado development. So far, all I have is a brochure. I wonder if you could take a look at it and see if you spot any red flags or recognize any of the names of the principals. Please send me your contact information.
Eddie, My opinion is that mini sprinklers keep the tree happier. Remember the native environment of the tree is tropical. It likes to have all of the root area wet, not just the area under the dripper.
Hi Charley,
Great site and thank you for your service to this country! My husband and I just purchased 26 acres / 450 stumped off very mature avocado trees in between Mt. Woodson and Ramona, CA. I believe the water has been off over a year. We are completely new to this process. First can you recommend a reputable water well inspector given you are in the Fallbrook area? Second, do you have general recommendations for the rehabilitation of the stumps? I would say 40% of the trees are starting to sprout and we haven’t even turned the water on yet. Others look dead but we are not sure. Do we just water and monitor or do more? Also interested if you could email me details of your consulting program.
Casey, Be careful trying to rehabilitate the stumps. It may be a waste of time. The trees may not die but they will not be productive enough to pay for the water. The condition of the stumps has to be evaluated and a plan made to best utilize your resources to bring the property back into production. I will send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charly,
I want to get into the avocado business. I was wondering if going into hydroponics will be more efficient and less costly. Also, are you also a consultant for hire?
Christian, Recently I have received request for information to grow avocados hydroponically. I know of know one doing it now. I also have a hard time visualizing hydroponic methods to grow trees. So if you have an idea it might be interesting to share it. My inclination is that if it is doable it would be expensive.
Do you have any thoughts on what kind of farm insurance of an existing Haas avocado farm for sale you suggest and the costs.. 10 acres in southern CA.
Is there an age of tree that you suggest removing and replanting or topping to trunk? Many trees are original over 40 years old but still producing but not tons. or suggest looking for a younger tree farm.
Thank you
DG, I only know of crop insurance for avocados. The cost depends on what level of coverage you want. I suppose there might be hazard insurance available but I would suspect it would be expensive. The decision to replant or stump is made based on the condition of the trees rather than some arbitrary age. If the trees are 40 years old I suspect they would be candidates for lowering the height of the trees. Good luck.
Zack, I can do that on a consulting basis. It is not very efficient because you have to pay for the travel from San Diego County. I believe you should be able to find someone in Ventura County to help you.
Hi Charley, I have been trying to find information on growing avocado trees at specific elevations. I have property that sits around 5000 ft, is there any advantages or disadvantages? Any info would be appreciated.
Jon
Jon, The elevation consideration is only significant in its impact on the climate rather than the actual elevation. Depending where you are higher elevation could mean colder or warmer. If the climate is right the elevation doesn’t make any difference.
Hello Charley,
I just recently decided to take advantage of some family land we have in Baja Cali. I am preparing to plant about 5 hectors and fortunately water is not that much of a problem. I was just wondering in regards to the climate and if you have heard of any successful avocado farms down here.
Michelle, I don’t know of any commercial avocado groves in Baja. Most are further south. Not having a water problem in Baja is not what I have heard. You need to check closely to verify the water situation. If all is good then you need to determine how you are going to market the fruit. You don’t want to make the investment then discover that the infrastructure is not there to sell the fruit. Charley
Hi Charley,
My dad has a 40 acre ranch in Jamul California. We want to start growing avacado trees for profit but don’t know where to start. Can you give us any advice? The property has 2 wells and was previously used for horses. Is this an expensive business to start?
Patty, It is not clear whether you want to grow avocado trees in a nursery for sale or whether you want to grow avocado trees in an orchard to sell the fruit. In either case you need to check the night time temperatures in the winter. You can do that with a minimum reading thermometer. Most fertilizer/ag supply stores carry them. The other check to be made is to send a water sample to a lab to check the water quality. You want the water to have a very low chloride level. Good luck.
I have 6 avocado Pitts that I have been growing. 3 of them have 6 inch + taproot and one of them has a tinyear sprout growing atop. My question is I live in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the weather is starting to change. It’s getting quite cool outside and my sprout is starting to brown on the top. Is it time to bring them inside and if so what can I do to maintain them throughout the winter.
Lara, Yes you should bring them inside. You should have them in a large enough container so the roots have room to grow. Be careful about how much water you put on them inside. You can drown them or have them to dry because of the heat in the room. Good luck.
I am in Myanmar and I am looking for information on Hass Avocado Pear grown here and if so how many farmers are there growing this variety and is it possible to get seedlings. The other question is are there pack houses here in Myanmar for Avocado Pear farming.
Deborah, I have no personal knowledge of avocado production in Myanmar. I would think that there is some kind of an agriculture department in the national government that would be able to help you. Good luck. Charley
Thank you for all The information you are providing us on avocado crops.
I am from Cameroon and last year I planted about 1000 avocado trees. As I would like to export in Europe and Asia, could you please let me know how long unripe avocado (Hass & Fuerte) can last during transportation into frozen containers? Also, I would like to know if air transportation is better that ship for avocados for such long distance.
Ahmed, Fortunately you have time to make shipping arrangements. First you can’t ship the fruit in any kind of frozen container. The fruit can’t take the low temperatures and will be destroyed by the time it reaches its destination. Air freight is better because the shipping time is less. You will need to find an agent to sell the fruit for you and to take care of the administrative requirements in the arrival country. You may find this marketing effort to be more difficult than producing the fruit. Good luck. Charley
I was wondering if you know of any nursery which can export quality scions for grafting?
And would they withstand the journey do you think?
I am in Myanmar.
Rajen, The simple answer is that scions can be kept for a short time after they are cut off the tree. They need to be kept moist and cool but will survive. The challenge is to find someone who will ship. You will also have to verify the shipping restrictions of the country shipping and Myanmar’s conditions on the material coming into your country. Good luck. Charley
Charley, please give me your advice on the best avocado trees for a backyard planting in Murrieta,ca (French Valley Area). would like a couple of small trees that would produce fruit quickly as I’m 80 years old . thanks, Marion
Marion, I hate to disappoint you but I don’t believe you can grow avocados in French Valley area. Over time the winter temperatures will damage or kill the trees. I don’t believe you want to go down the road a few years of excitement of seeing the trees grow then lose them. Sorry. Charley
Hello. I am considering buying a home on Ross lake in the DeLus area of Fallbrook CA. The property happens to have about 2 acres of Avocados on it. I am not buying for the Avocados but instead for the house, property, and a good deal. However is it reasonable to assume I can take advantage of the Avocado grove by turning over the complete operation to a handler who will do most to all the work in exchange for a fair % of the harvest. In other words a turn-key operation. Other than providing well water what other costs would be involved in such a turn-key arrangement?
George, Your idea is good from your point of view. Let me list some of the considerations for such an arrangement. First any agreement of this type is usually for a longer period say five years. Anyone who might consider this would not only want a contract but would also expect a lien on the property. A contract with you does not bind a new owner should you decide to sell the property. It is very difficult to get competent reputable operators for parcels that small. If you would find someone I would expect that they would want all of the fruit. Additionally there are some that might take the deal and provide minimal cultural care so that when the agreement expired your grove may not be in too good shape. All said don’t get your hopes up for a good deal. Charley
I have the same situation – Do you have an interest in leasing Avocado trees?
We are about to purchase a home in Fallbrook, the Santa Margarita river area with 5 acres of producing Avocados trees. We are looking to either lease the trees for the cost of the water being used or we will likely cut and grind them and use the land for equestrian use.
The property is located on Gavilan Rd.
There are +/- 500 trees on 3 acres, they are consuming about $1,500/month in water for the months of May- August 2016.
Daniel, There are few people who are interested in leasing small parcels. Usually it is a smaller operator who will lease it for the fruit. You need to be careful if you find one. There are situations where they operate for a while and have a bad year and walk away from the water bill. That responsibility remains with the property owner. I know of no one I could suggest for you. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charlie. Thank you for all your help. We live in Boise Idaho picked up a seed from Hawaii and 9 months later we had a sprout. That was four to five years ago. The tree is indoors and including the pot is about 8 feet tall. It cannot go outside because it leaves get scorched after one to two days. All the leaves keep falling repeatedly, the leaves can get anywhere from 2 inches to 12 inches but they all keep falling off. Some of them look healthy when they go others have brown spots or a wrinkling on the leaf. How can I help my tree? Currently it has no bugs and is not over watered and in a decent-sized pot. There is new growth regularly . And we have about a dozen branches anywhere from 10 inches to 3 feet . If needed I could send pictures. Any suggestions would be awesome thank you.
Curtis, You were lucky bringing a seed from Hawaii into the country. I’m surprised the USDA sniffing dogs didn’t catch it. You must realize that while the avocado tree is evergreen it is constantly dropping old leaves and making new ones. That’s why it is always green. I don’t know what is a “decent-sized” pot. If it is not at least the size of a half wine barrel, it is not big enough. The size of the container may be impacting the leaf health. You said it is not over watered but you didn’t tell me how or how much you are watering. Maybe it is under watered. For now I would check these two elements change as appropriate if necessary and see what the trees reaction is. Charley
Charlie,
So happy to find this blog! I randomly started growing an avacado seed after making some guac I bought from the store and now I have a 1 1/2 ft tall plant. I am emotionally attached to this plant so I am worried about some brown spots on the leaves. I don’t want it to die, but I’m not sure what it is. May I send a couple pictures?
John, You pose a tough question. You didn’t say where you are nor whether the tree is inside or outside. I assume it is in a container. The general answer is that usually bad symptoms are traceable to bad irrigation. It could be either too much water or not enough. I would check that first.
George, I have done the research on this, and know who what and how. Contact me “jerryweintraubjr@gmail.com” …. I live in the area, moved in five years ago.. can save you a lot of time
We are a group of young African entrepreneurs seeking cooperation / joint venture / investors to develop our 20 ha of agricultural land in Foumbot, Cameroon (Africa).
The area has many advantages: Labor is cheaper compared to Asia, the soil is volcanic and fertile (elevation around 900m above sea-level), the climate is equatorial and the transport logistics for export are good (500 km of paved road up to harbour in Douala), shipping products to Europe takes less time compared to Asia.
Avocado grows very well in Cameroon but not on a commercial level, so our target is to boost production in order to meet an agro-industrial level. We can guaranty an output of our products on the American and European markets and good returns on investments.
If you are seeking a form of cooperation or investment please contact us:
Thank you
Louh Agro-business
Foumban
Cameroon
+4915121842295 (whatsapp)
Hi Charley
How worried are you about the ambriosa beetle? Do you think it will cause havoc in the global Avocado industry? Knowing the risks do you think it wise to invest in growing avocados.
Omar, The ambrosia beetle is a threat to many species. If nothing were being done to eradicate or control the pest then over time it could impact the global avocado industry. There is extensive work being done in Florida and other places to conquer the pest. I have confidence that eventually the scientific effort will prevail. I would not make the ambrosia beetle be the decision point for investing in avocados. Charley
Hello, Charley:
I very much appreciate the effort you put in to helping people in their Avocado pursuits. I would like to know how many trees or how much acreage is necessary to generate a retirement income, say $30,000, per year? I appreciate there are many variables you couldn’t possibly know, I’m just hoping to get a ballpark figure to focus my property search. I have another question I would appreciate your contact info for. Thank You.
Dirk, A challenging question. You are right there are many variables. Let me see if I can at least give you some parameters for you to answer your question. The first consideration is to accept that in the US agriculture AG is a price taker not a price setter. So you are always at the mercy of the market. Secondly income has to be viewed in a longer time frame. You should look at least five years. The point being that because of circumstance beyond your control you could have a year when you are upside down. All that being said if you generate $10,000.00 per acre revenue and it cost $7,000.00 per acre to produce it. You would need 10 acres to meet your objective. Of course from all stated above it won’t be that simple. You have to play with the pounds per acre produced and the market price to create different scenarios to analyze. This should get you in the ball park to pursue a suitable property. Good luck. Charley
Thank you. I think I was just thinking at some acreage level the economies of scale would change and I wondered if it was typically a high margin crop. I was thinking about retiring (50s) and purchasing some land in Baja to put in a small grove – I was thinking 10 – 15 acres. I admit I don’t know much about this idea yet (I come from a family of Midwest grain farmers). My primary concern so far is a source of water, but is the soil in Baja generally suitable? I know they grow a lot of tomatoes and strawberries, but I don’t see much about Avocados. Yes, I do look at it long term and just hope to generate enough income to make it worth the investment and create some extra income.
Charley,
Are you personally familiar with any Hass growers in Colombia?
Also with the exception of exporting to the US market, do you have any opinions about growing avocados in Colombia?
Paul
Paul, I have no contacts with growers in Colombia. I know they are developing an avocado industry and they hope to eventually be able to ship to the US. I have not been to Colombia so I don’t know how the trees are doing or what their production numbers are. You could check the status of their application to ship to the US on the USDA web site. It should be under the APHIS section.
Star, I am having some technical difficulty. I will contact you. Charley
ORGANIC ECONOMIC ZONE IN FLORES ISLAND, NTT, INDONESIA
Im seeking cooperation / joint venture to develop our 230,000 ha (2.3 million m2) concession of virgin agricultural land in Flores Island, NTT province, Indonesia.
This province is the southern-most province of Indonesia and is very near to Australia.
There are 3 active volcanoes on the island and its western end is the Komodo island where there the Komodo dragon lives. It is also in the same province where East Timor (previously a part of Indonesia) was part of it.
The soil is SUPER fertile and the elevation ranges from sea-level to up to 1600 m which offers the ideal growing condition of cool weather yet with high daily sunlight. Of course, near the sea level, it is typical equatorial weather suitable for pineapple and dragon fruit, etc.
This area of mine, is never planted and thus would easily be certified organic from day one for anything the grows on it.
Avocado is one of current crops grown successfully in Flores, but not commercially / professionally managed now exploit its growing potential.
You are a respectable farmer in this crop and thus I seek any form of cooperation or licensing to see your technology / know how being used in this project. Whatever orders you could not service previously may now be economically supplied from your farm in Flores.
Please tell me how and in what ways would are you be able to join us in this project?
Please do not restrict to avocado as the vast area and potential is limited by your imagination. So, please spread this opportunity around to other farmings.
Thanks
Efindi Siman
Jakarta
Indonesia
+62816712855 (whatsapp and Line welcome)
skype: efindisiman
Efindi, I am not able to participate with you in this exciting venture. On the other hand there are readers of my blog who may want to join you in this endeavor. I have had similar inquiries made from other growing regions of the world and I posted the responses so the parties could get together. I hope you will get the same response. Thanks, Charley
Hope you had a great holiday. We own a small avocado farm in Guatemala. We grow the best Hass Avocado. Our trees are approximately 4 years old. I’ve been told that at harvest, we should pick all avocados large, medium and small at one time. My question is, is this true? Or is it possibly beneficial to only pick the large now, leave the medium and small so they continue to mature until they reach the large size? My thought would be to only pick the large size only and have more of a crop year round vs. having to wait for one major harvest per year. This is a new venture for us and your blog has been a great source of information. Looking forward to your advice. Thank you!
Jorge, The harvesting strategy differs from year to year. Size picking is a viable strategy. It is often driven by fruit condition and fruit load. You just have to get some of the fruit off the tree. In considering the decision there has to be enough large fruit to make the labor efficient. It is not economical to have the crew spend most of their time just looking for big fruit. In the same way you have to leave enough small fruit to size to make the clean up pick economical. Finally you need to understand that if you leave the fruit on the tree too long you negatively impact next year’s crop.
Am planning to put in an avocado grove, about 48 to 100 acres. Do you have a book or any specific directions besides your blogs? Am in Okeechobee County Florida, close to Lake Okeechobee.
J.O. I would suggest that you go to the University of California web site at UCAVO.UCR.EDU. On that site there is cultural information for avocados. It covers the subject from start to harvest. I would also believe that Florida University has a similar site. Good luck. Charley
I work at a law firm. We represent an avocado orchard management company. Someone is making a claim against them for negligence in managing their orchard, causing damage. Do you do expert witness work, or if not, can you recommend someone who does? Thanks!
Pete, Yes I do expert witness work. I am easily qualified. I have an excellent track record. The side that retains me wins. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks, Charley
As i know, avocados are growed in the box which sized 24 inch, can you tell me the weight and the width of this box? Because i have never growed avocados before avocados so I also need all of document about technical in growing avocados?
Nguyen, I don’t know where you received information that avocados are grown in a 24 inch box. The biggest container used is 15 gallon. These are used by some nurseries for special applications. All the trees are ultimately planted in the ground. I would suggest you go to the University of California web site ucavo.ucr.edu. You can go through the web site to get a general knowledge of growing avocados.
I bought a 15 gallon self pollinating Pinkerton 3 years ago (when it was about 4 years old). It’s about 7 years old now and gone through 3 blooming seasons and never produced fruit. It flowers, but no avocados ever arrive. The same sized and aged Hass planted in the same yard products 100’s of fruits, and at least 80 stayed on the tree to maturity.
Do you have a suggestion as to what the problem with the Pinkerton is?
Kelly, You didn’t say where you are located. The trees are planted in your yard but you didn’t say how they were irrigated. Even though they are in the same yard the soil could be quite different because of the grading to build the house pad. You didn’t say whether the flowers never get pollinated or you get some very small fruit and then later it drops off. In any event the probable cause is stress. Most likely the stress is from irrigation practices. If the trees are being irrigated from the landscape irrigation one may be getting more water because it is closer to a sprinkler or in a low spot. General rule is a mature avocado tree needs about 450 gal of water per week delivered in one application. So I suggest you check your irrigation system and practices. Good luck. Charley
I have 5 acres along the dry part of the arroyo Tesquesquite in Riverside.
It is in the 100 year flood plain of riverside. The stream is dry most of the time mainly serves as Hsin for run off from street. I plan to use the land for organic farming and would love to do Haas avocados. I know the micro climates of the Temecula de Luz area and Fallbrook tend to be best areas.
Is riverside too cold for this venture. There is also possibility to purchase more land connecting to my lot possibly 5 more acres. Or should I really be looking in Temecula ?
Guy, Generally speaking that low area will subject to cold some time. You might go a few years with no cold impact. Then comes a year when the cold devastates. Also that flood plain will some day flood. That’s tough on a perennial crop. Before making the investment in the permanent crop in that area I would suggest looking for land in an area where the weather risk is not so high. To give you some idea of the possible risks you can look at what is growing in the area.
Hi Charley,
Am interested in buying a grove in North County. Can you please provide your contact info as I would like to use your service for the purchase. Thank you.
I live on the oregon coast, I have in the past 6 years learnd that im realy good at starting avacado plants.last year I sold one for $200, it was about 5 yrs old.i learnd how to make them bush out.as winter aproches here im putting up a green house and want to start growing a larger quantity of starts.is there a market out there for selling starts.my question is is this possable, considering where I live?
Jenifer, Congratulations on your efforts. Unfortunately I know of no market for starts. The nurseries start their own seedlings. Now most of them are propagating the trees with clonal root stock. Producing starts in Oregon would require shipping to an area where the trees would be sold. I don’t believe the added shipping cost makes it viable. Charley
Charley,
I live in SW Florida and am attempting to start-up a small nursery operation, the thrust of which is to produce Avocado trees from seed through the grafting stage. I know how to start the tree from seed and have done so successfully. However, if I am to do this in any volume, the laborious methods that I have used in the past are too time consuming.
My question is do you know of a source, either on-line or in print, that illustrates how commercial nurseries germinate their product.
Richard, You didn’t say what you were doing was too time consuming. I assume you were doing what had to done. Unfortunately I know of no short cuts. The commercial nurseries just use more labor. The only help is analyzing the steps so that they are efficient, for example material preparation, table height, etc. Hope this helps. Good luck.
Hello charley im gil and im in clermont fla zone 8 i have 5 acres with iritation can you tell me what type of aguacado i can grow here if you know and if the cost is justify by the future harvest we are beekepers n would like to grow them.
Gilberto, I am not familiar with the weather conditions in Florida zone 8. You would need to check on the risk for possible freeze. Other than that the Florida weather should be fine. Much of the existing Florida commercial avocado production is of the West Indian varieties. If the soil is well drained you could consider growing the Hass variety. You would have to do the analysis of the local cost of production compared to the market value. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
We are buying this 9 acre avocado grove property in Valley Center. The water irrigation has been turned off for 1 1/2 years. Is it worth reviving the trees? Our other option is clearing off all the trees and converting the area into a vineyard. Would you be available for personal consulting?
Lisa, With the water off for that long it becomes marginal whether trying to bring the trees back makes economic sense. If you are going to plant a vineyard you want to get advice on what varietal is suitable for the location. Also you want to investigate what the market expectation is for the grapes. One other alternative is to clear the trees and replant to avocado at high density. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks, Ccharley
Hi Charley, What a great blog! My fiance and I are looking to move from the East Coast, Cape Cod, to Fallbrook/ Valley Center area, for a career change into avocado farming. We are looking at 5 acre groves in the area of which to build a house on, as opposed to buying a house with land and then planting our own grove. We have been doing our research however, we have many questions still. We want to know some key elements to look for as our Realtor shows us the groves sites we have picked. We are heading to Fallbrook Sept. 14th-18th to look at sites and would love to get in contact with you before hand in hope that you have some pointers, which I’m certain if anyone, you must. Thank You! Sarah
Sarah, I would be happy to help you with your purchasing decision on a consulting basis. I would be available only on the 14th to the 16th. I will send you my contact information separately. Thanks. Charley
Hello Charley,
I would like to see if we could use your service to inspect an avocado grove in Fallbrook. The grove is 10acres. Please let me know if you could come out and if so how soon thanks.
Nola
Nola, Sorry for the delay in responding. Obviously I have more to do than there are hours in the day. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks. Charley
Hey Charley,
Been reading your stuff for some time now. Really appreciate you sharing your expertise. Feel like I know you. Anyway, I have maybe 40 fruit related trees now, 5 of them Avo’s. I am about to plant a grove on my half acre in Oceanside. How can I contact you? I would like to have you consult and possibly more. Thanks so much man!
All the best.
Greg
Greg, I will send you my contact information separately. I can visit your property to evaluate it for planting a grove. I do that on a consulting basis. Thanks. Charley
I’m looking at a property with about 20 acres of avocados and a home. I’ve run a number of businesses successfully, but I’ve never run a commercial growing operation. I’m looking for a professional to help me make a good choice and then get off on the right foot. Can you help me with that?
Hi Charley from Australia,
I have some Hass Avocados here I am trying to grow for profit. The crop this year is not overly heavy but the Avocados still seem to be staying fairly small. I follow all the recommendations re fertilizers etc and have had soil tests done which have determined that most are within the acceptable ranges… My question to you is, Is there any fertilizer or product I can use to boost the size of the Avocado fruits.
Cheers
Simone
Simon, There is no magic available to make the fruit size. Good fruit size comes from correct farming. You have to give them adequate water and have them on a regular nutrient program. You didn’t say where you are in Australia. There is an association in the country you could contact them to get some hands on advice. Good luck. Ccharley
Hi. We have a giant avocado tree in our backyard in Oakland, CA (at least three stories tall). We’ve been living here for 3 years and every year it’s produced a lot of fruit. Last year was a bumper crop. It’s also looked very healthy and green, but this year it has a lot of dead branches all over it – the first time I’m seeing that. I’m assuming it’s because of the drought. But how am I supposed to water it? Aren’t the roots really deep? Does it need to be fertilized? Should I trim the dead branches? It still has a lot of healthy growth all over it, but I’m concerned and I want to do something before it’s too late. Any ideas? Thanks.
