(Last updated May 26, 2021)
The answer is yes. My aunt asked me about this yesterday. Her yard space is well-spoken for, but her husband would really like to have an avocado tree. “They get big,” she said. They do indeed. Most varieties will exceed 30 feet, if unimpeded. But they don’t have to.
Here are my best two ideas for growing an avocado tree in your yard if you only have a small space — that is, if you don’t have a space that is 30 feet wide and tall.
Hass
One, plant a Hass avocado tree and keep it pruned to about 15 feet wide and tall, like this one in my yard:
This Hass tree is carrying about 150 avocados this year. Hass is the variety that you buy in grocery stores, of course. It has excellent flavor, as you know, and the fruit will hang on the tree waiting for you to pick it from about February until July (even longer sometimes). Simply prune the tree once or twice a year to keep it at a 15-foot canopy. I’ve been doing so, and I know of other Hass trees that are kept this size while still being productive as well. (My post, “The Hass avocado tree: a profile.”)
Reed
Another idea is you could go with a variety called Reed, which naturally grows smaller than Hass. You can keep a Reed avocado tree pruned down to 10 feet and still get plenty of fruit. Here is my Reed tree today, at about 12 feet tall and wide, carrying around 75 avocados.
But do Reeds taste good? They certainly do — plus the fruit is bigger, and they also don’t brown when you cut them open and leave half in the fridge. In case you haven’t seen Reed avocados, here are a few (not yet full size) hiding under the canopy of my tree. (My post, “The Reed avocado tree: a profile.”)
Lamb
Another productive and naturally smaller tree similar to Reed is the Lamb, also called Lamb/Hass. If I couldn’t find a Reed, I’d go with Lamb. In fact, I have a Lamb growing 7.5 feet away from my Reed. (My post, “The Lamb/Hass avocado tree: a profile.”)
Gwen and GEM
A couple other productive, tasty, but naturally smaller avocado varieties worth growing as single trees in a small yard space are Gwen and GEM. Unfortunately, trees of these varieties are not easy to find at retail nurseries. For guidance, see my post, “Where to buy an avocado tree.”)
(Also, for more information on all of these avocado varieties, see my post, “Avocado variety profiles.”)
Keeping avocado trees small in the long run
But can you keep avocado trees pruned small in the long term? You certainly can. The best example I’ve ever seen of an avocado tree kept small for decades is a Fuerte in the yard of some friends who live in National City, just south of San Diego. They inherited the tree when they bought the house. A Japanese family had lived there for a long time prior, and this Fuerte tree is close to an avocado bonsai. It’s got to be at least 30 years old judging by the trunk diameter, and yet it’s been carefully pruned over the years to remain at only 10 feet tall and 20 feet wide: shaped like a saucer.
Note well that Fuerte is a vigorously growing avocado variety. In other words, if you can keep a Fuerte down to size, you can keep any variety down to size.
And most importantly, it produces lots of fruit. I counted over 100 on the day I took this photo.
Ancillary benefits of keeping an avocado tree pruned down is that you can pick most if not all of the fruit by hand (no poles or ladders), and also, small trees require less water than big trees. For more on pruning, see my post “Pruning avocado trees.” But also check out my post “Pruning avocado trees to keep them small.”
“Dwarf” avocado varieties
How about planting one of the dwarf avocado varieties? The two widely available avocado varieties that are called dwarf are Holiday and Wurtz (which is also sometimes called Wertz, Littlecado, Minicado, or Dwarf Hybrid). The advantage of these varieties is that they are naturally slower growing than most others. Therefore, you won’t have to prune as much to keep one of these trees small. But that is the their main advantage.
There are disadvantages. The Holiday is less productive than Hass or Reed. This has been my experience with two Holiday trees that I’ve grown in two different locations, as well as my observations of the Holiday trees in the yards of friends and others. So yes, you’ll have a small avocado tree, but you’ll also have a small amount of avocado fruit — smaller than you could have with certain other varieties. (See details in my post, “The Holiday avocado tree: a profile.”)
