You may have seen or bought avocados in the grocery store, but did you know that people have been growing avocado trees in their backyards in Florida since the nineteenth century? Florida’s tropical and subtropic climates makes it well suited for this unique fruit tree (Crane, Balerdi, and Maguire 2013).
Mature avocado trees are usually thirty to forty-feet tall, and are known for their dark green folliage, abundant shade, and, of course, their leathery-skinned, pear-shaped, creamy fruit (Gilman and Watson 2014).
Below are some important UF/IFAS resources for those interested in growing avocado trees on their properties:
- Avocado Growing in the Florida Landscape
- Persea americana: Avocado
- Gardening Solutions – Avocado (video)
- Pruning Avocado Trees
- Tropical Research and Education Center’s Avocado Videos
References
Crane, Jonathan H., Carlos F. Balerdi, and Ian Maguire. 2013. CIR1034. Gainesville: University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. Accessed December 8, 2015. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg213
Gilman, Edward F., and Dennis G. Watson. 2014. ENH-594. Gainesville: University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. Accessed December 8, 2015. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/st435
Photo credits: UF/IFAS
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