Sharif, It sounds like you have an irrigation problem. You didn’t say if you were irrigating the tree at all. The avocado tree has it operating roots in the top 18 inches of soil. It has deeper tap roots but those aren’t making the tree function. You have to wet the entire area under the tree with sprinklers and you have to apply enough water to get the soil wet 18 to 20 inches deep. Yes the tree needs fertilizer. You can trim the branch terminals that have died. It sounds like it needs some tender care.
Jaime, I know of no one selling avocado leafs. You did not say how many you need. If it is just a few, I would look for the nearest avocado and ask the grower if you could have some. If you are looking for a lot, I have no suggestion.
Sorry. Charley
Hello Charley, how are you? I can’t seem to find the answer to this, I’ve been told that growing Avocados at around 7000 ft is optimal, better production, less problems, etc. etc. Our water is a gravity feed system and the climate is perfect. I’m just curious if there is much of difference between planting at 5000 ft or 7000 ft. 5000ft on the ranch is much more cost effective. Thank you for your time and your input is much appreciated Charley.
Jon, You didn’t say where the ranch is. I assume the weather conditions will be the same at both elevations. That being said I would plant the 5000 foot elevation first.
Hello Sir,
Could you please advise me if I buy a 1 ac. land in hemet,ca , can I plant avocados, Im planning to plant avocado in 1 acre how many trees I can plant and what variety of avocado survive in hemet, ca which is they said zone 9, please Help, asap , Im ready to make an offer to the propertyhank you in advance and waiting for your advise…….Respectfully yours , Manolito
Manolito, The Hemet area generally gets too hot in the summer and some areas could possibly be too cold in the winter. You would need to look closely at what is growing on adjacent properties before you plant avocados. You could plant about 300 trees per acre with high density spacing.
I’ve tried three times in the 92544 area of Hemet, which is zone 8.5. Avocados won’t grow here, despite the type per the nursery that “is suited to the area,” proper nutrients, adequate deep soaks, etc. it seems to me it’s just too hot and dry here. If anyone knows otherwise, please contact me so I can find out what I’m doing wrong. (Thanks for this blog!)
Elaine, First question is did you get the advice from a local nursery on the type that is suited to the area. The reason is that the Hemet area has a very diversified climate. At the lower elevations you can get both extreme heat and cold temperatures. At higher elevations you may have some moderation in the heat but still have the cold problem. You can probably deal with the heat with irrigation practices. For example you mentioned the deep soaks, but with temperatures over 100 the tree needs water more frequently. You can give it another try by changing your practices. If that doesn’t work it may be you just can’t grow the avocado at your specific location. Sorry. Charley
Me and my friend would like to purchase an avocado grove in Fallbrook. We found a place that we like. We would love to get your opinion on it. Mainly we would like to know what the risk factors are that we should be aware of and how to maximize the growth. Please let me know how we can reach you.
Charlie, we live in zone 5 (WI), so we can’t have an avocado tree in the ground. But we really want one! Is there a dwarf variety (that tastes enough like the Hass we are used to eating) that we could winter indoors, and put outside 9 month of the year? Something we can keep trimmed to 6-7′ tall, that will give as a good crop of fruit? If so, how big a pot do we need? (Will an “air pruning” pot allow us to use a smaller pot?) And where should we buy it from — is bare root ok, or do we need it potted?
Thanks much. Scott
Scott, I really don’t know if moving a tree in and out will work. Here are some thoughts. First you need a container at least that would the size of a half wine barrel. I would recommend you put the barrel on a dolly to facilitate moving it. Yes you can maintain the tree height by pruning. In this situation I don’t know when the tree would flower. The flowers have to be pollinated and that usually occurs when it would still be too cold there. Additionally I don’t know if the fruit would grow inside during the winter. The biggest challenge will be finding a tree. They can not be bare root because they grow year round. I don’t know of any nursery that would ship one tree. You might be better off finding a specialty fruit shipper and have California fruit sent to you.
Im planing to retire and planning to buy at least 2 acres property in perris, ca .Which the price is affordable, Im planning to plant avocado (hass ,cold hardy)Please advise if I could plant it there zip code is 92570. I appreciate it a lot
Lito, As you have concluded it can get cold in Perris. Unfortunately there is no simple answer if you can grow avocados in Perris. Some area may be acceptable others will not. you can look to see what kind of plants are growing in the area. Also talk to the neighbors of the property you are considering. Good luck.
Charley, My wife and I have been dreaming about buying an Avocado grove in the De Luz area for a few years now and we think now may be a good time to jump in. We are looking to build a modest home on an existing high producing grove of at least 5 acres. We are going to start looking at groves now while we prepare our current home in Orange County for sale. We would like to have someone to consult with in our efforts to find the perfect place for us. We would appreciate any help you could give us in this search.
Thank you, Patrick
Patrick, Given the world wide demand for avocados it is a good time to consider entering into avocado production. You would need to talk to local realtors here in Fallbrook to help with a search for a property. I might suggest Sunshine Properties, 760 728 8855. They do a lot of orchard and land sales and would be able to help you. Good luck.
Charley
hi! I have a young dwarf avocado tree in a container (maybe a year old). It seems to be going well unlike my other attempts in the past. I see new leaves growing every day which is great. However, the trunk itself looks like it’s… for lack of better word… shedding/molting. I don’t know if it was done by a bug, or mold, or if the trunk is just getting rid of it’s “baby” trunk…. but I don’t want it die and I also don’t know if it’s a natural part of the tree growing or not. I can send you pictures if you want. Help? Advice?
Kim, You didn’t say how big the container is. What you are observing is not a natural part of the tree growing. You also didn’t tell me where you are and whether the tree is inside or out side. All that being said it sounds like you are over watering the plant. Remember plants in general and avocados specifically need to be water then allowed to dry out. I would suggest you stop giving the tree any water until you see some sign of wilt on the leafs. then give it water. However long it take to show some wilt will give you a hint on how often you should water. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley, Thank You for your blog. After all that we have read we think we would like to consult with you on a property we are thinking of buying. It is a 15 acre avocado grove that has 680 trees yielding about 63k per year. The water bill is costing about 40,000. On the property their is a well and reservoir that is quite large however is not being utilized for the grove only the house. We know that the grove is not producing its potential and we have the skill to make that happen. We are wondering how we can utilize the well and reservoir on the property to decrease the water bill, in an effort to produce an income for the grove. The question is why haven’t they done this already? their are a possible few reasons why but getting them answered is almost impossible. Is their a Sodium (NA) consideration with growing avo. ? The well has over 120 psi, With the cost of water why wouldn’t everyone have a well? what is your thought on this.
Christina, I can only offer some opinions on your questions. If there are only 680 trees on 15 acres that tells me that the property is not fully planted, or many trees have been removed, or the grove has been thinned several times. On standard plant spacing the 680 trees are about six acres. You say they yield 63k per year. I have taken that to be pounds, which is good production for 6 acres. If the water bill is for 6 producing acres the trees are getting plenty of water. I can only conjecture the reason for not using the well. Yes sodium is critical for avocados. At 500 ppm the drop in production is almost a straight vertical line. So therefore my conclusion is the well water is too salty. The well having over 120 psi is a function of the pump not the capacity of the well. Everyone doesn’t have a well because they are expensive and risky. Good luck on your acquisition. Charley
I am starting to take care/manage my family owned avocado orchard. We have 20 acres only about half is planted. My main problem every time I irrigate is that the sprinkler heads get clogged up. I run around unclogging all day some times the same one 10+ in a day. We use a well to irrigate and the mainline looks to be 3 inches in diameter. I was wondering if you could recommend a good well filter and a good liquid injector for fertilizer and pest management. Also this is back-flow on there now which I would like to replace with a better one. People around here have said that the one that is on there is no good. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank You
Derrick, Your situation is tough to answer. Where you are, how deep is the well, how much does it pump, and how old is the well would influence the answer. Let me make some general comment that should help you work on a solution. You can go to the irrigation stores and see what filters are available to help you decide on the brand and screen size. But your description of how much you are clearing sprinklers tells me two things. First if the filter stops the material going into the system you will have to be available to clean the filter frequently or you could damage the system. Additionally it sound like the hole is caving or the casing has failed. I would suggest that you call a well company to have the well inspected. They can do pretty much from observation and some of them have cameras they can lower into the well to inspect and recommend a solution. I don’t know what kind of back flow/check valve you are using. If there is no house or if there is no way the well water can get to the house, a mechanical check should be sufficient. If the existing device is old it may not be moving properly. Only way I know of to check is to take it out of the line and look at it. Good luck, Charley
Hi Charley, I have a small grove of 25 trees on a 1.5 acre property my wife an I bought in Escondido, CA. We have no experience with Avocadoes prior to the purchase. We’ve been on the property now for almost 3 years. We have 17 mature hass trees, 2 mature Fuerte trees, 3 young hass trees, 2 young dwarf holiday trees and a Zutano (we planted the young trees and the 15 gallon Zutano since moving in).
The previous owner had changed out the sprinkler heads (he was known to tinker). The heads now are a Matched Precipitation Rate type head. Do you have any recommendations on what is the preferred sprinkler type, especially given the drought situation? We’d like to water with the most efficiency possible.
Robert, The preferred irrigation now is with low pressure/low volume sprinklers. The challenge you have is that the mature trees have different water requirements than the new trees. If you don’t have them valved separately the only choice you have is to use heads with different flow rates. Give it a try. Charley
I was wondering if I could get you contact info. I am looking to learn the process of producing avocado oil and would love to learn first hand. Hoping you might have some contacts in that field of avocados.
Kevin, Sorry I can’t help you on this. From visiting New Zealand I know quality oil only comes from quality fruit. Maintaining the proper temperature during processing is critical. I know of no large scale processors in California. I do know there is at least one small processor, but I do not know their name or location. Sorry, Charley
Hi Charley! Great blog, thank you for the insights.
I am growing Hass variety in Chile and wanted to do some industry comparisons in terms of the costs and the yields associated with my production. Do you know any good sources of information for industry statistics, with the usage of inputs? Or perhaps you personally have some insight into what’s the industry best practice for total cost of inputs (such as water, energy, pesticides, etc) per acre, the % breakdown for each item separately and the yield per acre data? It would be a massive help, thanks!
John, I would recommend going to the University web site, ucavo.ucr.edu. There is a lot of information there on producing avocado. I can’t remember when they last updated the cost of production. At least it will give you a point of reference. Charley
I have also been increasingly interested in the use of sensors to help me be precise about irrigation and potentially extract other benefits (e.g disease prediction, frost, pests probabilities, etc).
What do you think on the subject? Have you seen any great products that can be cost effective and simple to use?
I have found a few, if you have any comment about those or can suggest something, I’d be very grateful. The few I found are:
John, I recently attended a seminar on the subject of irrigation management using sensors. The research project was a private/government project. the University of Maryland and California were cooperating with the support of private industry. The product of their efforts will be available from dacom listed above. Unfortunately I loan my information to some one who has not returned it. But what they have developed fills all the criteria you sited above. I don’t know when it will be commercially available but I believe with the website you could get the components and software and put it together. Thanks, Charley
I was wondering if you could give some insight on a typical management agreement (if one exists). Does the company work/bill on an hourly, monthly, yearly basis? Can it be based on a percentage of profit (now there’s some incentive)? Is it mainly advice or does the company supply the labor as well? Ballpark costs for different types of management? There seems to be a lot of inexperienced people entering the avocado business that require these services so this type of information seems widely relevant to your readers.
Dale, I don’t know if there is a typical management agreement. I can tell you the basics of my agreement I charge a monthly per acre fee. I have a minimum charge. The monthly fee provides irrigation labor and management. Management includes determining irrigation requirements, evaluating cultural tasks (weed control, pruning, etc.), and harvesting. Probably the most important is the harvesting decisions. I watch the market daily to maximize grower returns. Any work done in the grove is done on an hourly basis. Thanks for asking the question. Charley
Hi Charley. I live in Austin, TX. I was given two avocado trees that sprouted from compost piles, then moved to pots. One is around 2.5 years old, one is around one year old. The large one sprouted three saplings from one seed. It has grown to over 8 ft tall but is very spindly. It leans quite a bit even while staked with bamboo posts. Is this normal? How can I help strengthen the tree? Without help, I doubt it would even hold itself up as the top is branching heavily and very leafy.
In addition, my smaller tree’s leaves have yellowed recently and it stopped growing. I read this may be from lack of nitrogen, so for a quick fix I added urine heavily diluted with water just three days ago. Now I worry that I should have done something else. Did I hurt my tree? I should add – this tree is still potted in only compost that I assume lacked nitrogen. The bigger tree started in pure compost, last year I repotted it, adding soil and fertilizer. One last question- I apologize. Because three trees sprouted from one seed and I have a second separate tree, will they fertilize each other? I am so sorry for so many questions – I am very new to growing Avocados and these trees are incredibly special to me. Thanks so much for your time.
Breda, Your trees sound to be very vigorous. First you need to know that your trees will probably not produce fruit. If they do it will probably be fruit from the parent seed. It may or may not be edible. It won’t hurt you it just won’t taste good. You never said how big the pots are. Remember it is a tree and needs room to grow. They need to have soil. They won’t be happy in compost only. You have to bite the bullet on the tree with multiple trunks and select one to keep and cut the others out. On the one you keep cut a few inches off the top. This will cause the tree to grow the lateral branches and stop going up. They can’t fertilize each other. If they get flower bees will pollinate the flowers. Both trees will need fertilizer. Since I don’t know how big the pots are you need to apply a little at a time so you don’t burn them. Good luck. Charley
My husband and I have fallen in love with a beautiful house for sale. The only big problem is ut is attached to an avocado grove. It is in northern San Diego area. Okay the problem is really with us, we don’t know anything about growing. We are in fear of the water bills, we are told the monthly bill is between $2000 -3500. That is for 33 acres. The trees are around 35 years old. The yield last year was 58000 #’s they have yield of 100000+ pounds of varying sizes. I do not know that kind of avocado is grown. With all that said, I want to know if there is a company that would come in, pay for water and care of grove in exchange for the harvest.I’m not sure if that is enough information to give me an answer, but I would appreciate your opinion. Thanks
Kim, If the 33 acres are all planted the water bill is way below what is required. A commercial avocado orchard needs to produce 10,000 pounds per acre to pay the bills and make a profit. I doubt any body would want to take the grove on a lease. From your description it would be a money pit. If the location is good the value is in replanting it. I hope this helps. Let me know if I can help. Charley
Hi Charley,
I have a small Navel grove (48 trees) in Redlands, CA. I also have a 5 avocado trees in there. I am considering retiring the half of the Navels and putting in avocados mixed in the grove, with the possibility retiring the navels all together. Do you know of any problems going from oranges to avocados? Also what is the spacing of high density planting? Thanks!
Thad, You would need to be watchful for phytophora citricula. A lab can tell you if it is there with an analysis of a root/soil sample. Presence of the disease would not eliminate planting of the avocado. High density planting could be 15×15, 12×12, or 10×10. Also I suggest you do not plant the avocado in between the citrus. If you are going to avocado take the citrus out. Charley
I live on the coast of North Carolina,I bought a Wurtz tree Will arrive in May, purchased from seed catalogue. Where can I order different severity ? Dwarf I can pot bring in when weather turns cold. Great site good info. Thank you very much Frank
Frank. I am not familiar with the Wurtz variety. I suspect it may be a West Indian variety like those grown in Florida. I assume you are looking for another variety. I would suggest you go online and look for a supplier in
Florida. I don’t know of anyone in California shipping small tree orders. Thanks, Charley
I am considering a 9 acre residence in Fallbrook with 500+ trees in need of “rehab”. If you are available to consult or can recommend another in the area I’d be grateful.
We are considering purchasing a 5 acre parcel with a functioning avocado grove. We’re looking for a professional to assess the grove condition and take a look at the production history to see if it’s a worthy investment. We’re hoping you could help.
Hi Charley,
My wife and I are considering purchasing a grove as well. The one in question looks good in some areas and not so good in others. The parcel in question is approx 6 acres. It is already professionally managed, but I’m wondering if we shouldn’t get a quote or 3 from other companies to be sure. I’d rather pay more and have a great orchard. Your input is greatly appreciated.
Lance, I guess the first step would be to get a third party inspection of the orchard just to have another view. If you purchase the property then you will need to consider if you want to keep the same manager or switch. I just noticed you said it was “professionally” managed. Who defined “professionally”? I will send you my contact information if you need more help. Thanks, Charley
I am considering buying a 10acre parcel of avocado trees in murietta. How do I assess the value based on the recent damage of the snow storm last winter? I would appreciate your input and assessment?
How would I proceed to talk to you. Semper fi
Thanks Nina
I live in chico ca(north of Sacramento), so I know getting production will likely not happen. I have 3 avocado trees of assorted varieties that have been in the ground for 4years. Each year they look good, and each year they have an amazing amount of buds, but one of the tree seem to have an issue. Right before the bees arrive to pollinate, 90% of the leaves turn yellow and drop. Simultaneously new leaves sprout. Is this okay? If not what is causing it, and what should I do?
I live in chico ca(north of Sacramento), so I know getting production will likely not happen. I have 3 avocado trees of assorted varieties that have been in the ground for 4years. Each year they look good, and each year they have an amazing amount of buds, but one of the tree seem to have an issue. Right before the bees arrive to pollinate, 90% of the leaves turn yellow and drop. Simultaneously new leaves sprout. Is this okay? If not what is causing it, and what should I do?
Andreas, You didn’t say what the varieties are. You also didn’t say how they are being watered and how much. So I have to guess on a reason. A couple of elements to remember. When the trees load up with flower they can’t support every thing so the trees gives up what is least important. In this case old leaves are the least important. The tree will start producing new leaves to protect the new fruit. The other possibility is they are not getting enough water. In this case the trees are in a minor stress which will accentuate the leaf drop. Hope this helps. Charley
I moved to Ramona recently, got 25 acres of mostly Granite boulders, but some areas that are flat where I can dig a hole without hitting rock. I want to plant a few Avocado trees for my own use. My neighbor has some that just started producing this 3rd year. His are in shallow Basins(not in mounds),as planted by the nursery guy he bought them from, so I think they should grow on my property, although we had a freeze, in January that killed or damaged some plants around my house and we had some 115 degree days too. I have not found a Nursery that has avocados in Ramona, other than Kmart, which had just a few bad looking trees in stock at the time. I am getting old and am thinking it might be too late to plant any trees and expect to be around to reap the rewards. My questions are 1)can I start off with larger trees, 2)Where is a close-by place to buy them at good prices, and 3) what kind of dirt should I put in the holes, that would be better than the decomposed granite I have. Thanks for your help, Steve
Steve, Not much you can do about the cold. There are occasions when you get those kinds of temperatures in Ramona. When the heat comes keep plenty of water on the trees. Water them deep. You can start with larger trees but you really won’t gain that much over a healthy smaller tree. Once it is planted it will take off. If you have been reading my web you know I advocate putting the trees on mounds instead of in basins. For just two trees I would suggest one of the larger retail nurseries. They would tend to have fresher trees because they are doing more volume. You can use any good bagged organic material to mix with the native soil. Good luck on your project. Charley
Charlie,
Im putting in a 24″ box Haas avocado tree in my front yard. Is it best to plant 2 trees for cross pollination? If so, I was thinking another type (Stewart) so they bear fruit at different times. I’m a novice, any tips would be great. Im in Southern Cal.
Thank you.
Rob, I am really surprised that you found a 24″ box Haas avocado tree. I don’t believe I ever saw one. A couple comments are appropriate. Be careful of an avocado tree in that big a container. It may be seriously root bound. It will be heavy and more difficult to plant. I prefer small trees. You could plant a standard orchard tree and be in about the same position in a few years for far less money. And you will probably have a healthier tree. Also remember that tree whatever size will need its own irrigation. You can’t irrigate it with the lawn. You don’t need a pollinator. If you want another variety that is a different decision. Also I don’t recognize the Stewart variety. My comments on tree size are the same for the other variety should you choose. Good luck on your project. Thanks, Charley
I’m a CPA close to retirement and looking to invest in a farm. Since I live in Orange County, Avocados farms are close by and seem like an attractive option. I’ve been doing a lot of reading and it seems like with the drought and water costs, it’s a big gamble. I have looked at a few farms and noticed that most don’t use well water due to salt and some have added reverse osmosis systems. But I guess the trade off is higher energy costs. Does anyone use solar to run the pumps? Or is it cheaper to use district water? How about age of trees, is 25 years to old? What are the better areas, Fallbrook, Valley Center, Pala area, is where I have looked so far. Best management companies? can you recommend a farm appraisal expert?
Bruce, You are discovering the typical questions once you open the box to avocado production. I will try some brief answers to some of your questions. The water costs are the big issue for production. The plant’s native environment is rain forest and we are growing them in the dessert. This requires aggressive farming practices to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. Wells that have salt are generally not deep enough so they are delivering perculated irrigation water. There has been technical advances in solar energy to power well pumps with a reasonable foot print for the panals. The age of the trees is less of an issue than how they were cared for. A similar comment for the growing areas. The condition of the orchard would be more important than the growing area. The only note would be that Valley Center will generally have more expensive water. My company manages groves. If you are looking at farm evaluation instead of appraisal I can do that. I don’t know any licensed rural appraisers. I will send you my contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
I am planning to buy a 5 acre land in De Luz. The land is currently clear and have no grove. What will it cost to start an Avocado Grove on the 5 acre lot? How long will it take before I can expect to start harvesting? With water cost, any other alternative to Avocado grove in the area?
Jack, Congratulations on considering the avocado industry for an investment. At this point in time for the venture I use a budget number of $25,000.00 per acre for development. That is for a high density planting. It includes clearing, irrigation installation, planting (hole, tree, stake, wrap, and tying). Four to Five years is normally accepted for commercial production. That means enough fruit to bring in harvesting crew and send fruit to the packing house. The trees will produce fruit before that, but not enough for the packing house. In my opinion there is not a better choice than avocado for our area. Yes we have high water cost. The other side of the coin is high demand for the product both in the US and world wide. You have to farm good enough to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. That is one of the drivers to go to high density planting. Good luck on your endeavor. Charley
Thank you for the valuable information. I have been researching online and found GEM and Carmen Hass to be two other variety to consider. Since, I will be starting on a clear land, any particular variety that makes more sense? As to the water issue, is water quality from drilling well a solution? Thanks again.
Charley – We recently purchased 20 avocado acres in De Luz. Looking for a management company and advice. Please let me know if you are able to help or can point me in the right direction. Best, George
George, Congratulations on your purchase. It is not clear whether the land you purchased is planted to avocados or is suitable and you intend to plant. Either way I can help you. I’ll send the direct contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley, I am buying a small avocado farm in Spain with a hundred odd mature Hass trees – is there any books/publications/manuals you are aware of that takes you through the annual care and maintenance as well as harvest? cheers
Lewey, I recommend that you go on line to the University of California web site below. They have a short pamphlet that will get you in the ball park. Just remember it is written for growing avocados in California. Good luck. The address is ucan.org/sites/gardenweb/files 29079.pdf.
