How to Grow An Avocado

Fun Halloween things for Kids to Do

Ever wonder how to grow an avocado? I did. Couldn't make it grow for nothing. Finally figured out how to grow an avocado. Got about three to four growing now.

Supplies

avocado pit
3 toothpicks (preferable wooden with the pointy ends)
old butter tub (from a very small tub of any butter)
water
time (this is not a short term project)

Preparations

Wash off the saved avocado pit from the homemade guacamole that you made.
Remove the thin, dark layer of skin. The pit inside will be an off-white color. The pit will have a thin crack down going from the stem area all the way around to the other side - no worries.
About midway down the side of the pit, take one of the toothpicks and stab it into the pit. Don't put the toothpick on the area where the crack is. The toothpicks should go in very smoothly. Go 1/3 around and put in the next one and then the next one.
Set the pit with the toothpicks sticking out into the old butter tub with the flat side down. The toothpicks will help balance the pit above the water in the tub.
Add water to the top of the tub. The water at this point should only be covering about half of the pit. The rest should be above water.
Put the butter tub with the pit in it in a sunny place.
Wait.
Add water.
Wait. Keep adding water and waiting.
Can't promise how long (sorry, didn't time it) but after a bit, the pit will look like it's cracking apart. No worries again - don't take it apart, just leave alone. It's the roots growing to the water. If you lift the pit out of the water and look at the pit, you should a small protrusion sticking out of the flat part. Those are the roots starting out.
After another bit, you will see the plant starting to grow in the center of the pit (because the crack is pretty wide now) and the plant start shooting up.
I let mine grow like that until the little butter tupperware was full of roots.
I then planted the pit, roots and toothpicks in a small pot with potting soil. The dirt covered right at where the toothpicks were. Keep well watered. (Roots started off with lots of water - right?)
Watch it grow.
Transplant again when it appears to have stopped growing. Only move up a pot size at a time. I tried to put one plant into a very large pot and the poor thing went into shock and died.
At the time of this writing, I have one in a growing about 12 inches high (soil to top of plant) and another about three from one pit) about 6 inches high.

One day I will finally plant it outside. We have such cold weather (and very hot too) at times that I'm not too keen on moving it out just yet. Right now, larger pots will have to do until I know it can grow in our weather without fear.

Actually how to grow an avocado is very easy. Just takes time. It may not happen the first time round for you. I've been trying for a long time and finally figured it out. Hopefully these instructions will help you grow one soon too.

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