Hello Charlie, I have started a Haas avocado tree from seed, it is about 7-8 inches tall with decent size white roots. I was told by someone it is ready to be planted. I am in the process of moving, which means I am not going to be putting it in the ground anytime soon. We are moving to Sonoma county temporarily so it will be a house plant for at least two to three years. What potting soil do you recommend? What size pot?
Thank you for your input and advise.
Steph, Potting mix available in most garden shops will work. If it seems to light you can add a little soil. The size of the pot will determine how large the tree will grow in the container. I assume you know that the seed will not grow a varietal avocado. You will grow a seedling. It will have to be grafted to get Hass. you will have an attractive tree but you may or may not get fruit. The fruit will be from the original parent. It may or may not be edible. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
How do I find an expert to look at my avocado tree? Do you come to the Beach area in South Los Angeles?
I have a wonderful old Fuerte avocado that has been producing wonderful avocados. The tree normally has a full canopy but for the last year the leaves are brown starting at the tips and dropping. Is it too much water? Not enough? A disease? To me they all look the same.
Thank you,
Gale
Gale, You didn’t say how long you have been at the house. I can not come to South Los Angeles to look at the tree. The symptoms you described we call tip burn. It is caused by the tree taking up the salts in the irrigation water. You have to irrigate the tree long enough to flush the salts below the root zone. You may have changed your irrigation methods this past year. Additionally we received more imported water from the Colorado River which has more salt in it. Hopefully more rain is coming and that will flush the salt below the root zone. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley, I am an operation manager at GreenPath Food, a social entrepreneurship start-up based in the USA and Ethiopia aiming to help smallholder farmers grow fruits and vegetable for commercial use using sustainable farming techniques. We are currently in the pilot stage setting up operations and establishing an out-grower relationship with farmers a small town called Butajira in Ethiopia. Our initial focus is in the production and marketing of avocado fruits. Our partner farmers currently have varieties like Hass, Fuerte, Pinkerton, Nabal and Bacon. I am really keen on connecting with you for inquiries on avocado production and quality. Thank you so much in advance!
Ezra, As you can see from reading some of the post here, I respond to many production questions. It is important to provide enough information so my response can be appropriate. I look forward to your questions. Charley
Hi Charley,
I used to own over 100 acres farm in Racine, WI that was leased to a local farm company to grow corn. I sold the farm about 2 years ago when I moved to Los Angeles. I’m looking to buy an avocado grove in your area of San Diego county. I plan to do the same thing, lease the land to an Avocado Grower. Is this a viable business for Avocado farm? I’m a city girl but just want to diversify my investment by adding a farm that is already producing crops. What sort of Return on investment I’m looking to realize investing in an avocado producing farm? How much can I lease the land per acre. Right now, I’m still conducting my research online and signed up at Loopnet to check out what is out there for sale. I will definitely be seeking your advise and engage your service when I’m ready to buy. You seem to be an expert in avocado farming. Thanks in advance.
Elsa, Interesting thoughts. A couple of points so the information makes sense. First I know of no information to give you an example of a “typical” avocado lease contract There is none each one is its own deal. In the Midwest you can check the market for rents. Leases for tree crops are typically long term. Five years would be a minimum. I have never thought of ROI for leasing. In my opinion most owners lease to avoid or reduce cash flow. There are many properties where the owner is not the operator. Instead the owner hires a manager but is still paying the bills and taking the revenue. I trust this will give you the general parameters. If you have more questions let me know. Good luck on your project. Charley
please send me your contact information.i am in the process of buying a property that has 150 avacado trees.i will need your help in this matter. thank you.
Hi Charly,
We bought a house in Pauma valley with one very large tree. We r looking for someone to help us decide what it needs. Can u help?
It’s dropping leaves…dropping fruit…and bigger than we need.
Not sure of pruning or watering options etc. Thanks
Carrie, I assume it is an avocado tree. I would guess it is being irrigated along with a planter or a lawn. What you describe is not enough water. In this recent heat it cannot carry the fruit and leaves. It is a mature tree so it needs about 450 gallons of water a week. You need to either change the irrigation system so it can get its own water or use a hose with a sprinkler to give it enough water. You can prune it down to a reasonable height. In commercial orchards I am trying to keep the trees about 12 feet high. let me know how you do. Charley
I have been living in Rainbow California for several years now. Only on well water so my attempt has been very limited at growing anything but I do have 3 avocados, 10 citrus, a couple mangoes, several varieties of edible bananas. So looks like we have to sell and will be moving to the Temecula area (not De Luz). I have read that mexicola is very cold hardy what other good tasting varieties may also grow in Temecula zone 9b.
Eddie, I believe making a decision on avocado varieties by the zone is not a good idea. You didn’t say where in Temecula you are moving. There are places in the Temecula area where you can’t grow avocados because it is too cold. If there are avocados around you, you are safe. If you can grow them all California varieties are good tasting. Good luck. Charley
Eddie, The dominant variety in California is the Hass. Other varieties that may be available at some nurseries are Fuerte, Reed, Bacon, Sirprise, Gwen.
Hello Charley, I had called a few places for soil for planting my last 10 or so avacado trees, California avacado society referred me to agriservices. They recommended 70/30 blend. Will this work, as I had mentioned earlier I need to build up a hill side 2′-3′ deep with new soil.
Thank You
Joe
Hello Charley, I would like to know if you can direct me in picking up some soil for planting more avacado’s here in San Diego. I will need aprox. 10yds. of soil. I was told not to use top soil??? Thank You for your expertise.
Joe
Gerardo, The avocados grown in Florida are different than those grown in California. I would look to see if the university of Florida or Florida State has an extension service who might have information on growing practices. I would also check the yellow pages for listings of grove managers who might be able to help. You should also call your local Farm Bureau office. Finally I would call Brooks Tropical. They are a major packer shipper of Florida avocados. I trust this will help and get you started. Charley
Wendy, My memory is most of those orange groves in Ventura are on relatively gentle land. To clear the orange grove and install a new irrigation system for a high density planting you should budget $25,000 to $30,000 per acre. The number can be refined after the land is cleared and the new planting is flagged. Sounds interesting. Good luck, Charley
Charley,
My husband and I are in our 50’s and are looking to purchase a home and eventually retire in Fallbrook. We are looking at a 2 1/2 acre parcel with 100 avocado trees that are in good shape, well taken care of. We know nothing about this sort of business. What is the estimated time commitment and is there a profit available for this size grove? My husband is interested in learning about caring for the grove, he is a strong DIYer, but also has other hobbies-so we are mainly concerned with the amount of time and upkeep involved.
Jennifer, I am sure you will love Fallbrook. How much time it will take depends on a lot of variables, for example the age of the trees the slope of the land to name a few. I must tell you that my usual response to this question ask by many is this. The best operator of an orchard is the owner who lives on the land and has the technical knowledge. That being said the other part is that you will quickly become a slave to the grove. Tough decision because there is a lot of personal satisfaction in producing a crop. Good luck on your venture. Charley
we are looking at purchasing a small avo and citrus farm in Ojai, we need advice about going organic and general farming info, can we consult with you? Thank you!
Carol, I would first go on line to the University of California Cooperative Extension web site. You can get good information to start on both subjects. I am in San Diego County so consulting in Ojai would be expensive. I am sure you can find someone up there. Check with the County Farm Bureau they can help. Charley
Just found your website. It’s amazing what I have forgotten about avocados in the years I have been gone from Fallbrook. Thank you for helping me brush up on that knowledge.. I have a couple of trees grown from seeds in pots that are greatly pampered here in Evansville, Indiana. You can take a girl out of Fallbrook but you can’t take Fallbrook out of her heart. Hope all is well, Kathy.
I have a 13-acre (10 in trees) producing grove inheritance in Ramona – we need a small-grove management person to give me advice (keep in trees, stump some, replace some, expand, cut back, etc.) but mostly to take over management for a short time until everything is straightened out and running smoothly again. I’d appreciate contact information so we can talk about what information you need to give advice and if you can help us manage this grove to its most efficient. Thanks!
Hi! Thanks for all the great advice! Do you ever do farm management/consulting in Riverside. I am just starting to put in 30 avos as a test. The avo we have as a home tree has done great over the last 12 yrs. My hope is to plant the hillsides around our house. Our soil is decomposed granite and seems to be great for growth. I’d love to know what you think and what irrigation tips you may have. Thanks! Cathy
Cathy, You didn’t say where you are in Riverside. Yes I do consulting in Riverside. I will send you contact info separately. Management would depend on where you are located. Look forward to hearing from you. Charley
Thanks! I just spoke with your office. We are too far out for management but not for your consultation. I’m going to have you consult I just need to figure when the best time will be since we are an hour away.
Currently we are finishing up installing 24k gallons of holding tanks for our well to irrigate from.
We are planning to plant within the week. The spacing we had planned was 18 ft off set rows. Someone recommended we plant closer. What is your recommendation?
I was also planning to let gravity irrigate until I needed a pump. Do you have any reasons to install a pump to irrigate?
Initially when setting up irrigation what sprinklers / irrigation setup do you recommend? And how often/much do the new plants need to be irrigated? Should I set up liquid fertilizer or do I wait until they are more established? I also understand that a filter system may be needed to prevent clogs of the sprinklers. Do you always recommend this?
I know this is a lot of questions but we are new to this and I want to do it right to start. If you think I should have you consult before I planting (now) please let me know. Thank you!
Cathy
It’s actually a great and useful piece of information. I’m happy that you just shared tyis useful info
with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
My wife and I bought a house in Valley Center, CA that has a small grove with 63 avocado trees. Please e-mail information about your consulting service. We want to learn about the trees what you recommend we do with them.
Hi Charley, my husband and I are looking to buy a home in Temecula with an avocado grove business. We love avocados and the idea of using our land to earn us some income, but we don’t know anything about the avocado farming business. Can you also email me your contact info? I’d like to talk to you more about what we need to do, and using your services. You can also reach me by phone if that’s easier at 562-458-9282. Thank you and take care!
Aloha Charley, I’m wanting to care for an avocado tree in my parents yard here on Kauai. I noticed that there are holes about the size of a fist, I assume from where large branches used to be, in the tree trunk (my dad might have done some over-pruning several years ago). The holes are deep extending into the trunk, black, and moist. What should I do with them so pests don’t get in and make themselves at home. Should I grow plants in the holes or fill them with something? The holes are at the lower half of the tree. The tree gives lots of fruits so I’m sure it’s not dead. What is your advice? And thanks for having a blog about avocado trees. This tree at my parents house has been around forever so I want to care for it as much as possible. And comes to think of it, I used to play on the tree as a little girl. So I love this tree. Thank you so much for your time.
Merissa, If the hole is black and moist, the pest are probably already established. First clean all the material out of the hole. Use a light rod, a straight coat hanger, or stick and poke it into the hole to see how deep it is. Use a fungicide like a light diluted copper solution or buy one from a store. Spray the material into the hole. Then mix a runny batch of mortar and fill the hole. If your lucky the damage is not too extensive and the tree will flourish after you have treated this wound. Good luck. Charley
most of my haas acocados fall off about the size of a pea. i probably had 100 or so and 3 stayed on from the november bloom and the same for the february bloom. i live in ventura about a mile from the ocean and the tree is about 10 years old.
Kevin, Tough to answer the question without looking at the tree. Let me give it a shot. First the tree will always drop some of the small fruit. It can’t carry all of it. It sounds like the drop was excessive. This is normally caused by stress. You told me how old the tree is but you didn’t tell me how long you have been taking care of it. I don’t remember seeing any weather reports for cold in Ventura so if they were stressed it was probably not enough water. Remember the tree is tropical it has to get enough water. Charley
Charlie, I bought a house in Northern California last year and it has a large avocado tree in the back yard. I was told some graft work was done to it and that it produces 4 different kinds of avocados. I cannot seem to identify what kind they are based on photographs on the Internet. Anyway you can help me? I can e-mail you photos of the tree and the avocados that are growing now. Thanks in advance! Mike R
I live out here in Hemet Ca, and purchased a 6 ft by 3 ft grafted Hass Avocado from a well known nursery in Menifee Ca. I want to know if someone can provide me with the best advise on growing it out here. I heard that Avocados will not survive out here do to the Heat and Frost. I’ve had it in a barrel for a month “with wheels” for easy movement, currently its in between 2 of my citrus trees that provide it with some shade. Its doing fine but I don’t want to plant it until I get some expert advise like yourselves.
Gil, I hate to be the bearer of bad news. What you heard is correct. The climate in Hemet over time is not appropriate for growing avocados. What I mean is that you may plant it and have mild winters and duck the frost. You can counter the heat by being vigilant and applying water sufficiently and frequently. That being said sooner or later one or the other will probably take the tree out. Sorry. Charley
Thank you Charley, for confirming. I will try my best to preserve its life as long as nature will allow me to do so. Lesson learned do local climate research before buying.
I live in the Upper Ojai in California and I wondered which variety of avocado does best in my area. I plan on purchasing two trees, any help that you could offer would be appreciated.
Constance, I assume you are in a frost free area. All the varieties will do well. I would suggest one Hass and then a variety to give you fruit at a different time of year; Reed, Fuerte, Bacon. Charley
Hi Charley,
We are planning to purchase avocado grove in Temecula for inve d tent purpose
and saw 2 listing on the net.Will you be able to help us in analyzing and recommending
the better one? Can you please send us your contact info?
I have 2 avocado tree one is a hass the other a zutano. the hass avocado tree ,the leaves came out red then turned green and yellow,Yellow around the leaves.what can I do.
I live in Valley Center and we have a very old avocado tree. I wasn’t sure what type it was and after during some research I think only think that it may be a Fuerte. It has green thin skin with a medium to small seed and it’s very buttery, nutty in flavor texture some tone of yellow. The skin has to be peeled with a knife.
So I decided that I would like variety so I just purchased 2 Hass trees. After doing some more research and learning about cross pollination I’m not sure that the exsisting tree is in fact a Fuerte. There are male flowers blooming on both trees in the morning hours. Is there any other why to tell if it’s a Type A or B?
Rosie, First both varieties have male and female flowers. So they will self pollinate. The Avocado Commission is looking at research to see if there are any cultural practices that could influence the flowers opening together to enhance production. You can go on line to look at some of the research that has been done on pollination for avocado. There are pictures of the flowers that may help you see what is happening on your trees. Thanks, Charley
We live in Ramona and we’d like to plant one avocado tree in the next two weeks. Can you suggest the best time to plant, where to buy, and any ground prep we should do beforehand?
Thanks so much for your help!
Sarah, You can plant any time after the danger of frost. Obviously you are safe now. Also you can’t plant during Santa Anna season, generally between Aug 15 and Sep 15. In terms of soil prep the old adage of dig a $20 hole for a $5 tree. In other words make the hole wide enough so there is loose soil for the tree to develop its root system. If you have a lot of clay where you are going to plant you can add some organic material. Remember plant the tree on a mound not in a basin. I would check your local retail nurseries to see if they have avocado trees. I don’t believe the wholesale nurseries will have single trees for sale. If you can’t find a tree you could call Atkins or Maddox nurseries in Fallbrook. Good luck. Charley
Thank you for putting together this forum. My grandfather recently purchased a small avocado orchard in Temecula, and I was hoping to see if you could do an analysis of the site. Can you please send me your contact information when you get a chance?
Sorry Charley!
I searched and searched your site and could not find how to ask a new question so I hope I can get a response from you here.
I live in Miami, Fl and I have about 35 avocado trees that are super healthy. I am an Avocado nut job and I study the subject constantly out of pure love.
I am going to a wedding in Santa Monica in May and I want to bring back about 10 California varieties that are not grown in Florida. I called Brokaw and they told me that the trees cannot go to Florida and that’s the law. That’s the first time I heard about such a law. I am familiar with the laws on moving citrus to Florida but never have I heard this about Avocado trees. What do you say on this law, is that gospel? Is that true? Because if it is not true I’ll travel down to Fallbrook nurseries to fullfill my super strong desire to have these varieties at my home:
Fuerte
Gwen
Holiday
Sir Prize
Kona Sharwill
Carmen
Lamb Haas
If it is not against the law which nurseries will I have the best chance in the Fallbrook area to obtain my wish list?
Thank you so much my Avocado loving brother!
Richard, First I believe the advice given by Brokaw is correct. There are many restrictions on moving live plant material. Additionally the California varieties you seek will probably not do well in Florida. The avocados grown in Florida are West Indian varieties. Those grown is California Mexican varieties. They are completely different plants and fruit. The only thing they have in common is avocado. I am afraid the only route for you is to set up a connection in California to send you fruit in season. Charley
It’s a common misconception about California avocado varieties not growing in S Florida. My Gwen and Holiday had about 5 times as many blossoms as any avocado blossoming I have ever seen and they just kept coming and there was a tremendous amount of fruit. My Lamb Haas had more fruit on it than any of my Florida varieties. I think you might want to look at the evaluations my friend Carlos is performing on his S Florida grove. It will amaze you. http://www.myavocadotrees.com/
Rich, Your comments illustrate the dangers of general comments. The problem with California varieties in Florida is too much water. If they were in an area where the soil is well drained so that the roots were not wet all the time they would do well. Of course if they could grow all over one would expect that there would be a lot of commercial production. Thanks for sharing the information. Charley
Does the common house ant pollinate an avacado trees, or are they harmful?
I have an orange brush next to my avacado trees, and the orange is loaded with bees, but the avacado I see none. Should I be worried?
Andreas, The ant is not a pollinator. The ants do no economic damage to trees. Unfortunately they cultivate other pest and attack beneficial insects. Therefore they should be controlled. The orange tree is favored by the bee over the avocado flower. The bees are probably going into the avocado you just don’t notice them. The bees are there so not to worry. Charley
Hello Charley! First and foremost let me extend to you an enormous THANK YOU for providing so much free information on this site and other blogs that I’ve found that you’re also affiliated with. I think that it is so wonderful that you provide so much information here and you can definitely tell that it is truly appreciated by so many people and from all around the globe (I just spent the last hour reading all of the comments! Hahaha!). Anyway, a little about myself. I am a High School English teacher and have a lot of spare time on my hands when school is not in session and have always had a “thing” for growing fruit trees. I always have success with my citrus trees but my avocados …… oh those avocados!!!! They sure do give me a headache sometimes! Hahaha, well, now I know that I need to be planting on a mound (not a basin) LOL. Most of my problem is probably in that my property is in Perris, Ca and I know it can get pretty chilly out here for avocados and wouldn’t try to make an orchard or anything, I just do it for enjoyment and free avos! However, I am still interested in learning all things avocados because it is my dream to move back to North county Santa Barbara (where I did my undergraduate work) and it would be very feasible to grow avos there! So down to my question, I know it’s a long shot, but do you (or do you know of anyone) that would take on an apprentice or even a volunteer? I just want to learn anything/everything about avos, and I promise I learn quickly and am a big help! Hahaha and considering that Summer is about to begin and I wont be working for a few months, I figured it was worth asking! Thanks in advance for your time and again, thank you from the bottom of my avocado-loving heart! 🙂
Josie, First your problems with your avocado in Perris is probably the cold. You must also remember that it gets very hot in Perris. That is an awful lot of stress for the avocado. I don’t know of anyone who might be interested in an apprentice. Your best source of knowledge would be the UC extension and attending the free grower seminars. Additionally Dr. Bender conducts a six week hands on school. Unfortunately I believe he just completed one. You can goggle the schedule of the growers seminars from the California Avocado Society web site. Hope this helps. Charley
Hello, thanks for your information, we recently purchased a property in
Temecula, very many issues with 1000 haas trees, that were stumped about 4 inches off the ground, they are doing well but the the wind and rain these last few days has caused a lot of damage and the low limbs are simply falling off. We are not sure how to manage
the unique problems we are faced with. Additionally we had a well, but is not being
used now and unsure if it is worth the expense to rehabilitate and not sure of the
potential salinity. Can you forward an agreement for management and consultation
please? Thank you for your open forum to present questions, and appreciate your help !
Yolanda, The market for 96 and smaller will be a specialty situation. For example a number of years ago Sizzler featured half avocado in the skin on their buffet. Obviously they wanted the small fruit. I don’t believe the general retail trade is interested in them. Hope this helps. Charley
HELLO, CHARLEY
I AM YOUR TYPICAL HOME OWNER IN THE HILLS UP IN WILDOMAR WITH AN ACRE. AND RECENTLY HAVE BEEN GIVEN 5 SUTANO AVOCADO TREE IN 15 GAL CONTAINERS.I HAVE CITRUS TREES THAT ARE DOING WELL. NOW I NEED PLEASE YOUR EXPERTIZE ON HOW TO PLANT THEM? ‘WHAT TO DO’? AND ARE THEY A GOOD AVOCADO TREE?
Leon, Probably the most important consideration is to plant the trees on a mound NOT in a basin. I assume the soils up there are well drained. The mound should be at least 18 inches above grade. For a 15 gal container the mound should be 3 to 4 feet in diameter. When you build the mound gather the soil from a larger area so that there is not a moat around the mound. Obviously after the mound is built dig a hole large enough to accept the tree ball. Look closely to be sure the plant is not root bound. You can tell if there are a lot of roots curving side ways going around the container. If they are you have to separate or cut them. You can apply some vitamin B to the roots to help with the stress. The top of the soil in the container should be the top of the soil after planting. DON’T put more soil on top of the soil from the container and up the trunk of the tree. The Zutano is a vertical growing tree so you can plant them closer to each other than you would plant a hass. The fruit is a winter variety the fruit will be ready in late fall and winter. When there were Zutanos in the commercial market there was a tendency to harvest them too early. They have a lighter flavor than hass. Good luck on your endeavor. Charley
Omar, I have checked with my friend yes the land around Jericho is suitable for avocado production. A dunam is one quarter of a hectare. How many trees will depend on the density. With a high density planting the number of trees will be over a thousand. There is an avocado association in Israel. If you contact them I believe they would have the information on nurseries that would have avocado seedlings. Charley
I am in the process of purchasing 100 acres of ag land in Escondido,CA. Ive read your blog and thank you for the costing information. How do I reach you to see if you are interested in working on the project? Please email me and I will send you my phone number. Stevec7717@gmail.com
I am looking to buy about 30 acres with 1500 avocado trees now dormant. Location: VALLY CENTER CA 92082.
what is the water one foot acre cost? also do you think we can water the trees back into production that is profitable.
Thank you
robert
Robert, Water cost in Valley Center depend very much at what elevation the orchard is. The higher the elevation the cost is higher because you have to pay pumping charges. In most areas of Valley Center the cost is above $1200 per acre foot. You said the trees are dormant. I take that to be the water has been shut off. Not knowing how long the trees have not been irrigated and with out looking at them it is difficult to comment whether the trees can be “watered” back into profitable production. To answer your questions the grove needs to be evaluated. Charley
I would like to know how long it takes production size Hass fruits (96s and larger) to grow into next size up. I would like to know how many ounces each fruit size add up given the total crop load on the tree.Please let me know if you or someone you know can help me understand the fruit growth rate in context to Southern California. Thank you!
Bandana, You ask an interesting question that every grower wished they had the answer. Essentially it depends on several factors most of which the grower has no control. The one you can control is the health of the tree. A weak tree will not size fruit as fast as a healthy tree. The other factor is the weather. Temperature is important, but most important is rain fall. Over the years I am always amazed hor sizing accelerates after good rains. I trust this helps you understand the process although it doesn’t specifically answer you question. Merry Christmas. Charley
Hi Charlie,
I, too, am looking to purchase a home that comes with a grove of Avocados. While I have no interest in becoming a farmer, if I purchase this home, I would feel obligated to become a good steward of the land. I would want to hire a grove manager and hope to break even with all the costs involved in taking on this responsibility.
I understand you focus on avocados, but some of the properties we have found have other types of fruit. Can you speak to other types of groves too? Would you be willing to talk me through some things?
Mary, I would be happy to assist you in deciding on purchasing a property. I will send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charley,
Thank you for your blog and so much valuable information!
I am about to purchase an avocado grove in
Fallbrook area and was wondering if you would be available for a consultation.
Thank you!
Jerry
Jerry, Yes I can help you in evaluating property to purchase. I’ll send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charley-Im considering buying a home with 250 Hass avocado trees semi-densely planted on it in Fallbrook CA. Assuming the trees and irrigation are in average shape, roughly how much time (per week/month/or other) should I need to put into the grove if I manage it myself (I would outsource harvesting)? Any rule of thumb or range would be appreciated. Thank you in advance! Kevin
Kevin, I really don’t know if your question is answerable. Part of the answer is in the age of the trees. General comment is that a younger tree will require more attention. Bottom line is that if you are planning to hold down a full time job and manage the orchard and do the work it probably not doable. Sure it may get done but there will always be tasks that were not completed or not done correctly because of a lack of time. If you are retired and take this on, I will tell you you will become a slave to the grove.
Good luck, Charley
Hi there. In very early stage of planning to purchase an existing avacado grove or starting from scratch in Temecula area. Would you be kind enough to speak to me for a while?
Hiten, Yes I can help you with purchasing decisions for avocado property. I do that on a consulting basis. I will send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charley. I have 500 avocado trees in Moorpark CA. After 7 years I plan to harvest this year and sell the fruits. Where can I sell them and how do I know the right price to sell them?
Roe, I’m surprised it is taking seven years to get to the first harvest. The fruit is normally sold to a packing house. All the major packing houses serve the Moorpark area. You should be able to find their phone number in the yellow pages.
Hi Charley,
I’m working on a history of the avocado industry in California. I’m a journalist and also grew up on an avocado farm in Carpinteria. Can we find a time to talk on phone? I’d love to hear your stories and insights.
Many thanks!
Monique, Sorry your email got skipped. I will send you my office phone separately. My Office Manager can find a time when we can talk. Let her know how much time you will need.
Hi Charley,
I’m interested in your consulting. Would you mind contact me, please?
Thank you,
Vitaliy, Sorry for the delay your post was missed. I will send you my contact information separately.
Vitaliy, I used your email in the post. It was returned. You will have to post again with a good email. Charley
Hi Charley!
is it true that Hass prefer to be planted on a high elevation like 1,200 ASL? and it prefers Cold Weather? What really is the ideal growing conditions for Hass Avocado (Elevation,Temperature,Humidity,Soil Type etc.) And lastly what are the conditions that triggers the Hass Avocado to flower and set fruit?
Denden, You have received information about growing avocados from a strange source. Elevation is not critical. Temperature is important. No they don’t like cold weather. Mild temperature preferably without a wide swing from winter to summer. Lastly a well drained soil is important. The tree does not like to wet feet. I never think of a trigger for the tree to flower. It is a function of the tree’s growing cycle. For example the trees flower at a different time in different countries.
Hello Charley,
I live in Palestine/Israel but my farm is in Jericho – dead sea area the temperature can get to 45C and as low as 5C the water isn’t available all year.
but I would like to know a few things:
1. what’s the best number of trees to start with “to test grounds”
2. How much attention do I have to give the trees? cleaning, pinching, fertilizers … etc.
3. How much water does each tree require? roughly of course
4. when do I breakeven
5. can I grow anything from the “mother tree”
Thanks and apologies if I’m not using the correct terminology
Thanks
Abdallah, I wouldn’t bother with test trees. The avocados will not survive over time based on the temperatures you have provided. I don’t know how to answer the question about how much attention is required for the trees. More attention means better trees. In a Mediterranean climate a mature tree would need about 450 gallons a week. I don’t know when you might breakeven because I don’t know what the production cost are nor do I know what the market is for the fruit. You can’t grow from the “mother tree.” Producing avocado varieties must be grafted to a seedling. With water not being available all year I suggest you look for either another crop or another location.
Hello Charley, I’m considering a 13 acre 1500 tree orchard in Santa Barbara. I’m told trying to calculate total costs for the farm and understand the water, fertilizer, management and picking fees. What I cannot find is howwhat value each avocado trees can be depreciated for tax purposes. I cannot find any information on how to calculate appraisal values. Can you share what a normative range is for an avocado tree or point me to a tax resource so i can understand the true costs of managing this acreage?
Winston, Your question is frequently asked. Just for the record the trees along with the irrigation system can be depreciated. The land and a home cannot be depreciated. My suggestion to answer the question is to take the total purchase price and allocate portions to the four categories above. Allocate as much as you can to the two depreciable categories. Ask your accountant if the allocations are reasonable. For example you can’t have the value of the home to be unreasonable. Irrigation systems at today’s prices can be as high as $7500/acre. Trees can be $500 to $900 depending on age and condition. Just remember the allocation must be reasonable. You might want to go on the University of California Extension web site. A number of years ago we did some work to calculate the value of a tree for fire damage claims. It would be helpful. Good luck, Charley
I am from Sudan I would like to grow Avocado in sudan and I have three options one is to grow Avocado in Marra mountain in Darfour it has good climate and for growing avocado with atitude over 3000m and rain over 2000mm year around but the problem is that it’s not safe and very far from the port the second option is in Southren Kurdofan state the atitude over 600m with a lot of good water amount of water very fertile land and 4 monnths of rain tepmretrur can exceed 100 for tow months and the last one is west of the capital Khartoum with a lot of good water but temperature can exseed 115 for months I need you advice
Tajelsir, My first reaction is that you will have a difficult time being successful with avocados in the areas with high temperatures. I assume the numbers you quoted were centigrade. In high temperature areas you have to apply more water. Unfortunately in the conditions you described no matter how much water you apply the tree can’t move the water from the soil to the tree. Remember the rule of thumb is that the avocado tree is happier in a Mediterranean climate.
Thanks Charley but I think I can move my project to South Sudan At the higher altitdued of thr Imatong maountains in the border with Ugand the climate there is sutible it is at the 30th at altitiude over 1000m and rain more than 2000m
Tajelsir, It sounds like the elevation will give some relief from the heat.
Sorry Charley what I mean by temperature In Kartoum can reach high as 115F wich is 46.111 Celsius In Marra Mountain the climate is Mediterranean and Avocado is all ready growing there with cetruse,apple and many mediterranean trees
Tajelsir, If avocados are already growing there that is a good sign. Do they look healthy?
Thanks Charley, In Marra mountain in West Darfour avocado grow well and produce good fruit, because of the good climate and abundant amount of rain water specially at the Elevation between 1000m and 3000m above sea level.Also there is another place close to the capital Khartoun cold Nouba mountains the alivation is between 600m to 1200m above sea level and themaxemam temrerature in March to May between between 35,37,36 Celsiuse with rain fall from Jun to October up to 800mm do you think avocado can thrive in this condetion and what verities do you recommend?
Hi Charlie,
I am in S. California and have a large amount of property with Oak trees. I know they are protected but someone told me there is a provision to allow cutting or moving of oak trees if you are replacing with a farm. My questions are as follows:
1 – Is this true and if so, how expensive (round about) would it be to change my property from oak to avocado?
2 – What is the minimum number of avocado trees to be considered a farm and get property tax breaks in ventura county?
3 – Do you even think this is a viable option?
I don’t just want to do this because of financial reasons but I am also highly allergic to oak trees so it would be much better for my health to not have so many of them on my property.
Thank you!
Delicia, I am not aware of any provisions in Ventura County law to get exemption to cutting oak trees to be replaced by agriculture. The conditions would normally be spelled out in a grading and clearing permit. The county may require mitigation for the oak tree removal. I am also not aware for tax breaks for a farm in Ventura County. It may be a difference in how the land use is coded. I would suggest moving oak trees would be cost prohibited. I would suggest you explore the possibility that you may be able to get special consideration because of your allergies. Eventually you will have to go to the county to get answers to your questions. Good luck.
Hi! What are the chances of having an avocado grove/orchard in the State of Massachusettes? Considering that it gets cold in the winters and the weather is very schizophrenic. Can any avocados grow in Massachusettes? I am willing to be the first to ever try.
Jerry, Unfortunately the answer is no. The avocado is a tropical plant and would not survive in Massachusetts. Before you ask I don’t believe you can grow it in a green house.
Hi charley can i grow hass variety, im at 22m from sea level also i live in tropical region
Afka, The temperature range is more critical than the elevation.
there’s a few local variety that able to grow and produce fruits but the taste doesn’t good as hass had… Maybe there’s good taste variety you may recommend. thanks charley
Hi Charley
We are all aware that Avocado is a Tropical plant as what you have also mentioned. You also said on one of your comments here that “Remember the rule of thumb is that the avocado tree is happier in a Mediterranean climate.” Having those two you mentioned, if i have a chance to grow avocado on both climates Mediterranean and Tropical Climate which climate will avocado grow best?
Denden, Referring to the avocado as a tropical plant is probably the easiest way to make sure people immediately know you can’t grow avocados in Montana. You may be splitting hairs between Mediterranean and tropical. How about warm and sunny?
Just found your website. I live in Southern Calif and have one avocado tree in my backyard. For the 2018 spring (that’s when my avocados ripen) I had 785 avocados. This year for 2020 I am sure that there are over 1000. So I’m wondering how I can go about getting some kind of certification to sell them this year. I have a Bacon Avocado tree and they are wonderful.
Dianna, You can go to your County Ag Commissioner’s office to get a growers certificate so you can sell in the farmers market.
Hi Charley, first of all, a great 2020 for you and your family. We have a farm in Brazil, Northeast, with the follows conditions:
Temperature: 24°C to 37°C
Dry weather
C2S1 Aquifer water
700 m altitude
Is it possible to cultivate Avocados in that farm? If possible, wich kinds?
Thanks in advance.
Best regards
Marcelo
Marcelo, You can grow avocados in the area you describe. You will need irrigation and will have to pay close attention to the trees water needs at the high end of the temperature range you described.
Hi Charley,
I’m so glad I found you blog. I have a couple of avocado trees that I grow in my backyards. Sir Prize and Reed. I bought them from a nursery in the Bonsall/Fallbrook area in March of 2019. These were in a 15 gallon containers. I planted them in the ground in April. Now the trees are having problem with salt burn due to salty water and nutrient deficient. I went to ucavo.ucr.edu and it said that a young avocado tree needs about 1 lbs of nitrogen a year. Since I like to use organic fertilizer, a typical 10 lbs organics fertilizer box has an npk of 6-3-3. so to get 1 lbs of nitrogen a year, I need about 17 lbs of organic fertilizer to satisfy the nitrogen requirement for each tree? Is this a correct calculation? For this year, I only used about 2 lbs of fertilizer. But 17 lbs of fertilizer is a bit much don’t you think? Is it possible to use synthetic fertilizer in conjunction with organic fertilizer to meet annual requirement of nitrogen? For example, for each fertilization application, I will apply half the amount of nitrogen from an organic source and half the amount of nitrogen from a synthetic fertilizer?
James, Yes you can use both organic and commercial fertilizer on the trees. That is assuming you are not trying to produce organic fruit. You also need to look at your irrigation practices to compensate for the salty water.
Wanting to take over my parents small avocado farm in south Texas. Is it possible to make a good living growing avocados?
Linda, A small avocado grove with the right variety can be profitable if properly farmed.
charley I live on hwy 150 aout 1-mile from hwy 33 across the bridge. can I grow avocados hass or lamb hass at my home or is there another type of avocado that will work. Zack from Ojai ca. thank you charley.
Steve, There is some avocados grown in your area. You have to be careful though. There are some cold spots. Look at what is growing around you. We are late in the year I suggest you invest in a minimum reading thermometer and check the temperature this winter. It is not foolproof but it would give you an idea.
Charley Wolk,
Love the blog and just bookmarked it. My question is… I just moved to Bonsall from Sacramento region and our water bill for our house is very expensive (Rainbow Water District). How do all these farmers and growers afford water for their large agricultural properties? Thanks
Brian, Your question is often asked. The answer is really quite simple. You have to farm precisely and aggressively to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. The demand for avocado now and for the foreseeable future is so high that profit can be made if you do the above. Charley
I live in Las Vegas, Nevada and own a 12 acre land in southeast Nigeria that I would like to follow my interest and grow avocado. I have been taking in so much information from the web and find your blog to be the best. I need a mentor who could guide me. Would you help me?
Echezona, If you have not found it, I encourage you to go to the University of California Extension web site,http://ucavo.ucr.edu. The information is complete. You would have to adjust it for the conditions in Nigeria. If you sent me more information about the land, soil, terrain, climate I may be able to give you more detailed comments on a consulting basis.
Hello Charley!
Greetings from the Philippines!
I came across your website while looking for a possible answer to my question, which search engines cannot help me with by the way, regarding growing avocado from seed.
Five months ago, I “planted” two avocado seeds using only water, two containers and toothpicks (to hold the seeds in position). After a month and five days, the first seed produced ONE (emphasizing the number) seedling or sapling (I don’t know which of these two is the right term to use for a young plant) which grew taller by the fourth month. The second seed produced one seedling or sapling without visible roots and when it produced THREE seedlings or saplings on the last week of the fourth month that was when its roots became evident from the seed itself.
Five months and 17 days ago was my first time planting seeds with nothing but water. I have limited knowledge about planting. I am open to learning more about planting. One of the things that I know is that a seed bears a seedling or sapling so I am surprised that my second avocado seed bore three seedlings or saplings.
My questions are:
1. Is it normal for an avocado seed to bear three seedlings or saplings?
a. If yes, would it affect its growth once it is planted on the soil?
b. If not, what should I do?
2. Do you have any recommendation/suggestion/advice for a first timer, like me, when it comes to planting fruit seeds?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you!
Therese
Therese, The first point you need to acknowledge is your seedling probably won’t produce fruit. It has to be grafted. If it does it will be something from the parent root stock. If the seed produced 3 seedlings one would normally keep the strongest one and cut the other two off. The seedlings will give you a nice looking tree but no fruit. I would not plant the seed with the three shoots. Get more avocados and experiment with starting the seeds to root.
Thank you for the response, Charley!
Truly appreciate it.
I have another question though…
How will I know which of the three shoots is strongest than the other two?
Also is it possible to show you a picture of what my seed with three shoots look like? If you don’t mind, how can I send you the picture?
Hope to hear from you once again.
Thank you!
Charley,
We are a small farm (farmers market customers) in the santa monica mountains of ventura county looking to add enough avocados to yeild at least 1200 a month as much of the year as possible on our steep south facing slope on which we have limited available space. What do you suggest in terms of variety selection, quantity, spacing and any other factors you think relevant in starting our small orchard? We are currently looking at gem and carmen haas.
Thanks so much for the advice, Chris
Chris, If you mean getting 1200 pounds per month, you won’t be able to do that with only one variety. The tree doesn’t produce that way. A selection might be Fuerte for the winter maybe a Bacon too. Then get Hass for spring and early summer and Lamb Hass for late summer maybe a Reed and Gem to try to carry you into fall. The Bacon, Reed, and Gem trees grow straighter and not so wide as Fuerte and Hass. Obviously they can be planted closer together. Good luck.
Hi Charley,
I am from SoCal area and have now retired early and have a few towns in Italy very interested in exploring avocados as a Corp to bring visitors and commerce to their area. They are in an area below Lake Garda – which is in between Milan and Verona Italy.
I have no background in agriculture however all the Italians do as most have vineyards, corn, figs etc.
I figure the first step is to see if their weather permits for the corps to grow. If you could send me a direct email address I can send you the weather for the area and you can let me know if this conversation is worth having.
Best,
Jeff, You don’t need to send me the weather. Being in northern Italy I don’t believe it will get too hot. On the other hand it may be too cold in the winter. If temperature in the area go below freezing in the winter avocados will not do well. Depending how cold it gets they may not even survive a winter. The crops you described would be able to grow because they are seasonal.
We’re looking at a 10, possibly 20 acre property north of Escondido. They say they have 800 trees, produced 175,000 lbs, make a small profit but seem unwilling to say anything more. They are saying that they can’t provide more info without a serious offer. But how can I place a meaningful offer without more info? Your thoughts on that? And what might your costs be to manage it? Thanks, Lance
Lance, I’m taking your numbers at face value. If there are only 800 trees that is nominally about 8 acres. If that is true that means there was over 21000 pounds per acre production. That is exceptional. It would have to be a planting of high density Gems to get that kind of production. There is no requirement in the law for a seller to provide production records to a buyer. the best production information is from the packing house. To your point he can’t provide more info without a serious offer, the counter is as you said you can’t make a serious offer without more info. That will tell you if he is serious about selling and is being honest with the info. Good luck.
Charley, thanks for the prompt reply. What might one expect to get per LB in the Escondido area? And am I correct with water costs being $6.29 per 1000 gallons? And general management costs if I were to contract that out? Thanks again.
I’m trying to grow avocados and i need help figering what i need to do to start?
Drae, You didn’t say where you are. I recommend you go to the University of California Extension website, http://ucavo.ucr.edu. If you are not in California you can adjust the information to your location. All the information you need to begin is there.
Lee, Thanks for the info. I have checked and can find no problems on my end. In fact I just replied to one of your questions on high density plantings.
Hi Charlie, clonal plants will arrived in Nepal within 15 days. All documentation has almost finished. So could you suggest to handle these properly by replying these queries?
1. How long micro clonal plants are safe in transit?
2. How could we extend plants life in transit?
3. Can we hold plants in 7kg polypot for maximum 6 months at holding nursery?
4. What is the preventive measure to prepare 7 kg polypot and what is the mix of this?
5. Do we cover plants by polythene sheet to prevent cold in winter? ( Minimum 8 degree Celsius )
6. Manual sprinkler is better than fixed sprinkler to distribute water in plants?
7. How we know the requirements of pesticides and fertilizer for plants at holding nursery?
8. What are the major guidelines for holding nursery? Any publication of avocado holding nursery management is available in web?
Himal Paudel
Nepal
Dear Charley,
Plants are growing well in 50% shadenet. Only 2% was damaged in transit and another 3 % are not well due to hardly withdraw of plants from container. It’s winter season so we hesitate to apply more water.
Regards
Himal
Himal, Congratulations it sounds like you did well in the transport. Season of the year is not the criteria for irrigation. The soil moisture for the plant determines whether they need water. Time of year dictates the length of interval between irrigations. You need to check the soil in the containers.
Himal, Your questions are difficult to answer because there is not enough information. I will comment on each question.
1. I don’t recognize the term “micro clonal plants.” I believe they may be ungrafted seedlings. You didn’t say where they were coming from by what mode of transportation.
2. Same comment.
3. You should be able to hold the plants if you give them proper care.
4. The pots should be sanitize and you can use regular commercial potting soil.
5. If you cover the plants with plastic remember you are creating a green house and you can burn them. They should be OK at 8 degrees Celsius.
6. I am considering manual sprinkler to be hand watering and fixed sprinkler to be an installed irrigation system. The installed system would be better because the water will be distributed more evenly.
7. You would need to know how they were being fertilized before you received them. You have to know what kind of pest are present before you can decide any pesticide requirements.
8. I would recommend searching the web for University web sites from producing countries for nursery operation guidelines.
Good luck on your venture, Charley
They are small Hass on Dusa from South Africa.
Dear Charley, i appreciate you taking the time to read this. Me and my father are interested in converting our profitable citrus farm of 10 hectares into a avocade farm. What are the essentials when making the plan for the convertion.
Thank You in advance,
Kendrick Balentin
Kendrick, First I would verify that there will be no temperature problems in the area. The citrus can take a little colder temperatures than avocado. You didn’t say where you are so you need to verify that there are handlers or at least a market for the avocados. You also need to identify a source for trees and what the lead time is to get delivery. Taking the citrus trees out will probably damage enough of the irrigation system that you should plan on installing a new system set up for the spacing of the avocado trees. You will also need to evaluate how you are going to get rid of the removed citrus trees. You said the citrus was profitable. I assume the avocado would be more profitable. You need to evaluate whether the additional profit off sets the capital investment to convert to the new crop. You may have to increment the conversion. Good luck. Charley
Charley i have a few questions ,if you can reply to me on my Email that would be great
Jayaguilar0623@gmail.com my name is Jorge Aguilar
Aguilar, It is better to ask your questions on the blog. That way more people receive the information in the answers.
Hey Charley,
I am from Uganda in East Africa. Different agronomists here have different ideas on the right avocado tree spacing. What spacing would you recommend?
Thank you.
Patrick, Tree spacing is driven by different considerations, the country, the slope, cultural practices. New and converted plantings in California have gone to high density. Even that has a range of different spacing. The groves I have planted recently have been 12×12. That’s 12 feet between the trees and 12 feet between the rows. High density plantings require annual pruning to keep the trees low and open.
Dear Charley,
What is the max height area (from sea Level) to planning Avacado? How you feel, is Nepal’s some hill can grow Avacado of not? My area is 1600M from sea level. Please advice me. Thank you very much.
Mahesh, Elevation is not the critical consideration. Temperature and wind is more important. In some locations temperature increases with elevation. In other locations temperature decreases with elevation. You have to have the Mediterranean climate year round.
Interesting in avogado farming in myanmar
Aung, I’m not sure what it is you are looking for.
Hi Charley,
I am from India and would like to have an advice on how do I start with avocado farming in India. What are the requirements?
Thank You,
Indrajit
Indrajit, To get started study the information on the University of California web site. The information won’t be specific to India but you can apply the information to India. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
Thank you for being here, great to find your site.
I’ve been invest in income properties in southern CA, managing tenants myself. I’d like to change my field to avocado farms. I check many properties in Temecula, Fallbrook, and San Luis Obispo, talking to many owners and agents, still, I can use your assistance in searching the right piece of farm. I want to attend conference or meetings for this industry to enrich my knowledge. Please help.
Patricia, You are making quite a leap. The best source in searching for the property is the local realtors. Once you find a property I can help you evaluate it on a consulting basis. I would suggest you go to the California Avocado Commission web site where many grower meetings are listed. Good luck.
Hi Charley, Thank you for the hint. I check with California Avocado Commission, there’s no posting of their meeting. There are many growers listed, but I think it would be odd for me to contact them. I will check with local realtors.
Do you think a well is a must on property? Since we have water issue in souther CA. As a starter, should I look at a established or empty lot better? I talked to McMillian management , they told me it’s very common these days, that owners are absent; doesn’t mean I prefer that scenario. I’m getting all pieces of puzzle from everywhere. It’s quite a closed society mostly family operated.
Charley,
Heartened to see you answering all these questions – thank you for your time.
I am considering purchasing a plot of land and growing avos. It is between Santa Barbara and Ventura in a community where others grow avos. It is directly on the coastline at 1000’ and is open southern exposure. I estimate that 10-15 acres are arable.
Can you give me an idea of dollar yield off organic avos per acre? Does this land seem suitable? It’s highly exposed. Are irrigation costs in the area extremely high?
Thanks in advance,
-J
Jordan, Your questions cannot be definitively answered. The dollar revenue will depend on tree density, the variety, and how well you farm it. The area you describe should be suited to grow avocados. I don’t know what extremely high irrigation costs are. It depends on what you are comparing. You would have to identify where the water is coming from to get a ball park on water costs. Good luck.
Hi Charley,
I am looking at growing Avocados in Scotland… Yes, Scotland. With new incentives for heat and new technologies I feel that I could control the climate to make this possible. I would be keen to discuss this matter further with you if it would be of any interest. It will be a challenge but one I feel could be interesting to pursue.
Regards,
Tom
Tom, You and others seem to be determined to grow avocados in a green house. Heat is only one of the elements to be considered. Remember the avocado is a tree not a bush. Keeping it small would require pruning. The pruning will stimulate vegetive growth. The biggest challenge is pollination. In the field done primarily with bees. I don’t know what bees would do in the green house or if there is an alternative. These factors need analysis before starting the venture. Charley
Bees would be no problem as many people buy them to be pollinators which a lot of soft fruit growers do in the uk. It is also what many hydroponic places use as pollinators
Hi Charley, I’m a PCA/Agronomist and grower in Moorpark, originally from Santa Paula where my family has been farming avocados since the 1940’s. I really think your post is great. What are your ideas on alternate bearing hass, and how to get the trees out of an alternate bearing cycle. I believe I have found the answer, but I’d like to know your opinion. Also how important do you think phosphate is in setting fruit and strengthening the fruit stem to help prevent fruit drop during strong winds. Not phosphite, because we all know that is a fungicide with no nutritional value to the plants at all, but phosphate. Also what are your thoughts on potassium fertilizer for fruit size, how many units per acre to reach 48’s across the board for an early harvest around February, so not to hold the fruit on the tree into bloom.
Kyle, Alternate bearing occurs on all tree fruit crops. Eliminating it is a world wide concern. A couple of years we almost had an international consortium to work on the problem. Unfortunately it fell apart. There is some current research addressing strategies to control the opening of the flowers. The hypothesis being that may be the pathway to reducing the alternate bearing. Research has established that phosphorous is a flower stimulant. You can’t get fruit without flowers. Yes potassium contributes to fruit size. I don’t know of any research that establishes the number of units to obtain a specific result. I would suggest you review the research that has been done at UCR on potassium.
Hello Charley –
I and some friends are trying to start importing avocados from some African producing country and export them to the USA. Would you be able to share some knowledge on the avocadoes buyers in USA? tHANKS
Kelvin, To import avocados into the US you have an import license. I would suggest going to the USDA web site to look for a list of buyers. It may all be effort spent that can’t be executed. There are no African countries approved to export avocados to the US. Sorry. Charley
Thanks Charley for the vital information.
it is much appreciated
Hi Charley,
May I know what is the best weather to grow avocado and basic essential requirements please?
Thanks and regards
Khun, The frequent description of weather for avocado is that it be a Mediterranean climate. Another way is no freezing temperatures and not too hot. You can go to the University of California Extension web site to find basic information about growing avocados. You may have to modify the information to fit your location.
Charley,
Ok so don’t laugh: I am seriously looking at growing avocados in the UK.
I am basing this on most or part of the orchard being under glasshouse or polytunnel (depending on cost and tree size).
I am currently running an economic model to try and better understand the viability of this and, at first glance it may be more economic than one would think (there is huge demand in the UK and all avocado produce is shipped in at huge environmental and financial cost).
So my questions are: Do you know of any reason (except cost) why Avocado’s won’t grow in a greenhouse?
Do you know of any variety that is commercial, but has small tree size and or is cold resistant? (Pinkerton? Bacon? Zutano?)
In terms of getting started, and I understand I will need (a large number) or grafted seedlings, is there a rootstock/producer combination that might be ideal for this climate and do you know any major rootstock providers? I have contacted Brokaw already.
Thanks for your time and I would bee keen to hear any/all of your opinions on such a venture!!
Regards
Simon
Simon, Yes I am laughing. Folks keep asking me your question. Here is why I don’t believe it will work. The plant is a tree not a bush. It needs to be planted. Even if you put it in a container it will be stunted because it can’t develop enough roots. You will have to keep the tree height down. The frequent pruning will stimulate leaf growth vice flowers and fruit. The flowers have to pollinated. The usual method is bees. I don’t know if the bees will work if they are confined in the green house. They would be needed when the weather is cold so they can’t be outside. You can’t leave the bees outside. Even if you could you can’t open the green house or you will damage the trees. I’m sorry I can’t give you some good news. Charley
Hello Charles,
We have a small farm in Medellin Colombia 8-10 acers in the region that is well known for growing Hass avocados but we live in the Virginia.
My uncle and dad are telling me to start growing Hass avocado in my farm because it’s a growing business and very profitable and more so now that the U.S agreed the import of this fruit from Colombia.
My questions is do you recommend farming Hass Avocado or is their other kind of avocado you would recommended? How long should wait to see a profit and do have any tips for us new farmers.
Thanks in advance
Luz, The avocado choice is good. You need to check the market requirements. The US accepting avos from Columbia is only a part of the answer. You need to check all of the conditions to be able to ship. If you use a high density spacing you might want to consider planting part of the acreage with Gems. If I could predict the point in time for profitability I would be a millionaire. It will be about four years for the trees to reach commercial production. Obviously whether that is profitable depends on how much you receive for the sale and how much it cost to produce it. The tip most important is to take care of the trees from the very beginning. You have to have the resources to care for the trees while you wait for revenue. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley.
I am very happy to find your site. I am interested in purchasing a property with an avocado grove, but have not had experience with managing a grove. Do you still take on management of other groves (or are you available for intense consultation during a new owner’s learning curve)? And/or do your take on interns to learn helping you at any of your groves?
Peggy, Yes still manage groves and have the capacity to take on additional groves. Intense consulting in the beginning is tough to get started from ground zero. The nature of the business does not offer enough time to help interns. I will send you my contact information separately. Charley
Dear Mr. Wolk, I’m from Guatemala and got back to take care of my family’s farm just a month ago. It has a 4 year old avocato plantation and I see a few problems con it. Probably the worst is the wet soil mostly containing clay. I’ve hear that adding sand and organinc compost to the soil may help. Is that right?
Nadia, Adding sand and organic material to the clay soil before planting would have helped. Before planting that material can be tilled into the soil. Applying it to the top now will have little or no impact now in the short term. An aggressive organic material program will improve the soil condition over time. I would also suggest you start applying gypsum to improve the soil. The biggest consideration is proper irrigation practice. If you put too much water too frequently, you will drown the trees. Remember the clay soil holds the water. Good luck. Charley
I live in Orange County, CA with a fairly large backyard and I’m excited about growing some avocado trees. I planted three 15 gallon trees a month ago on the backside of my property (Reed, Sir Prize and Hass). I don’t have a neighbor behind me because it is a steep slope down to an elementary school. This slope is infested with gophers and I think they are entering my yard. After doing a little research it looks like gophers can be a real problem for any young fruit tree especially avocado trees because they eat the roots. I am going to try to catch them and mitigate them from my property but I was just wondering if there is any trick to dealing with them? I found out about gopher cages made from chicken wire. Should I construct one, dig up the trees and replant them within the chicken wire to give the trees a fighting chance? It doesn’t look like there are gophers in any of my neighbors front lawns (or mine) so if I could convince my wife, should I replant the trees in the front away from the gophers? Any information is greatly appreciated and will ease my nerves a bit…
Eric, Yes gophers like young avocado tree roots. You have to accept the concept that the solution to a gopher problem is to kill them. You can do that with bait or traps. The traps don’t catch them. I believe you may cause more stress to the trees attempting to transplanting them or installing the chicken wire. Keep the trees healthy so they can deal with the gopher attacks. Good luck. Charley
Hello Charlie,
My name is Carol and I live in Oceanside CA about 5 blocks form the beach. I started a seed AI think a reed or nobal avocado seed from water. I transplanted it in my back yard and its gorgeous. I think it’s around 8 or 9 months old. I want to Evergreen nursery. They told me that it won’t produce unless I grafted it. I have no clue how to graft. I did Google and look it up on the Internet. But I was thinking I should hire someone professionally to graft it for me. Do you have any suggestions? I want my fruit!! 🙂
Carol
Carol, Yes you can’t grow avocado trees with fruit from a seed. I don’t believe you will find anyone to come and graft one tree. I would suggest you go to the University of California Extension web site. they have a cook book section on how to graft using several techniques. I am confident you can do it. The problem you will have to solve is where to get the bud wood. You might get some from a friend, but you have to know how to cut it. The alternative is to let the tree you have grown from a seed be a shade tree and go to a nursery and buy a grafted tree. I know it won’t be the same but at least you will get fruit. Charley
Hello Charley,
I want to start an Avocado farm in Nigeria. I don’t have experience neither do i know an expert who can put me through on A-Z about Avocado farm. Can you help? or recommend an expert to me.
Thank you.
Hycent
Hycent, The best place to get started is on the University Of California Extension web site. They have a section on growing avocados. They start in the beginning. You will have to adjust the information to conditions in Nigeria. Good luck. Charley
Carol, I am here in NE Florida and planted an avocado tree from a pit. Everyone laughed at me since they thought t would never grow. Well it almost didn’t since we had some tough winters and I covered it and placed a light in it. When we finally got a mild winter my tree shot up and I no longer covered it. I wanted to graft a branch for it to grow fruit since it was almost seven yrs with no fruit, but I kept feeding it, watering it etc. This year without grafting, it has nice size avocados. My suggestion is take care if it, wait since it takes up to 15 yrs. to bear fruit and yes, you can grow avocados from a seed. If you want a picture of my tree send me an email. PS, go on line since there are many suggestions for growing avocados but pick a tree that will grow in your area.
Edwin and Carol, Yes some times you may get fruit. It will not be the variety of the seed you planted. It will be something from the parent of the root stock. It may or not be edible. Good luck.
Dear Charley
Contacted to Westfalia nursery and Allesbeste nursery. Both are positive to supply Micro Clonel plants. I get knowledge about plant quarantine procedures of Nepal. Its not possible to fulfill all requirements by imported plants, I must have to graft them.
I read lost research paper, manuals, guides so i feel confident to get successful grafting plants. Then I called tropical horticulture centure to know about avocado grafting but they aren’t successful on grafting and also don’t know why its fails.
Please reply my queries-
1. Grafting is success only on greenhouse?
2. It’s only suitable only on winter or spring?
3. can we graft in all seasons inside of greenhouse?
4. Is there any chanses of fail grafting after 4-5 years later?
5. Grafting expert who have good successful rate in mango, citrus, Walnuts can familiar in Avocado grafting?
6. Are locally grown rootstocks are suitable for grafting or any specific variety rootstock required to avoid root rot diseases?
7. Compost fertilizer, gipsum, agricultural lime can neutralize the micro nutrients on soil.
Best regards
Himal
Himal, Here are the answers to your questions. 1.Grafting does not have to be done only in a greenhouse. 2.You can generally graft year round, but not recommended during extreme weather. 3.Yes. 4.Yes if the bud wood and tree were not compatible. 5.It will depend on the individual. 6.The only root rot resistance I know of is root stock propagated clonally. Locally grown root stocks my not necessarily be compatible for grafting. 7.These materials applied at recommended rates should not neutralize micro nutrients in the soil. Charley
Dear Charley,
I am Himal from Nepal.
I got inspiration from your past response. Today I bought 30 seed grown plant for trial plantation. We have about 50 acre well draining land. I committed to plant Hass, Future variety which has high demand in market. But I need mother tree and grafting expert for that.
I dont want to loss 1 year for trial grafting which has higher chances of unsucessful. Can I hire foreigner expert who will guide grafting ideas and also visit our country. I will pay for that.
Best regards
Himal, You have a challenge. I would suggest you go to the University of California web site. They have excellent information you the techniques to graft avocado trees. Of course you will have to identify a source of bud wood. Shipping the bud wood may require government permits. I would suggest contacting the avocado industry in South Africa. I believe they are closer and may be able to help Wesfalia is a big grower shipper and they have nursery operations. I would try them first. Good Luck. Charley
Hello from Alaska!
We saved a seed last year and sprouted it in a bowl of water to show the kids. Crazy thing is, it survived the long winter soaking up what limited sun we have through the living room windows, and now we have a 24″ tall skinny stem with three or four leaves on it at any given time. We repotted it into a much larger pot, but the problem is it only wants to grow up, not out or “fuller”. I recently read that you’re supposed to trim the top 6″ or so to get it to “branch out”, but that’s where all the leaves are. Will it kill it to do that?
Thanks for any advice,
Jeff
Jeff, It sounds like the tree is growing to the sunshine. If you have it in solarium that would do it. You are right you don’t want to cut those leafs off. They are what makes the plant function. What you should do is use your finger nails and pinch the very end/top of the growth. If you check the sun light source with this action it should develop side growth. Put the tree in a window and rotate periodically. If it all fails, get another seed and start all over again. Good luck. Charley
Charley I live in Harvey la west band of New Orleans I have a 5 yr old hass avocado it has over 200 hass on tree my question is far my climate when should I start picking them and do they really stary on the tree far 6 months. The tree was 4 yr old and I picked 19 that were very good. Started in oct. but ran out of them by end of dec. can you give me a I dear when to start picking.
Mr. Baldassaro, I believe your climate around New Orleans is similar to southern California. Yes the fruit will stay on the tree for 6 months. I’m surprised they stayed on until December. You should sample a few at Memorial Day. If the taste and quality is good pick what you need. Just remember this fruit will take longer to ripen than the fruit you picked in October. For good quality you should be finished by Labor Day. Thanks, Charley
Charley thank you far your reply but my avacado are not in line with Cal. I thought they would be. But they where 51/2 oz in nov. and 7 or 8 oz. in dec. so I guest I was picking them right they are only about 1/2 oz to one oz now. I will try to see if they will hold far 6 months I will leave some on the tree. I,m looking at dec. start and April end.
Charlie, I am interested in buying avocado land- either with existing trees or maybe even to develop myself. How is the market looking these days? Can you direct me to a broker? Thanks John
John, There is not enough information to answer your questions. You didn’t say where you wanted to buy land. I assumed California. But looking for land in Ventura County is different than land in San Diego County. You asked about the market. In context I don’t know if you mean the avocado market or the real estate market. The avocado market is strong and I believe it will stay strong in the future. I am really not qualified to comment on the real estate market. Good luck on your venture. Charley
Hi charley,
I have a couple of questions some might be difficult to answer so whatever you know is helpful. (I have very little knowledge at avacado farming.)
So my father planted around 600 avacado trees in roughly about 3 acres in Michoacán Mexico about a year ago now and My first question is about how long does it take for it to produce?how much profit could you get out of it? What’s the process and how hard is to export your product directly to the US? Always been my father and i’s dream to own a profitable farm.
Jay, Normally it will take 4 to 5 years to reach commercial production, that is enough fruit to have it harvested and brought to a packing house. The trees will have fruit earlier but not enough to be a commercial crop. We have planted trees with fruit on them. The profit is obviously the difference of how much you are paid minus how much it cost to produce the crop. I don’t know the specifics of cost and prices to the growers in Michocan. To export to the US the grove must be certified for US export by Mexico for US standards. I don’t know how you do it directly. I believe you would have to be approved as an exporter. Seems to me it would be easier to use one of the approved exporters in Michocan If you export it, you have to have a buyer. You just can’t send it. Good luck. Charley
Hello Charley,
I am new to Avocado farming and the demand is increasing day by day in my country. Is Avocado farming suitable at an altitude of approx. 1700 meter and the soil is brown red mix(more brown)?
looking forward to your response.
Have a good day!
Deepesh, Altitude is not the critical element in growing avocados. It is the climate. So depending where you are the altitude has different impact on the climate. Some times going higher it gets colder in other locations higher elevations it gets warmer. The tree requires a mild climate, not too hot in the summer and no freezing temperatures in the winter. The tree requires a well drained soil. Your description sounds like your soil may have a lot of clay. If you plant you will have to manage your irrigation practices very carefully. Good luck. Charley
We have a 40+ year old Bacon Avocado tree. It was really full and produced well over 300 avocados every November-January. The past 4 years, it’s gone really bare progressively and lost nearly all its leaves. Some new sprouts and branches are coming off the main trunk. It’s about 35 feet tall now, should we top it to about 15 feet? Thanks for your advice and thank you for your service.
Michele, You didn’t say where you are and how you irrigate the tree. It sounds like you have an irrigation and nutrient problem. You are probably not giving the tree enough water or you could be drowning it. If you have not been giving it fertilizer the tree is starved. The mature tree will need about 450 gallons of water a week in the summer time. Cutting the tree down to 10 to 12 feet will help, but it is not a substitute for adequate water. Good luck. Charley
Hi, Charley. This is carl from China. You are so professional and great! I want to buy avockdo from your farm by container . Show I discuss with your assistant by email? Thanks!
Carl, I do not sell avocados. There are shippers from California, Mexico, Peru, and New Zealand who ship to China. They have representatives in your country so you should be able to find them with a computer search. I trust this will help.
I purchased an half acre and my wife and I are considering planting a dozen avocado trees is their one book you could recommend. We live in La Mirada, California.
David, Sorry for the delay in responding. Doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day. For the best source of growing avocados for the beginner is the University Of California Co-operative Extension web site. It has information from beginning to end. I believe the address is Avo.uced.com. If that doesn’t work just search it. Charley
I think the University Of California Co-operative Extension’s Avocado handbook is at http://ceventura.ucanr.edu/Com_Ag/Subtropical/Avocado_Handbook/
Sean, Thanks for the info for all.
My wife and I are new to the Avocado grove business. We purchased a grove up in De Luz 2 years ago. My question is do you know or have any suggestions about how to write off trees that have died on your taxes?
Thanks,
Brandon
Hello, I like your blog. I’m evaluating an investment in a Panamanian avocado development. So far, all I have is a brochure. I wonder if you could take a look at it and see if you spot any red flags or recognize any of the names of the principals. Please send me your contact information.
Steven, Your investment sounds interesting. I can evaluate the printed material on a consulting basis. I look forward to helping you. Charley
Hi Charley, Water savings aside, which irrigation system gives the best results in terms of avocado tree performance: mini-sprinklers or drip? Thanks.
Eddie, My opinion is that mini sprinklers keep the tree happier. Remember the native environment of the tree is tropical. It likes to have all of the root area wet, not just the area under the dripper.
Hi Charley,
Great site and thank you for your service to this country! My husband and I just purchased 26 acres / 450 stumped off very mature avocado trees in between Mt. Woodson and Ramona, CA. I believe the water has been off over a year. We are completely new to this process. First can you recommend a reputable water well inspector given you are in the Fallbrook area? Second, do you have general recommendations for the rehabilitation of the stumps? I would say 40% of the trees are starting to sprout and we haven’t even turned the water on yet. Others look dead but we are not sure. Do we just water and monitor or do more? Also interested if you could email me details of your consulting program.
Casey, Be careful trying to rehabilitate the stumps. It may be a waste of time. The trees may not die but they will not be productive enough to pay for the water. The condition of the stumps has to be evaluated and a plan made to best utilize your resources to bring the property back into production. I will send you my contact information separately.
Hi Charly,
I want to get into the avocado business. I was wondering if going into hydroponics will be more efficient and less costly. Also, are you also a consultant for hire?
Christian, Recently I have received request for information to grow avocados hydroponically. I know of know one doing it now. I also have a hard time visualizing hydroponic methods to grow trees. So if you have an idea it might be interesting to share it. My inclination is that if it is doable it would be expensive.
Do you have any thoughts on what kind of farm insurance of an existing Haas avocado farm for sale you suggest and the costs.. 10 acres in southern CA.
Is there an age of tree that you suggest removing and replanting or topping to trunk? Many trees are original over 40 years old but still producing but not tons. or suggest looking for a younger tree farm.
Thank you
DG, I only know of crop insurance for avocados. The cost depends on what level of coverage you want. I suppose there might be hazard insurance available but I would suspect it would be expensive. The decision to replant or stump is made based on the condition of the trees rather than some arbitrary age. If the trees are 40 years old I suspect they would be candidates for lowering the height of the trees. Good luck.
Zack, I can do that on a consulting basis. It is not very efficient because you have to pay for the travel from San Diego County. I believe you should be able to find someone in Ventura County to help you.
Hi Charley, I have been trying to find information on growing avocado trees at specific elevations. I have property that sits around 5000 ft, is there any advantages or disadvantages? Any info would be appreciated.
Jon
Jon, The elevation consideration is only significant in its impact on the climate rather than the actual elevation. Depending where you are higher elevation could mean colder or warmer. If the climate is right the elevation doesn’t make any difference.
Hello Charley,
I just recently decided to take advantage of some family land we have in Baja Cali. I am preparing to plant about 5 hectors and fortunately water is not that much of a problem. I was just wondering in regards to the climate and if you have heard of any successful avocado farms down here.
Michelle, I don’t know of any commercial avocado groves in Baja. Most are further south. Not having a water problem in Baja is not what I have heard. You need to check closely to verify the water situation. If all is good then you need to determine how you are going to market the fruit. You don’t want to make the investment then discover that the infrastructure is not there to sell the fruit. Charley
Hi Charley,
My dad has a 40 acre ranch in Jamul California. We want to start growing avacado trees for profit but don’t know where to start. Can you give us any advice? The property has 2 wells and was previously used for horses. Is this an expensive business to start?
Patty, It is not clear whether you want to grow avocado trees in a nursery for sale or whether you want to grow avocado trees in an orchard to sell the fruit. In either case you need to check the night time temperatures in the winter. You can do that with a minimum reading thermometer. Most fertilizer/ag supply stores carry them. The other check to be made is to send a water sample to a lab to check the water quality. You want the water to have a very low chloride level. Good luck.
I have 6 avocado Pitts that I have been growing. 3 of them have 6 inch + taproot and one of them has a tinyear sprout growing atop. My question is I live in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the weather is starting to change. It’s getting quite cool outside and my sprout is starting to brown on the top. Is it time to bring them inside and if so what can I do to maintain them throughout the winter.
Lara, Yes you should bring them inside. You should have them in a large enough container so the roots have room to grow. Be careful about how much water you put on them inside. You can drown them or have them to dry because of the heat in the room. Good luck.
Hi
I am in Myanmar and I am looking for information on Hass Avocado Pear grown here and if so how many farmers are there growing this variety and is it possible to get seedlings. The other question is are there pack houses here in Myanmar for Avocado Pear farming.
Deborah, I have no personal knowledge of avocado production in Myanmar. I would think that there is some kind of an agriculture department in the national government that would be able to help you. Good luck. Charley
Dear Charley,
Thank you for all The information you are providing us on avocado crops.
I am from Cameroon and last year I planted about 1000 avocado trees. As I would like to export in Europe and Asia, could you please let me know how long unripe avocado (Hass & Fuerte) can last during transportation into frozen containers? Also, I would like to know if air transportation is better that ship for avocados for such long distance.
Thank you very much for your assistance.
Best regards,
Ahmed
Ahmed, Fortunately you have time to make shipping arrangements. First you can’t ship the fruit in any kind of frozen container. The fruit can’t take the low temperatures and will be destroyed by the time it reaches its destination. Air freight is better because the shipping time is less. You will need to find an agent to sell the fruit for you and to take care of the administrative requirements in the arrival country. You may find this marketing effort to be more difficult than producing the fruit. Good luck. Charley
Thank you very much Charley!
Well noted.
Regards
hi Charley,
First of all I think you run a great blog.
I was wondering if you know of any nursery which can export quality scions for grafting?
And would they withstand the journey do you think?
I am in Myanmar.
Thanks in advance.
Rajen
Rajen, The simple answer is that scions can be kept for a short time after they are cut off the tree. They need to be kept moist and cool but will survive. The challenge is to find someone who will ship. You will also have to verify the shipping restrictions of the country shipping and Myanmar’s conditions on the material coming into your country. Good luck. Charley
Charley, please give me your advice on the best avocado trees for a backyard planting in Murrieta,ca (French Valley Area). would like a couple of small trees that would produce fruit quickly as I’m 80 years old . thanks, Marion
Marion, I hate to disappoint you but I don’t believe you can grow avocados in French Valley area. Over time the winter temperatures will damage or kill the trees. I don’t believe you want to go down the road a few years of excitement of seeing the trees grow then lose them. Sorry. Charley
Hello. I am considering buying a home on Ross lake in the DeLus area of Fallbrook CA. The property happens to have about 2 acres of Avocados on it. I am not buying for the Avocados but instead for the house, property, and a good deal. However is it reasonable to assume I can take advantage of the Avocado grove by turning over the complete operation to a handler who will do most to all the work in exchange for a fair % of the harvest. In other words a turn-key operation. Other than providing well water what other costs would be involved in such a turn-key arrangement?
George, Your idea is good from your point of view. Let me list some of the considerations for such an arrangement. First any agreement of this type is usually for a longer period say five years. Anyone who might consider this would not only want a contract but would also expect a lien on the property. A contract with you does not bind a new owner should you decide to sell the property. It is very difficult to get competent reputable operators for parcels that small. If you would find someone I would expect that they would want all of the fruit. Additionally there are some that might take the deal and provide minimal cultural care so that when the agreement expired your grove may not be in too good shape. All said don’t get your hopes up for a good deal. Charley
I have the same situation – Do you have an interest in leasing Avocado trees?
We are about to purchase a home in Fallbrook, the Santa Margarita river area with 5 acres of producing Avocados trees. We are looking to either lease the trees for the cost of the water being used or we will likely cut and grind them and use the land for equestrian use.
The property is located on Gavilan Rd.
There are +/- 500 trees on 3 acres, they are consuming about $1,500/month in water for the months of May- August 2016.
Daniel, There are few people who are interested in leasing small parcels. Usually it is a smaller operator who will lease it for the fruit. You need to be careful if you find one. There are situations where they operate for a while and have a bad year and walk away from the water bill. That responsibility remains with the property owner. I know of no one I could suggest for you. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charlie. Thank you for all your help. We live in Boise Idaho picked up a seed from Hawaii and 9 months later we had a sprout. That was four to five years ago. The tree is indoors and including the pot is about 8 feet tall. It cannot go outside because it leaves get scorched after one to two days. All the leaves keep falling repeatedly, the leaves can get anywhere from 2 inches to 12 inches but they all keep falling off. Some of them look healthy when they go others have brown spots or a wrinkling on the leaf. How can I help my tree? Currently it has no bugs and is not over watered and in a decent-sized pot. There is new growth regularly . And we have about a dozen branches anywhere from 10 inches to 3 feet . If needed I could send pictures. Any suggestions would be awesome thank you.
Curtis, You were lucky bringing a seed from Hawaii into the country. I’m surprised the USDA sniffing dogs didn’t catch it. You must realize that while the avocado tree is evergreen it is constantly dropping old leaves and making new ones. That’s why it is always green. I don’t know what is a “decent-sized” pot. If it is not at least the size of a half wine barrel, it is not big enough. The size of the container may be impacting the leaf health. You said it is not over watered but you didn’t tell me how or how much you are watering. Maybe it is under watered. For now I would check these two elements change as appropriate if necessary and see what the trees reaction is. Charley
Charlie,
So happy to find this blog! I randomly started growing an avacado seed after making some guac I bought from the store and now I have a 1 1/2 ft tall plant. I am emotionally attached to this plant so I am worried about some brown spots on the leaves. I don’t want it to die, but I’m not sure what it is. May I send a couple pictures?
John, You pose a tough question. You didn’t say where you are nor whether the tree is inside or outside. I assume it is in a container. The general answer is that usually bad symptoms are traceable to bad irrigation. It could be either too much water or not enough. I would check that first.
George, I have done the research on this, and know who what and how. Contact me “jerryweintraubjr@gmail.com” …. I live in the area, moved in five years ago.. can save you a lot of time
Jerry, Thanks for helping George. George here is a source of more info for you. Good luck. Charley
Louh Agro-business Cameroon
We are a group of young African entrepreneurs seeking cooperation / joint venture / investors to develop our 20 ha of agricultural land in Foumbot, Cameroon (Africa).
The area has many advantages: Labor is cheaper compared to Asia, the soil is volcanic and fertile (elevation around 900m above sea-level), the climate is equatorial and the transport logistics for export are good (500 km of paved road up to harbour in Douala), shipping products to Europe takes less time compared to Asia.
Avocado grows very well in Cameroon but not on a commercial level, so our target is to boost production in order to meet an agro-industrial level. We can guaranty an output of our products on the American and European markets and good returns on investments.
If you are seeking a form of cooperation or investment please contact us:
Thank you
Louh Agro-business
Foumban
Cameroon
+4915121842295 (whatsapp)
Mohamed, I’ll post this there may other readers who might be interested in this opportunity. I have others previously who connected via this blog.
Hi Charley
How worried are you about the ambriosa beetle? Do you think it will cause havoc in the global Avocado industry? Knowing the risks do you think it wise to invest in growing avocados.
Omar, The ambrosia beetle is a threat to many species. If nothing were being done to eradicate or control the pest then over time it could impact the global avocado industry. There is extensive work being done in Florida and other places to conquer the pest. I have confidence that eventually the scientific effort will prevail. I would not make the ambrosia beetle be the decision point for investing in avocados. Charley
I love avocados. They have many health benefits
Thank you. More and more people are discovering these wonderful health benefits.
Hello, Charley:
I very much appreciate the effort you put in to helping people in their Avocado pursuits. I would like to know how many trees or how much acreage is necessary to generate a retirement income, say $30,000, per year? I appreciate there are many variables you couldn’t possibly know, I’m just hoping to get a ballpark figure to focus my property search. I have another question I would appreciate your contact info for. Thank You.
Dirk, A challenging question. You are right there are many variables. Let me see if I can at least give you some parameters for you to answer your question. The first consideration is to accept that in the US agriculture AG is a price taker not a price setter. So you are always at the mercy of the market. Secondly income has to be viewed in a longer time frame. You should look at least five years. The point being that because of circumstance beyond your control you could have a year when you are upside down. All that being said if you generate $10,000.00 per acre revenue and it cost $7,000.00 per acre to produce it. You would need 10 acres to meet your objective. Of course from all stated above it won’t be that simple. You have to play with the pounds per acre produced and the market price to create different scenarios to analyze. This should get you in the ball park to pursue a suitable property. Good luck. Charley
Thank you. I think I was just thinking at some acreage level the economies of scale would change and I wondered if it was typically a high margin crop. I was thinking about retiring (50s) and purchasing some land in Baja to put in a small grove – I was thinking 10 – 15 acres. I admit I don’t know much about this idea yet (I come from a family of Midwest grain farmers). My primary concern so far is a source of water, but is the soil in Baja generally suitable? I know they grow a lot of tomatoes and strawberries, but I don’t see much about Avocados. Yes, I do look at it long term and just hope to generate enough income to make it worth the investment and create some extra income.
Charley,
Are you personally familiar with any Hass growers in Colombia?
Also with the exception of exporting to the US market, do you have any opinions about growing avocados in Colombia?
Paul
Paul, I have no contacts with growers in Colombia. I know they are developing an avocado industry and they hope to eventually be able to ship to the US. I have not been to Colombia so I don’t know how the trees are doing or what their production numbers are. You could check the status of their application to ship to the US on the USDA web site. It should be under the APHIS section.
Star, I am having some technical difficulty. I will contact you. Charley
ORGANIC ECONOMIC ZONE IN FLORES ISLAND, NTT, INDONESIA
Im seeking cooperation / joint venture to develop our 230,000 ha (2.3 million m2) concession of virgin agricultural land in Flores Island, NTT province, Indonesia.
This province is the southern-most province of Indonesia and is very near to Australia.
There are 3 active volcanoes on the island and its western end is the Komodo island where there the Komodo dragon lives. It is also in the same province where East Timor (previously a part of Indonesia) was part of it.
The soil is SUPER fertile and the elevation ranges from sea-level to up to 1600 m which offers the ideal growing condition of cool weather yet with high daily sunlight. Of course, near the sea level, it is typical equatorial weather suitable for pineapple and dragon fruit, etc.
This area of mine, is never planted and thus would easily be certified organic from day one for anything the grows on it.
Avocado is one of current crops grown successfully in Flores, but not commercially / professionally managed now exploit its growing potential.
You are a respectable farmer in this crop and thus I seek any form of cooperation or licensing to see your technology / know how being used in this project. Whatever orders you could not service previously may now be economically supplied from your farm in Flores.
Please tell me how and in what ways would are you be able to join us in this project?
Please do not restrict to avocado as the vast area and potential is limited by your imagination. So, please spread this opportunity around to other farmings.
Thanks
Efindi Siman
Jakarta
Indonesia
+62816712855 (whatsapp and Line welcome)
skype: efindisiman
Efindi, I am not able to participate with you in this exciting venture. On the other hand there are readers of my blog who may want to join you in this endeavor. I have had similar inquiries made from other growing regions of the world and I posted the responses so the parties could get together. I hope you will get the same response. Thanks, Charley
Star, I will send you contact information separately. Charley
Hi Charlie,
Hope you had a great holiday. We own a small avocado farm in Guatemala. We grow the best Hass Avocado. Our trees are approximately 4 years old. I’ve been told that at harvest, we should pick all avocados large, medium and small at one time. My question is, is this true? Or is it possibly beneficial to only pick the large now, leave the medium and small so they continue to mature until they reach the large size? My thought would be to only pick the large size only and have more of a crop year round vs. having to wait for one major harvest per year. This is a new venture for us and your blog has been a great source of information. Looking forward to your advice. Thank you!
Jorge, The harvesting strategy differs from year to year. Size picking is a viable strategy. It is often driven by fruit condition and fruit load. You just have to get some of the fruit off the tree. In considering the decision there has to be enough large fruit to make the labor efficient. It is not economical to have the crew spend most of their time just looking for big fruit. In the same way you have to leave enough small fruit to size to make the clean up pick economical. Finally you need to understand that if you leave the fruit on the tree too long you negatively impact next year’s crop.
Am planning to put in an avocado grove, about 48 to 100 acres. Do you have a book or any specific directions besides your blogs? Am in Okeechobee County Florida, close to Lake Okeechobee.
J.O. I would suggest that you go to the University of California web site at UCAVO.UCR.EDU. On that site there is cultural information for avocados. It covers the subject from start to harvest. I would also believe that Florida University has a similar site. Good luck. Charley
I work at a law firm. We represent an avocado orchard management company. Someone is making a claim against them for negligence in managing their orchard, causing damage. Do you do expert witness work, or if not, can you recommend someone who does? Thanks!
Pete, Yes I do expert witness work. I am easily qualified. I have an excellent track record. The side that retains me wins. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks, Charley
As i know, avocados are growed in the box which sized 24 inch, can you tell me the weight and the width of this box? Because i have never growed avocados before avocados so I also need all of document about technical in growing avocados?
Nguyen, I don’t know where you received information that avocados are grown in a 24 inch box. The biggest container used is 15 gallon. These are used by some nurseries for special applications. All the trees are ultimately planted in the ground. I would suggest you go to the University of California web site ucavo.ucr.edu. You can go through the web site to get a general knowledge of growing avocados.
No fruit!
I bought a 15 gallon self pollinating Pinkerton 3 years ago (when it was about 4 years old). It’s about 7 years old now and gone through 3 blooming seasons and never produced fruit. It flowers, but no avocados ever arrive. The same sized and aged Hass planted in the same yard products 100’s of fruits, and at least 80 stayed on the tree to maturity.
Do you have a suggestion as to what the problem with the Pinkerton is?
Kelly, You didn’t say where you are located. The trees are planted in your yard but you didn’t say how they were irrigated. Even though they are in the same yard the soil could be quite different because of the grading to build the house pad. You didn’t say whether the flowers never get pollinated or you get some very small fruit and then later it drops off. In any event the probable cause is stress. Most likely the stress is from irrigation practices. If the trees are being irrigated from the landscape irrigation one may be getting more water because it is closer to a sprinkler or in a low spot. General rule is a mature avocado tree needs about 450 gal of water per week delivered in one application. So I suggest you check your irrigation system and practices. Good luck. Charley
Dear Charly
I have 5 acres along the dry part of the arroyo Tesquesquite in Riverside.
It is in the 100 year flood plain of riverside. The stream is dry most of the time mainly serves as Hsin for run off from street. I plan to use the land for organic farming and would love to do Haas avocados. I know the micro climates of the Temecula de Luz area and Fallbrook tend to be best areas.
Is riverside too cold for this venture. There is also possibility to purchase more land connecting to my lot possibly 5 more acres. Or should I really be looking in Temecula ?
Would love to discuss with you?
Guy, Generally speaking that low area will subject to cold some time. You might go a few years with no cold impact. Then comes a year when the cold devastates. Also that flood plain will some day flood. That’s tough on a perennial crop. Before making the investment in the permanent crop in that area I would suggest looking for land in an area where the weather risk is not so high. To give you some idea of the possible risks you can look at what is growing in the area.
Hi Charley,
Am interested in buying a grove in North County. Can you please provide your contact info as I would like to use your service for the purchase. Thank you.
Lee, I will send you the info separately.
I live on the oregon coast, I have in the past 6 years learnd that im realy good at starting avacado plants.last year I sold one for $200, it was about 5 yrs old.i learnd how to make them bush out.as winter aproches here im putting up a green house and want to start growing a larger quantity of starts.is there a market out there for selling starts.my question is is this possable, considering where I live?
Jenifer, Congratulations on your efforts. Unfortunately I know of no market for starts. The nurseries start their own seedlings. Now most of them are propagating the trees with clonal root stock. Producing starts in Oregon would require shipping to an area where the trees would be sold. I don’t believe the added shipping cost makes it viable. Charley
Charley,
I live in SW Florida and am attempting to start-up a small nursery operation, the thrust of which is to produce Avocado trees from seed through the grafting stage. I know how to start the tree from seed and have done so successfully. However, if I am to do this in any volume, the laborious methods that I have used in the past are too time consuming.
My question is do you know of a source, either on-line or in print, that illustrates how commercial nurseries germinate their product.
Thanks for your help.
Richard, You didn’t say what you were doing was too time consuming. I assume you were doing what had to done. Unfortunately I know of no short cuts. The commercial nurseries just use more labor. The only help is analyzing the steps so that they are efficient, for example material preparation, table height, etc. Hope this helps. Good luck.
Hello charley im gil and im in clermont fla zone 8 i have 5 acres with iritation can you tell me what type of aguacado i can grow here if you know and if the cost is justify by the future harvest we are beekepers n would like to grow them.
Gilberto, I am not familiar with the weather conditions in Florida zone 8. You would need to check on the risk for possible freeze. Other than that the Florida weather should be fine. Much of the existing Florida commercial avocado production is of the West Indian varieties. If the soil is well drained you could consider growing the Hass variety. You would have to do the analysis of the local cost of production compared to the market value. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
We are buying this 9 acre avocado grove property in Valley Center. The water irrigation has been turned off for 1 1/2 years. Is it worth reviving the trees? Our other option is clearing off all the trees and converting the area into a vineyard. Would you be available for personal consulting?
Lisa, With the water off for that long it becomes marginal whether trying to bring the trees back makes economic sense. If you are going to plant a vineyard you want to get advice on what varietal is suitable for the location. Also you want to investigate what the market expectation is for the grapes. One other alternative is to clear the trees and replant to avocado at high density. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks, Ccharley
Hi Charley, What a great blog! My fiance and I are looking to move from the East Coast, Cape Cod, to Fallbrook/ Valley Center area, for a career change into avocado farming. We are looking at 5 acre groves in the area of which to build a house on, as opposed to buying a house with land and then planting our own grove. We have been doing our research however, we have many questions still. We want to know some key elements to look for as our Realtor shows us the groves sites we have picked. We are heading to Fallbrook Sept. 14th-18th to look at sites and would love to get in contact with you before hand in hope that you have some pointers, which I’m certain if anyone, you must. Thank You! Sarah
Sarah, I would be happy to help you with your purchasing decision on a consulting basis. I would be available only on the 14th to the 16th. I will send you my contact information separately. Thanks. Charley
Hello Charley,
I would like to see if we could use your service to inspect an avocado grove in Fallbrook. The grove is 10acres. Please let me know if you could come out and if so how soon thanks.
Nola
Nola, Sorry for the delay in responding. Obviously I have more to do than there are hours in the day. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks. Charley
Hey Charley,
Been reading your stuff for some time now. Really appreciate you sharing your expertise. Feel like I know you. Anyway, I have maybe 40 fruit related trees now, 5 of them Avo’s. I am about to plant a grove on my half acre in Oceanside. How can I contact you? I would like to have you consult and possibly more. Thanks so much man!
All the best.
Greg
Greg, I will send you my contact information separately. I can visit your property to evaluate it for planting a grove. I do that on a consulting basis. Thanks. Charley
I’m looking at a property with about 20 acres of avocados and a home. I’ve run a number of businesses successfully, but I’ve never run a commercial growing operation. I’m looking for a professional to help me make a good choice and then get off on the right foot. Can you help me with that?
Peter, Yes I can help you in selecting a property and managing the operation for you. I will send you contact information separately. Thanks. Charley
Hi Charley from Australia,
I have some Hass Avocados here I am trying to grow for profit. The crop this year is not overly heavy but the Avocados still seem to be staying fairly small. I follow all the recommendations re fertilizers etc and have had soil tests done which have determined that most are within the acceptable ranges… My question to you is, Is there any fertilizer or product I can use to boost the size of the Avocado fruits.
Cheers
Simone
Simon, There is no magic available to make the fruit size. Good fruit size comes from correct farming. You have to give them adequate water and have them on a regular nutrient program. You didn’t say where you are in Australia. There is an association in the country you could contact them to get some hands on advice. Good luck. Ccharley
Hi. We have a giant avocado tree in our backyard in Oakland, CA (at least three stories tall). We’ve been living here for 3 years and every year it’s produced a lot of fruit. Last year was a bumper crop. It’s also looked very healthy and green, but this year it has a lot of dead branches all over it – the first time I’m seeing that. I’m assuming it’s because of the drought. But how am I supposed to water it? Aren’t the roots really deep? Does it need to be fertilized? Should I trim the dead branches? It still has a lot of healthy growth all over it, but I’m concerned and I want to do something before it’s too late. Any ideas? Thanks.
Sharif, It sounds like you have an irrigation problem. You didn’t say if you were irrigating the tree at all. The avocado tree has it operating roots in the top 18 inches of soil. It has deeper tap roots but those aren’t making the tree function. You have to wet the entire area under the tree with sprinklers and you have to apply enough water to get the soil wet 18 to 20 inches deep. Yes the tree needs fertilizer. You can trim the branch terminals that have died. It sounds like it needs some tender care.
I live in santa rosa ca about an hour drive destination I would like to purchase avocado leaves please call me at 707 889_5594
Jaime, I know of no one selling avocado leafs. You did not say how many you need. If it is just a few, I would look for the nearest avocado and ask the grower if you could have some. If you are looking for a lot, I have no suggestion.
Sorry. Charley
Hello Charley, how are you? I can’t seem to find the answer to this, I’ve been told that growing Avocados at around 7000 ft is optimal, better production, less problems, etc. etc. Our water is a gravity feed system and the climate is perfect. I’m just curious if there is much of difference between planting at 5000 ft or 7000 ft. 5000ft on the ranch is much more cost effective. Thank you for your time and your input is much appreciated Charley.
Jon
Jon, You didn’t say where the ranch is. I assume the weather conditions will be the same at both elevations. That being said I would plant the 5000 foot elevation first.
Hello Sir,
Could you please advise me if I buy a 1 ac. land in hemet,ca , can I plant avocados, Im planning to plant avocado in 1 acre how many trees I can plant and what variety of avocado survive in hemet, ca which is they said zone 9, please Help, asap , Im ready to make an offer to the propertyhank you in advance and waiting for your advise…….Respectfully yours , Manolito
Manolito, The Hemet area generally gets too hot in the summer and some areas could possibly be too cold in the winter. You would need to look closely at what is growing on adjacent properties before you plant avocados. You could plant about 300 trees per acre with high density spacing.
I’ve tried three times in the 92544 area of Hemet, which is zone 8.5. Avocados won’t grow here, despite the type per the nursery that “is suited to the area,” proper nutrients, adequate deep soaks, etc. it seems to me it’s just too hot and dry here. If anyone knows otherwise, please contact me so I can find out what I’m doing wrong. (Thanks for this blog!)
Elaine, First question is did you get the advice from a local nursery on the type that is suited to the area. The reason is that the Hemet area has a very diversified climate. At the lower elevations you can get both extreme heat and cold temperatures. At higher elevations you may have some moderation in the heat but still have the cold problem. You can probably deal with the heat with irrigation practices. For example you mentioned the deep soaks, but with temperatures over 100 the tree needs water more frequently. You can give it another try by changing your practices. If that doesn’t work it may be you just can’t grow the avocado at your specific location. Sorry. Charley
Hi Charley,
Me and my friend would like to purchase an avocado grove in Fallbrook. We found a place that we like. We would love to get your opinion on it. Mainly we would like to know what the risk factors are that we should be aware of and how to maximize the growth. Please let me know how we can reach you.
Thanks a lot for providing so many useful tips!
Kasem, I will send you contact information separately. Talking about risk factors is better done when we can talk about a specific property.
Charlie, we live in zone 5 (WI), so we can’t have an avocado tree in the ground. But we really want one! Is there a dwarf variety (that tastes enough like the Hass we are used to eating) that we could winter indoors, and put outside 9 month of the year? Something we can keep trimmed to 6-7′ tall, that will give as a good crop of fruit? If so, how big a pot do we need? (Will an “air pruning” pot allow us to use a smaller pot?) And where should we buy it from — is bare root ok, or do we need it potted?
Thanks much. Scott
Scott, I really don’t know if moving a tree in and out will work. Here are some thoughts. First you need a container at least that would the size of a half wine barrel. I would recommend you put the barrel on a dolly to facilitate moving it. Yes you can maintain the tree height by pruning. In this situation I don’t know when the tree would flower. The flowers have to be pollinated and that usually occurs when it would still be too cold there. Additionally I don’t know if the fruit would grow inside during the winter. The biggest challenge will be finding a tree. They can not be bare root because they grow year round. I don’t know of any nursery that would ship one tree. You might be better off finding a specialty fruit shipper and have California fruit sent to you.
Im planing to retire and planning to buy at least 2 acres property in perris, ca .Which the price is affordable, Im planning to plant avocado (hass ,cold hardy)Please advise if I could plant it there zip code is 92570. I appreciate it a lot
Lito, As you have concluded it can get cold in Perris. Unfortunately there is no simple answer if you can grow avocados in Perris. Some area may be acceptable others will not. you can look to see what kind of plants are growing in the area. Also talk to the neighbors of the property you are considering. Good luck.
Charley, My wife and I have been dreaming about buying an Avocado grove in the De Luz area for a few years now and we think now may be a good time to jump in. We are looking to build a modest home on an existing high producing grove of at least 5 acres. We are going to start looking at groves now while we prepare our current home in Orange County for sale. We would like to have someone to consult with in our efforts to find the perfect place for us. We would appreciate any help you could give us in this search.
Thank you, Patrick
Patrick, Given the world wide demand for avocados it is a good time to consider entering into avocado production. You would need to talk to local realtors here in Fallbrook to help with a search for a property. I might suggest Sunshine Properties, 760 728 8855. They do a lot of orchard and land sales and would be able to help you. Good luck.
Charley
hi! I have a young dwarf avocado tree in a container (maybe a year old). It seems to be going well unlike my other attempts in the past. I see new leaves growing every day which is great. However, the trunk itself looks like it’s… for lack of better word… shedding/molting. I don’t know if it was done by a bug, or mold, or if the trunk is just getting rid of it’s “baby” trunk…. but I don’t want it die and I also don’t know if it’s a natural part of the tree growing or not. I can send you pictures if you want. Help? Advice?
Kim, You didn’t say how big the container is. What you are observing is not a natural part of the tree growing. You also didn’t tell me where you are and whether the tree is inside or out side. All that being said it sounds like you are over watering the plant. Remember plants in general and avocados specifically need to be water then allowed to dry out. I would suggest you stop giving the tree any water until you see some sign of wilt on the leafs. then give it water. However long it take to show some wilt will give you a hint on how often you should water. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley, Thank You for your blog. After all that we have read we think we would like to consult with you on a property we are thinking of buying. It is a 15 acre avocado grove that has 680 trees yielding about 63k per year. The water bill is costing about 40,000. On the property their is a well and reservoir that is quite large however is not being utilized for the grove only the house. We know that the grove is not producing its potential and we have the skill to make that happen. We are wondering how we can utilize the well and reservoir on the property to decrease the water bill, in an effort to produce an income for the grove. The question is why haven’t they done this already? their are a possible few reasons why but getting them answered is almost impossible. Is their a Sodium (NA) consideration with growing avo. ? The well has over 120 psi, With the cost of water why wouldn’t everyone have a well? what is your thought on this.
Christina, I can only offer some opinions on your questions. If there are only 680 trees on 15 acres that tells me that the property is not fully planted, or many trees have been removed, or the grove has been thinned several times. On standard plant spacing the 680 trees are about six acres. You say they yield 63k per year. I have taken that to be pounds, which is good production for 6 acres. If the water bill is for 6 producing acres the trees are getting plenty of water. I can only conjecture the reason for not using the well. Yes sodium is critical for avocados. At 500 ppm the drop in production is almost a straight vertical line. So therefore my conclusion is the well water is too salty. The well having over 120 psi is a function of the pump not the capacity of the well. Everyone doesn’t have a well because they are expensive and risky. Good luck on your acquisition. Charley
I am starting to take care/manage my family owned avocado orchard. We have 20 acres only about half is planted. My main problem every time I irrigate is that the sprinkler heads get clogged up. I run around unclogging all day some times the same one 10+ in a day. We use a well to irrigate and the mainline looks to be 3 inches in diameter. I was wondering if you could recommend a good well filter and a good liquid injector for fertilizer and pest management. Also this is back-flow on there now which I would like to replace with a better one. People around here have said that the one that is on there is no good. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank You
-Derrick
Derrick, Your situation is tough to answer. Where you are, how deep is the well, how much does it pump, and how old is the well would influence the answer. Let me make some general comment that should help you work on a solution. You can go to the irrigation stores and see what filters are available to help you decide on the brand and screen size. But your description of how much you are clearing sprinklers tells me two things. First if the filter stops the material going into the system you will have to be available to clean the filter frequently or you could damage the system. Additionally it sound like the hole is caving or the casing has failed. I would suggest that you call a well company to have the well inspected. They can do pretty much from observation and some of them have cameras they can lower into the well to inspect and recommend a solution. I don’t know what kind of back flow/check valve you are using. If there is no house or if there is no way the well water can get to the house, a mechanical check should be sufficient. If the existing device is old it may not be moving properly. Only way I know of to check is to take it out of the line and look at it. Good luck, Charley
Hi Charley, I have a small grove of 25 trees on a 1.5 acre property my wife an I bought in Escondido, CA. We have no experience with Avocadoes prior to the purchase. We’ve been on the property now for almost 3 years. We have 17 mature hass trees, 2 mature Fuerte trees, 3 young hass trees, 2 young dwarf holiday trees and a Zutano (we planted the young trees and the 15 gallon Zutano since moving in).
The previous owner had changed out the sprinkler heads (he was known to tinker). The heads now are a Matched Precipitation Rate type head. Do you have any recommendations on what is the preferred sprinkler type, especially given the drought situation? We’d like to water with the most efficiency possible.
Robert, The preferred irrigation now is with low pressure/low volume sprinklers. The challenge you have is that the mature trees have different water requirements than the new trees. If you don’t have them valved separately the only choice you have is to use heads with different flow rates. Give it a try. Charley
Charlie,
I was wondering if I could get you contact info. I am looking to learn the process of producing avocado oil and would love to learn first hand. Hoping you might have some contacts in that field of avocados.
Kevin
Kevin, Sorry I can’t help you on this. From visiting New Zealand I know quality oil only comes from quality fruit. Maintaining the proper temperature during processing is critical. I know of no large scale processors in California. I do know there is at least one small processor, but I do not know their name or location. Sorry, Charley
Hi Charley! Great blog, thank you for the insights.
I am growing Hass variety in Chile and wanted to do some industry comparisons in terms of the costs and the yields associated with my production. Do you know any good sources of information for industry statistics, with the usage of inputs? Or perhaps you personally have some insight into what’s the industry best practice for total cost of inputs (such as water, energy, pesticides, etc) per acre, the % breakdown for each item separately and the yield per acre data? It would be a massive help, thanks!
John.
John, I would recommend going to the University web site, ucavo.ucr.edu. There is a lot of information there on producing avocado. I can’t remember when they last updated the cost of production. At least it will give you a point of reference. Charley
Thank you Charley.
I have also been increasingly interested in the use of sensors to help me be precise about irrigation and potentially extract other benefits (e.g disease prediction, frost, pests probabilities, etc).
What do you think on the subject? Have you seen any great products that can be cost effective and simple to use?
I have found a few, if you have any comment about those or can suggest something, I’d be very grateful. The few I found are:
http://pycno.co.uk/
http://www.wiseconn.com/
https://www.tuletechnologies.com
http://en.dacom.nl/products/sensetion-2/
http://www.ranchsystems.com/wp/
Thank you for your advice!
John, I recently attended a seminar on the subject of irrigation management using sensors. The research project was a private/government project. the University of Maryland and California were cooperating with the support of private industry. The product of their efforts will be available from dacom listed above. Unfortunately I loan my information to some one who has not returned it. But what they have developed fills all the criteria you sited above. I don’t know when it will be commercially available but I believe with the website you could get the components and software and put it together. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley,
I was wondering if you could give some insight on a typical management agreement (if one exists). Does the company work/bill on an hourly, monthly, yearly basis? Can it be based on a percentage of profit (now there’s some incentive)? Is it mainly advice or does the company supply the labor as well? Ballpark costs for different types of management? There seems to be a lot of inexperienced people entering the avocado business that require these services so this type of information seems widely relevant to your readers.
Thanks
Dale
Dale, I don’t know if there is a typical management agreement. I can tell you the basics of my agreement I charge a monthly per acre fee. I have a minimum charge. The monthly fee provides irrigation labor and management. Management includes determining irrigation requirements, evaluating cultural tasks (weed control, pruning, etc.), and harvesting. Probably the most important is the harvesting decisions. I watch the market daily to maximize grower returns. Any work done in the grove is done on an hourly basis. Thanks for asking the question. Charley
Hi Charley. I live in Austin, TX. I was given two avocado trees that sprouted from compost piles, then moved to pots. One is around 2.5 years old, one is around one year old. The large one sprouted three saplings from one seed. It has grown to over 8 ft tall but is very spindly. It leans quite a bit even while staked with bamboo posts. Is this normal? How can I help strengthen the tree? Without help, I doubt it would even hold itself up as the top is branching heavily and very leafy.
In addition, my smaller tree’s leaves have yellowed recently and it stopped growing. I read this may be from lack of nitrogen, so for a quick fix I added urine heavily diluted with water just three days ago. Now I worry that I should have done something else. Did I hurt my tree? I should add – this tree is still potted in only compost that I assume lacked nitrogen. The bigger tree started in pure compost, last year I repotted it, adding soil and fertilizer. One last question- I apologize. Because three trees sprouted from one seed and I have a second separate tree, will they fertilize each other? I am so sorry for so many questions – I am very new to growing Avocados and these trees are incredibly special to me. Thanks so much for your time.
Breda, Your trees sound to be very vigorous. First you need to know that your trees will probably not produce fruit. If they do it will probably be fruit from the parent seed. It may or may not be edible. It won’t hurt you it just won’t taste good. You never said how big the pots are. Remember it is a tree and needs room to grow. They need to have soil. They won’t be happy in compost only. You have to bite the bullet on the tree with multiple trunks and select one to keep and cut the others out. On the one you keep cut a few inches off the top. This will cause the tree to grow the lateral branches and stop going up. They can’t fertilize each other. If they get flower bees will pollinate the flowers. Both trees will need fertilizer. Since I don’t know how big the pots are you need to apply a little at a time so you don’t burn them. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charlie,
My husband and I have fallen in love with a beautiful house for sale. The only big problem is ut is attached to an avocado grove. It is in northern San Diego area. Okay the problem is really with us, we don’t know anything about growing. We are in fear of the water bills, we are told the monthly bill is between $2000 -3500. That is for 33 acres. The trees are around 35 years old. The yield last year was 58000 #’s they have yield of 100000+ pounds of varying sizes. I do not know that kind of avocado is grown. With all that said, I want to know if there is a company that would come in, pay for water and care of grove in exchange for the harvest.I’m not sure if that is enough information to give me an answer, but I would appreciate your opinion. Thanks
Kim, If the 33 acres are all planted the water bill is way below what is required. A commercial avocado orchard needs to produce 10,000 pounds per acre to pay the bills and make a profit. I doubt any body would want to take the grove on a lease. From your description it would be a money pit. If the location is good the value is in replanting it. I hope this helps. Let me know if I can help. Charley
Hi Charley,
I like to talk to you about buying a lot and converted to avocadro or buy existing one. can you send me your contact inf? thanks
Aung tun, Contact information is on the way. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley,
I have a small Navel grove (48 trees) in Redlands, CA. I also have a 5 avocado trees in there. I am considering retiring the half of the Navels and putting in avocados mixed in the grove, with the possibility retiring the navels all together. Do you know of any problems going from oranges to avocados? Also what is the spacing of high density planting? Thanks!
Thad, You would need to be watchful for phytophora citricula. A lab can tell you if it is there with an analysis of a root/soil sample. Presence of the disease would not eliminate planting of the avocado. High density planting could be 15×15, 12×12, or 10×10. Also I suggest you do not plant the avocado in between the citrus. If you are going to avocado take the citrus out. Charley
I live on the coast of North Carolina,I bought a Wurtz tree Will arrive in May, purchased from seed catalogue. Where can I order different severity ? Dwarf I can pot bring in when weather turns cold. Great site good info. Thank you very much Frank
Frank. I am not familiar with the Wurtz variety. I suspect it may be a West Indian variety like those grown in Florida. I assume you are looking for another variety. I would suggest you go online and look for a supplier in
Florida. I don’t know of anyone in California shipping small tree orders. Thanks, Charley
We are looking at buying a 19 acre ranch with a grove of 1100 mature trees. We would be interested in someone managing it for us.
Tracy, I would be interested in working with you on managing your ne grove. I will send you my contact information. Thanks, Charley
I am considering a 9 acre residence in Fallbrook with 500+ trees in need of “rehab”. If you are available to consult or can recommend another in the area I’d be grateful.
Rob, I will send you my contact information. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley-
We are considering purchasing a 5 acre parcel with a functioning avocado grove. We’re looking for a professional to assess the grove condition and take a look at the production history to see if it’s a worthy investment. We’re hoping you could help.
Rebecca, Yes I can help You with an evaluation. I will send you contact info separately.
Hi Charley,
My wife and I are considering purchasing a grove as well. The one in question looks good in some areas and not so good in others. The parcel in question is approx 6 acres. It is already professionally managed, but I’m wondering if we shouldn’t get a quote or 3 from other companies to be sure. I’d rather pay more and have a great orchard. Your input is greatly appreciated.
Lance, I guess the first step would be to get a third party inspection of the orchard just to have another view. If you purchase the property then you will need to consider if you want to keep the same manager or switch. I just noticed you said it was “professionally” managed. Who defined “professionally”? I will send you my contact information if you need more help. Thanks, Charley
I am considering buying a 10acre parcel of avocado trees in murietta. How do I assess the value based on the recent damage of the snow storm last winter? I would appreciate your input and assessment?
How would I proceed to talk to you. Semper fi
Thanks Nina
Nina, I will send you contact information separately.
I live in chico ca(north of Sacramento), so I know getting production will likely not happen. I have 3 avocado trees of assorted varieties that have been in the ground for 4years. Each year they look good, and each year they have an amazing amount of buds, but one of the tree seem to have an issue. Right before the bees arrive to pollinate, 90% of the leaves turn yellow and drop. Simultaneously new leaves sprout. Is this okay? If not what is causing it, and what should I do?
I live in chico ca(north of Sacramento), so I know getting production will likely not happen. I have 3 avocado trees of assorted varieties that have been in the ground for 4years. Each year they look good, and each year they have an amazing amount of buds, but one of the tree seem to have an issue. Right before the bees arrive to pollinate, 90% of the leaves turn yellow and drop. Simultaneously new leaves sprout. Is this okay? If not what is causing it, and what should I do?
Andreas, You didn’t say what the varieties are. You also didn’t say how they are being watered and how much. So I have to guess on a reason. A couple of elements to remember. When the trees load up with flower they can’t support every thing so the trees gives up what is least important. In this case old leaves are the least important. The tree will start producing new leaves to protect the new fruit. The other possibility is they are not getting enough water. In this case the trees are in a minor stress which will accentuate the leaf drop. Hope this helps. Charley
I moved to Ramona recently, got 25 acres of mostly Granite boulders, but some areas that are flat where I can dig a hole without hitting rock. I want to plant a few Avocado trees for my own use. My neighbor has some that just started producing this 3rd year. His are in shallow Basins(not in mounds),as planted by the nursery guy he bought them from, so I think they should grow on my property, although we had a freeze, in January that killed or damaged some plants around my house and we had some 115 degree days too. I have not found a Nursery that has avocados in Ramona, other than Kmart, which had just a few bad looking trees in stock at the time. I am getting old and am thinking it might be too late to plant any trees and expect to be around to reap the rewards. My questions are 1)can I start off with larger trees, 2)Where is a close-by place to buy them at good prices, and 3) what kind of dirt should I put in the holes, that would be better than the decomposed granite I have. Thanks for your help, Steve
Steve, Not much you can do about the cold. There are occasions when you get those kinds of temperatures in Ramona. When the heat comes keep plenty of water on the trees. Water them deep. You can start with larger trees but you really won’t gain that much over a healthy smaller tree. Once it is planted it will take off. If you have been reading my web you know I advocate putting the trees on mounds instead of in basins. For just two trees I would suggest one of the larger retail nurseries. They would tend to have fresher trees because they are doing more volume. You can use any good bagged organic material to mix with the native soil. Good luck on your project. Charley
Charlie,
Im putting in a 24″ box Haas avocado tree in my front yard. Is it best to plant 2 trees for cross pollination? If so, I was thinking another type (Stewart) so they bear fruit at different times. I’m a novice, any tips would be great. Im in Southern Cal.
Thank you.
Rob, I am really surprised that you found a 24″ box Haas avocado tree. I don’t believe I ever saw one. A couple comments are appropriate. Be careful of an avocado tree in that big a container. It may be seriously root bound. It will be heavy and more difficult to plant. I prefer small trees. You could plant a standard orchard tree and be in about the same position in a few years for far less money. And you will probably have a healthier tree. Also remember that tree whatever size will need its own irrigation. You can’t irrigate it with the lawn. You don’t need a pollinator. If you want another variety that is a different decision. Also I don’t recognize the Stewart variety. My comments on tree size are the same for the other variety should you choose. Good luck on your project. Thanks, Charley
Thank you for the insight Charlie!
Hello Charley,
I’m a CPA close to retirement and looking to invest in a farm. Since I live in Orange County, Avocados farms are close by and seem like an attractive option. I’ve been doing a lot of reading and it seems like with the drought and water costs, it’s a big gamble. I have looked at a few farms and noticed that most don’t use well water due to salt and some have added reverse osmosis systems. But I guess the trade off is higher energy costs. Does anyone use solar to run the pumps? Or is it cheaper to use district water? How about age of trees, is 25 years to old? What are the better areas, Fallbrook, Valley Center, Pala area, is where I have looked so far. Best management companies? can you recommend a farm appraisal expert?
I have a ton of questions since I’m new to this.
Bruce, You are discovering the typical questions once you open the box to avocado production. I will try some brief answers to some of your questions. The water costs are the big issue for production. The plant’s native environment is rain forest and we are growing them in the dessert. This requires aggressive farming practices to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. Wells that have salt are generally not deep enough so they are delivering perculated irrigation water. There has been technical advances in solar energy to power well pumps with a reasonable foot print for the panals. The age of the trees is less of an issue than how they were cared for. A similar comment for the growing areas. The condition of the orchard would be more important than the growing area. The only note would be that Valley Center will generally have more expensive water. My company manages groves. If you are looking at farm evaluation instead of appraisal I can do that. I don’t know any licensed rural appraisers. I will send you my contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Charley,
I am planning to buy a 5 acre land in De Luz. The land is currently clear and have no grove. What will it cost to start an Avocado Grove on the 5 acre lot? How long will it take before I can expect to start harvesting? With water cost, any other alternative to Avocado grove in the area?
Thank you
Jack, Congratulations on considering the avocado industry for an investment. At this point in time for the venture I use a budget number of $25,000.00 per acre for development. That is for a high density planting. It includes clearing, irrigation installation, planting (hole, tree, stake, wrap, and tying). Four to Five years is normally accepted for commercial production. That means enough fruit to bring in harvesting crew and send fruit to the packing house. The trees will produce fruit before that, but not enough for the packing house. In my opinion there is not a better choice than avocado for our area. Yes we have high water cost. The other side of the coin is high demand for the product both in the US and world wide. You have to farm good enough to produce enough fruit to pay for the water and make a profit. That is one of the drivers to go to high density planting. Good luck on your endeavor. Charley
Charley,
Thank you for the valuable information. I have been researching online and found GEM and Carmen Hass to be two other variety to consider. Since, I will be starting on a clear land, any particular variety that makes more sense? As to the water issue, is water quality from drilling well a solution? Thanks again.
Charley – We recently purchased 20 avocado acres in De Luz. Looking for a management company and advice. Please let me know if you are able to help or can point me in the right direction. Best, George
George, Congratulations on your purchase. It is not clear whether the land you purchased is planted to avocados or is suitable and you intend to plant. Either way I can help you. I’ll send the direct contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley, I am buying a small avocado farm in Spain with a hundred odd mature Hass trees – is there any books/publications/manuals you are aware of that takes you through the annual care and maintenance as well as harvest? cheers
Lewey, I recommend that you go on line to the University of California web site below. They have a short pamphlet that will get you in the ball park. Just remember it is written for growing avocados in California. Good luck. The address is ucan.org/sites/gardenweb/files 29079.pdf.
Hello Charlie, I have started a Haas avocado tree from seed, it is about 7-8 inches tall with decent size white roots. I was told by someone it is ready to be planted. I am in the process of moving, which means I am not going to be putting it in the ground anytime soon. We are moving to Sonoma county temporarily so it will be a house plant for at least two to three years. What potting soil do you recommend? What size pot?
Thank you for your input and advise.
Steph, Potting mix available in most garden shops will work. If it seems to light you can add a little soil. The size of the pot will determine how large the tree will grow in the container. I assume you know that the seed will not grow a varietal avocado. You will grow a seedling. It will have to be grafted to get Hass. you will have an attractive tree but you may or may not get fruit. The fruit will be from the original parent. It may or may not be edible. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley,
How do I find an expert to look at my avocado tree? Do you come to the Beach area in South Los Angeles?
I have a wonderful old Fuerte avocado that has been producing wonderful avocados. The tree normally has a full canopy but for the last year the leaves are brown starting at the tips and dropping. Is it too much water? Not enough? A disease? To me they all look the same.
Thank you,
Gale
Gale, You didn’t say how long you have been at the house. I can not come to South Los Angeles to look at the tree. The symptoms you described we call tip burn. It is caused by the tree taking up the salts in the irrigation water. You have to irrigate the tree long enough to flush the salts below the root zone. You may have changed your irrigation methods this past year. Additionally we received more imported water from the Colorado River which has more salt in it. Hopefully more rain is coming and that will flush the salt below the root zone. Good luck. Charley
Hi Charley, I am an operation manager at GreenPath Food, a social entrepreneurship start-up based in the USA and Ethiopia aiming to help smallholder farmers grow fruits and vegetable for commercial use using sustainable farming techniques. We are currently in the pilot stage setting up operations and establishing an out-grower relationship with farmers a small town called Butajira in Ethiopia. Our initial focus is in the production and marketing of avocado fruits. Our partner farmers currently have varieties like Hass, Fuerte, Pinkerton, Nabal and Bacon. I am really keen on connecting with you for inquiries on avocado production and quality. Thank you so much in advance!
Ezra, As you can see from reading some of the post here, I respond to many production questions. It is important to provide enough information so my response can be appropriate. I look forward to your questions. Charley
Hi Charley,
I used to own over 100 acres farm in Racine, WI that was leased to a local farm company to grow corn. I sold the farm about 2 years ago when I moved to Los Angeles. I’m looking to buy an avocado grove in your area of San Diego county. I plan to do the same thing, lease the land to an Avocado Grower. Is this a viable business for Avocado farm? I’m a city girl but just want to diversify my investment by adding a farm that is already producing crops. What sort of Return on investment I’m looking to realize investing in an avocado producing farm? How much can I lease the land per acre. Right now, I’m still conducting my research online and signed up at Loopnet to check out what is out there for sale. I will definitely be seeking your advise and engage your service when I’m ready to buy. You seem to be an expert in avocado farming. Thanks in advance.
Elsa, Interesting thoughts. A couple of points so the information makes sense. First I know of no information to give you an example of a “typical” avocado lease contract There is none each one is its own deal. In the Midwest you can check the market for rents. Leases for tree crops are typically long term. Five years would be a minimum. I have never thought of ROI for leasing. In my opinion most owners lease to avoid or reduce cash flow. There are many properties where the owner is not the operator. Instead the owner hires a manager but is still paying the bills and taking the revenue. I trust this will give you the general parameters. If you have more questions let me know. Good luck on your project. Charley
please send me your contact information.i am in the process of buying a property that has 150 avacado trees.i will need your help in this matter. thank you.
Harish, I’m sending you contact info separately.
Hi Charly,
We bought a house in Pauma valley with one very large tree. We r looking for someone to help us decide what it needs. Can u help?
It’s dropping leaves…dropping fruit…and bigger than we need.
Not sure of pruning or watering options etc. Thanks
Carrie, I assume it is an avocado tree. I would guess it is being irrigated along with a planter or a lawn. What you describe is not enough water. In this recent heat it cannot carry the fruit and leaves. It is a mature tree so it needs about 450 gallons of water a week. You need to either change the irrigation system so it can get its own water or use a hose with a sprinkler to give it enough water. You can prune it down to a reasonable height. In commercial orchards I am trying to keep the trees about 12 feet high. let me know how you do. Charley
Hi there,
I have been living in Rainbow California for several years now. Only on well water so my attempt has been very limited at growing anything but I do have 3 avocados, 10 citrus, a couple mangoes, several varieties of edible bananas. So looks like we have to sell and will be moving to the Temecula area (not De Luz). I have read that mexicola is very cold hardy what other good tasting varieties may also grow in Temecula zone 9b.
Is h
Eddie, I believe making a decision on avocado varieties by the zone is not a good idea. You didn’t say where in Temecula you are moving. There are places in the Temecula area where you can’t grow avocados because it is too cold. If there are avocados around you, you are safe. If you can grow them all California varieties are good tasting. Good luck. Charley
What varieties are you referring too when you say California varieties?
Eddie
Eddie, The dominant variety in California is the Hass. Other varieties that may be available at some nurseries are Fuerte, Reed, Bacon, Sirprise, Gwen.
Hello Charley, I had called a few places for soil for planting my last 10 or so avacado trees, California avacado society referred me to agriservices. They recommended 70/30 blend. Will this work, as I had mentioned earlier I need to build up a hill side 2′-3′ deep with new soil.
Thank You
Joe
Hello Charley, I would like to know if you can direct me in picking up some soil for planting more avacado’s here in San Diego. I will need aprox. 10yds. of soil. I was told not to use top soil??? Thank You for your expertise.
Joe
Charley,
I feel motivated to grow avocado for profit in Florida and need to learn from 0; please where can I find guidance. Thank you.
Gerardo, The avocados grown in Florida are different than those grown in California. I would look to see if the university of Florida or Florida State has an extension service who might have information on growing practices. I would also check the yellow pages for listings of grove managers who might be able to help. You should also call your local Farm Bureau office. Finally I would call Brooks Tropical. They are a major packer shipper of Florida avocados. I trust this will help and get you started. Charley
Thank you Charley! I appreciate your information and time.
Wendy, My memory is most of those orange groves in Ventura are on relatively gentle land. To clear the orange grove and install a new irrigation system for a high density planting you should budget $25,000 to $30,000 per acre. The number can be refined after the land is cleared and the new planting is flagged. Sounds interesting. Good luck, Charley
Charley,
My husband and I are in our 50’s and are looking to purchase a home and eventually retire in Fallbrook. We are looking at a 2 1/2 acre parcel with 100 avocado trees that are in good shape, well taken care of. We know nothing about this sort of business. What is the estimated time commitment and is there a profit available for this size grove? My husband is interested in learning about caring for the grove, he is a strong DIYer, but also has other hobbies-so we are mainly concerned with the amount of time and upkeep involved.
Thanks!
Jennifer
Jennifer, I am sure you will love Fallbrook. How much time it will take depends on a lot of variables, for example the age of the trees the slope of the land to name a few. I must tell you that my usual response to this question ask by many is this. The best operator of an orchard is the owner who lives on the land and has the technical knowledge. That being said the other part is that you will quickly become a slave to the grove. Tough decision because there is a lot of personal satisfaction in producing a crop. Good luck on your venture. Charley
Hi Charley,
we are looking at purchasing a small avo and citrus farm in Ojai, we need advice about going organic and general farming info, can we consult with you? Thank you!
Carol
Carol, I would first go on line to the University of California Cooperative Extension web site. You can get good information to start on both subjects. I am in San Diego County so consulting in Ojai would be expensive. I am sure you can find someone up there. Check with the County Farm Bureau they can help. Charley
Just found your website. It’s amazing what I have forgotten about avocados in the years I have been gone from Fallbrook. Thank you for helping me brush up on that knowledge.. I have a couple of trees grown from seeds in pots that are greatly pampered here in Evansville, Indiana. You can take a girl out of Fallbrook but you can’t take Fallbrook out of her heart. Hope all is well, Kathy.
Kathy, Nice to hear from you. I assume all is well. Remember those trees grown from seeds are not going to produce edible fruit. Charley
I have a 13-acre (10 in trees) producing grove inheritance in Ramona – we need a small-grove management person to give me advice (keep in trees, stump some, replace some, expand, cut back, etc.) but mostly to take over management for a short time until everything is straightened out and running smoothly again. I’d appreciate contact information so we can talk about what information you need to give advice and if you can help us manage this grove to its most efficient. Thanks!
Marla, I can help you with your grove. I will send you contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Hi! Thanks for all the great advice! Do you ever do farm management/consulting in Riverside. I am just starting to put in 30 avos as a test. The avo we have as a home tree has done great over the last 12 yrs. My hope is to plant the hillsides around our house. Our soil is decomposed granite and seems to be great for growth. I’d love to know what you think and what irrigation tips you may have. Thanks! Cathy
Cathy, You didn’t say where you are in Riverside. Yes I do consulting in Riverside. I will send you contact info separately. Management would depend on where you are located. Look forward to hearing from you. Charley
Thanks! I just spoke with your office. We are too far out for management but not for your consultation. I’m going to have you consult I just need to figure when the best time will be since we are an hour away.
Currently we are finishing up installing 24k gallons of holding tanks for our well to irrigate from.
We are planning to plant within the week. The spacing we had planned was 18 ft off set rows. Someone recommended we plant closer. What is your recommendation?
I was also planning to let gravity irrigate until I needed a pump. Do you have any reasons to install a pump to irrigate?
Initially when setting up irrigation what sprinklers / irrigation setup do you recommend? And how often/much do the new plants need to be irrigated? Should I set up liquid fertilizer or do I wait until they are more established? I also understand that a filter system may be needed to prevent clogs of the sprinklers. Do you always recommend this?
I know this is a lot of questions but we are new to this and I want to do it right to start. If you think I should have you consult before I planting (now) please let me know. Thank you!
Cathy
It’s actually a great and useful piece of information. I’m happy that you just shared tyis useful info
with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
Your Welcome. Charley
My wife and I bought a house in Valley Center, CA that has a small grove with 63 avocado trees. Please e-mail information about your consulting service. We want to learn about the trees what you recommend we do with them.
Thank you.
Jeff, I will send you my contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Hi Charley, my husband and I are looking to buy a home in Temecula with an avocado grove business. We love avocados and the idea of using our land to earn us some income, but we don’t know anything about the avocado farming business. Can you also email me your contact info? I’d like to talk to you more about what we need to do, and using your services. You can also reach me by phone if that’s easier at 562-458-9282. Thank you and take care!
Melisssa, I’ll send you the contact info separately. Thanks, Charley
Aloha Charley, I’m wanting to care for an avocado tree in my parents yard here on Kauai. I noticed that there are holes about the size of a fist, I assume from where large branches used to be, in the tree trunk (my dad might have done some over-pruning several years ago). The holes are deep extending into the trunk, black, and moist. What should I do with them so pests don’t get in and make themselves at home. Should I grow plants in the holes or fill them with something? The holes are at the lower half of the tree. The tree gives lots of fruits so I’m sure it’s not dead. What is your advice? And thanks for having a blog about avocado trees. This tree at my parents house has been around forever so I want to care for it as much as possible. And comes to think of it, I used to play on the tree as a little girl. So I love this tree. Thank you so much for your time.
Merissa, If the hole is black and moist, the pest are probably already established. First clean all the material out of the hole. Use a light rod, a straight coat hanger, or stick and poke it into the hole to see how deep it is. Use a fungicide like a light diluted copper solution or buy one from a store. Spray the material into the hole. Then mix a runny batch of mortar and fill the hole. If your lucky the damage is not too extensive and the tree will flourish after you have treated this wound. Good luck. Charley
most of my haas acocados fall off about the size of a pea. i probably had 100 or so and 3 stayed on from the november bloom and the same for the february bloom. i live in ventura about a mile from the ocean and the tree is about 10 years old.
Kevin, Tough to answer the question without looking at the tree. Let me give it a shot. First the tree will always drop some of the small fruit. It can’t carry all of it. It sounds like the drop was excessive. This is normally caused by stress. You told me how old the tree is but you didn’t tell me how long you have been taking care of it. I don’t remember seeing any weather reports for cold in Ventura so if they were stressed it was probably not enough water. Remember the tree is tropical it has to get enough water. Charley
Charlie, I bought a house in Northern California last year and it has a large avocado tree in the back yard. I was told some graft work was done to it and that it produces 4 different kinds of avocados. I cannot seem to identify what kind they are based on photographs on the Internet. Anyway you can help me? I can e-mail you photos of the tree and the avocados that are growing now. Thanks in advance! Mike R
Mike, Sure send the photos and I’ll give it a shot at Identifying them. I’ll send you an email address. Charley
Hello,
I live out here in Hemet Ca, and purchased a 6 ft by 3 ft grafted Hass Avocado from a well known nursery in Menifee Ca. I want to know if someone can provide me with the best advise on growing it out here. I heard that Avocados will not survive out here do to the Heat and Frost. I’ve had it in a barrel for a month “with wheels” for easy movement, currently its in between 2 of my citrus trees that provide it with some shade. Its doing fine but I don’t want to plant it until I get some expert advise like yourselves.
Thank you for your time.
Gil, I hate to be the bearer of bad news. What you heard is correct. The climate in Hemet over time is not appropriate for growing avocados. What I mean is that you may plant it and have mild winters and duck the frost. You can counter the heat by being vigilant and applying water sufficiently and frequently. That being said sooner or later one or the other will probably take the tree out. Sorry. Charley
Thank you Charley, for confirming. I will try my best to preserve its life as long as nature will allow me to do so. Lesson learned do local climate research before buying.
Charley,
I live in the Upper Ojai in California and I wondered which variety of avocado does best in my area. I plan on purchasing two trees, any help that you could offer would be appreciated.
Thank you,
Constance
Constance, I assume you are in a frost free area. All the varieties will do well. I would suggest one Hass and then a variety to give you fruit at a different time of year; Reed, Fuerte, Bacon. Charley
Hi Charley,
We are planning to purchase avocado grove in Temecula for inve d tent purpose
and saw 2 listing on the net.Will you be able to help us in analyzing and recommending
the better one? Can you please send us your contact info?
Thankyou
Prema.
Prema, I would look forward to working with you on selecting a property for investment. I will send you my contact info. Thanks, Charley
I have 2 avocado tree one is a hass the other a zutano. the hass avocado tree ,the leaves came out red then turned green and yellow,Yellow around the leaves.what can I do.
Victor, You didn’t say where these trees are located. From your brief description it appears the trees need fertilizer. Charley
I live in Valley Center and we have a very old avocado tree. I wasn’t sure what type it was and after during some research I think only think that it may be a Fuerte. It has green thin skin with a medium to small seed and it’s very buttery, nutty in flavor texture some tone of yellow. The skin has to be peeled with a knife.
So I decided that I would like variety so I just purchased 2 Hass trees. After doing some more research and learning about cross pollination I’m not sure that the exsisting tree is in fact a Fuerte. There are male flowers blooming on both trees in the morning hours. Is there any other why to tell if it’s a Type A or B?
Rosie, First both varieties have male and female flowers. So they will self pollinate. The Avocado Commission is looking at research to see if there are any cultural practices that could influence the flowers opening together to enhance production. You can go on line to look at some of the research that has been done on pollination for avocado. There are pictures of the flowers that may help you see what is happening on your trees. Thanks, Charley
We live in Ramona and we’d like to plant one avocado tree in the next two weeks. Can you suggest the best time to plant, where to buy, and any ground prep we should do beforehand?
Thanks so much for your help!
Sarah, You can plant any time after the danger of frost. Obviously you are safe now. Also you can’t plant during Santa Anna season, generally between Aug 15 and Sep 15. In terms of soil prep the old adage of dig a $20 hole for a $5 tree. In other words make the hole wide enough so there is loose soil for the tree to develop its root system. If you have a lot of clay where you are going to plant you can add some organic material. Remember plant the tree on a mound not in a basin. I would check your local retail nurseries to see if they have avocado trees. I don’t believe the wholesale nurseries will have single trees for sale. If you can’t find a tree you could call Atkins or Maddox nurseries in Fallbrook. Good luck. Charley
Hello Charley,
Thank you for putting together this forum. My grandfather recently purchased a small avocado orchard in Temecula, and I was hoping to see if you could do an analysis of the site. Can you please send me your contact information when you get a chance?
Thank you. Adam
Adam, Contact is on the way. Charley
Sorry Charley!
I searched and searched your site and could not find how to ask a new question so I hope I can get a response from you here.
I live in Miami, Fl and I have about 35 avocado trees that are super healthy. I am an Avocado nut job and I study the subject constantly out of pure love.
I am going to a wedding in Santa Monica in May and I want to bring back about 10 California varieties that are not grown in Florida. I called Brokaw and they told me that the trees cannot go to Florida and that’s the law. That’s the first time I heard about such a law. I am familiar with the laws on moving citrus to Florida but never have I heard this about Avocado trees. What do you say on this law, is that gospel? Is that true? Because if it is not true I’ll travel down to Fallbrook nurseries to fullfill my super strong desire to have these varieties at my home:
Fuerte
Gwen
Holiday
Sir Prize
Kona Sharwill
Carmen
Lamb Haas
If it is not against the law which nurseries will I have the best chance in the Fallbrook area to obtain my wish list?
Thank you so much my Avocado loving brother!
Richard, First I believe the advice given by Brokaw is correct. There are many restrictions on moving live plant material. Additionally the California varieties you seek will probably not do well in Florida. The avocados grown in Florida are West Indian varieties. Those grown is California Mexican varieties. They are completely different plants and fruit. The only thing they have in common is avocado. I am afraid the only route for you is to set up a connection in California to send you fruit in season. Charley
It’s a common misconception about California avocado varieties not growing in S Florida. My Gwen and Holiday had about 5 times as many blossoms as any avocado blossoming I have ever seen and they just kept coming and there was a tremendous amount of fruit. My Lamb Haas had more fruit on it than any of my Florida varieties. I think you might want to look at the evaluations my friend Carlos is performing on his S Florida grove. It will amaze you. http://www.myavocadotrees.com/
Rich, Your comments illustrate the dangers of general comments. The problem with California varieties in Florida is too much water. If they were in an area where the soil is well drained so that the roots were not wet all the time they would do well. Of course if they could grow all over one would expect that there would be a lot of commercial production. Thanks for sharing the information. Charley
Does the common house ant pollinate an avacado trees, or are they harmful?
I have an orange brush next to my avacado trees, and the orange is loaded with bees, but the avacado I see none. Should I be worried?
Andreas, The ant is not a pollinator. The ants do no economic damage to trees. Unfortunately they cultivate other pest and attack beneficial insects. Therefore they should be controlled. The orange tree is favored by the bee over the avocado flower. The bees are probably going into the avocado you just don’t notice them. The bees are there so not to worry. Charley
Hello Charley! First and foremost let me extend to you an enormous THANK YOU for providing so much free information on this site and other blogs that I’ve found that you’re also affiliated with. I think that it is so wonderful that you provide so much information here and you can definitely tell that it is truly appreciated by so many people and from all around the globe (I just spent the last hour reading all of the comments! Hahaha!). Anyway, a little about myself. I am a High School English teacher and have a lot of spare time on my hands when school is not in session and have always had a “thing” for growing fruit trees. I always have success with my citrus trees but my avocados …… oh those avocados!!!! They sure do give me a headache sometimes! Hahaha, well, now I know that I need to be planting on a mound (not a basin) LOL. Most of my problem is probably in that my property is in Perris, Ca and I know it can get pretty chilly out here for avocados and wouldn’t try to make an orchard or anything, I just do it for enjoyment and free avos! However, I am still interested in learning all things avocados because it is my dream to move back to North county Santa Barbara (where I did my undergraduate work) and it would be very feasible to grow avos there! So down to my question, I know it’s a long shot, but do you (or do you know of anyone) that would take on an apprentice or even a volunteer? I just want to learn anything/everything about avos, and I promise I learn quickly and am a big help! Hahaha and considering that Summer is about to begin and I wont be working for a few months, I figured it was worth asking! Thanks in advance for your time and again, thank you from the bottom of my avocado-loving heart! 🙂
Josie, First your problems with your avocado in Perris is probably the cold. You must also remember that it gets very hot in Perris. That is an awful lot of stress for the avocado. I don’t know of anyone who might be interested in an apprentice. Your best source of knowledge would be the UC extension and attending the free grower seminars. Additionally Dr. Bender conducts a six week hands on school. Unfortunately I believe he just completed one. You can goggle the schedule of the growers seminars from the California Avocado Society web site. Hope this helps. Charley
Hello, thanks for your information, we recently purchased a property in
Temecula, very many issues with 1000 haas trees, that were stumped about 4 inches off the ground, they are doing well but the the wind and rain these last few days has caused a lot of damage and the low limbs are simply falling off. We are not sure how to manage
the unique problems we are faced with. Additionally we had a well, but is not being
used now and unsure if it is worth the expense to rehabilitate and not sure of the
potential salinity. Can you forward an agreement for management and consultation
please? Thank you for your open forum to present questions, and appreciate your help !
Miriam, It sounds like the trees were stumped to be grafted. I will send you separately info to contact us. Charley
Hi Charley I need some help to assess a site for avocado. Can you email me with contact info.
Thanks
DS
Duncan, Contact info is on the way. Charley
Yolanda, The market for 96 and smaller will be a specialty situation. For example a number of years ago Sizzler featured half avocado in the skin on their buffet. Obviously they wanted the small fruit. I don’t believe the general retail trade is interested in them. Hope this helps. Charley
HELLO, CHARLEY
I AM YOUR TYPICAL HOME OWNER IN THE HILLS UP IN WILDOMAR WITH AN ACRE. AND RECENTLY HAVE BEEN GIVEN 5 SUTANO AVOCADO TREE IN 15 GAL CONTAINERS.I HAVE CITRUS TREES THAT ARE DOING WELL. NOW I NEED PLEASE YOUR EXPERTIZE ON HOW TO PLANT THEM? ‘WHAT TO DO’? AND ARE THEY A GOOD AVOCADO TREE?
THANK YOU SO MUCH.
LEON
Leon, Probably the most important consideration is to plant the trees on a mound NOT in a basin. I assume the soils up there are well drained. The mound should be at least 18 inches above grade. For a 15 gal container the mound should be 3 to 4 feet in diameter. When you build the mound gather the soil from a larger area so that there is not a moat around the mound. Obviously after the mound is built dig a hole large enough to accept the tree ball. Look closely to be sure the plant is not root bound. You can tell if there are a lot of roots curving side ways going around the container. If they are you have to separate or cut them. You can apply some vitamin B to the roots to help with the stress. The top of the soil in the container should be the top of the soil after planting. DON’T put more soil on top of the soil from the container and up the trunk of the tree. The Zutano is a vertical growing tree so you can plant them closer to each other than you would plant a hass. The fruit is a winter variety the fruit will be ready in late fall and winter. When there were Zutanos in the commercial market there was a tendency to harvest them too early. They have a lighter flavor than hass. Good luck on your endeavor. Charley
Omar, I have checked with my friend yes the land around Jericho is suitable for avocado production. A dunam is one quarter of a hectare. How many trees will depend on the density. With a high density planting the number of trees will be over a thousand. There is an avocado association in Israel. If you contact them I believe they would have the information on nurseries that would have avocado seedlings. Charley
Hi Charley,
I am in the process of purchasing 100 acres of ag land in Escondido,CA. Ive read your blog and thank you for the costing information. How do I reach you to see if you are interested in working on the project? Please email me and I will send you my phone number. Stevec7717@gmail.com
Sincerely and thank you.
Steve
Steve, Congratulations on your purchase. I’ll send you my email and phone number so we can get together. Charley
I am looking to buy about 30 acres with 1500 avocado trees now dormant. Location: VALLY CENTER CA 92082.
what is the water one foot acre cost? also do you think we can water the trees back into production that is profitable.
Thank you
robert
Robert, Water cost in Valley Center depend very much at what elevation the orchard is. The higher the elevation the cost is higher because you have to pay pumping charges. In most areas of Valley Center the cost is above $1200 per acre foot. You said the trees are dormant. I take that to be the water has been shut off. Not knowing how long the trees have not been irrigated and with out looking at them it is difficult to comment whether the trees can be “watered” back into profitable production. To answer your questions the grove needs to be evaluated. Charley
Hi Charley,
I would like to know how long it takes production size Hass fruits (96s and larger) to grow into next size up. I would like to know how many ounces each fruit size add up given the total crop load on the tree.Please let me know if you or someone you know can help me understand the fruit growth rate in context to Southern California. Thank you!
Bandana, You ask an interesting question that every grower wished they had the answer. Essentially it depends on several factors most of which the grower has no control. The one you can control is the health of the tree. A weak tree will not size fruit as fast as a healthy tree. The other factor is the weather. Temperature is important, but most important is rain fall. Over the years I am always amazed hor sizing accelerates after good rains. I trust this helps you understand the process although it doesn’t specifically answer you question. Merry Christmas. Charley