As for Wurtz, however, I can only give secondhand information. Wurtz trees in other yards do seem to produce better than Holiday, but I’ve never grown a Wurtz avocado tree myself. The fruit of Wurtz is good, but I don’t find it quite as tasty as Hass or Reed or the other varieties mentioned above.
Taste is subjective though. The owner of the Wurtz avocado tree below told me that he very much likes the fruit:
Anyhow, in my view, the only reason to choose Holiday or Wurtz instead of Hass or Reed or Lamb or other avocado varieties would be if you wanted a naturally small avocado tree that didn’t require much pruning — and you couldn’t find a Gwen or GEM tree to buy.
In the end, if you want an avocado tree in your yard and you have even a 10-foot by 10-foot patch of dirt available, it’s possible. It’s more than possible, it’s proven and it’s prescribed.
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I really enjoyed your article about avocado trees. Thanks for sharing your expertise! I’m looking for a good spot in my yard to plant my first avocado tree.
We had a large 12 meter high avocado tree in Southern Taiwan from seed that after 7 years had creamy fruit. Our garden has a floor of concrete but the tree still could grow very well on top soil. We had to cut the top of the tree each year. But last year the tree suddenly had all its leaves dried out. Cutting some branches did not help. Nothing special discovered. Possiby not enough water added during rainless 5 months.
Looks like I will need a recommendation for where to buy a good Reed tree as well! We have a Hass already, but I am looking to remove an olive tree with a few large dead branches and replace with a second avocado. Reed sounds like a winner! I am actually from La Habra Hts (home of the mother Hass). I grew up eating avocado toast my whole life. Funny how that is a super trendy breakfast now!
Reeds really are wonderful avocado trees. Since you’re from La Habra Heights, you have to have a Hass. It’s your roots. But a Reed sure would complement that Hass well.
You can get a Reed tree through any independent retail nursery in Southern California. If they don’t have one on hand, they’ll order it, probably through one of the major local wholesale growers, Durling in San Diego County or La Verne in Ventura County.
Avocado toast is so filling and wholesome. I love it! I add a little hot sauce or a slice of tomato or a squeeze of lime juice over the avocado sometimes too.
Yes, we love our Hass!! For a really decadent avocado toast, try roasting and English muffin, a layer of avocado, salt pepper & on top a single scrambled egg with hot sauce (I’m addicted to Tabasco!). We have backyard chickens, so those fresh, creamy eggs with the avocado are an amazing pairing!!
Thanks Greg for very helpful information. Do you know how invasive is fuerte root to the foundation if I keep it at 10 feet? I got it at nursery and debating if need fo return it. Will you prefer fuerte or bacon? Four winds grower sell GWEN and GEM online.
we have pool in our yard and i heard the haas avacados root system will destroy our plumbing is this true .how far should it be planted from tree system.
Hi Margie,
Avocado roots are not particularly strong, as far as tree roots go. And tree roots in general cannot break into pipes. They can and will, however, drink from a leak in a pipe and exacerbate that leak.
I wouldn’t hesitate to plant an avocado near my pool, if I had one. The only thing I’d be aware of is how much pool water will splash onto the soil under the tree since the chemicals added to pool water can be toxic to avocados, as well as most other plants.
Thanks for the article. I bought a Pinkerton Avocado after reading this article. The only spot I can plant it has a PVC sewerage pipe directly underneath it. About 1 meter deep. Would you think the tree could damage the pipe?
Hi Alex,
Thanks. I wouldn’t worry about the avocado tree damaging that pipe. One reason is that avocados root shallowly for the most part. When digging under my trees, I’ve never found roots deeper than two feet. And it’s commonly estimated that avocados have 80 percent of their roots in the top six inches.
How far away from a retaining wall can you plant an avocado tree? I don’t want it to damage the wall.
Maybe you’ve noticed my recent post: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-far-apart-to-plant-avocado-trees/
Let me know if it doesn’t quite answer your question.
Is it possible to keep an avocado closer to 8ft talk x 8ft wide? My space is limited due to other citrus and one very young GEM tree in my back yard in northern orange county. I was thinking carmen hass or reed.
Hi
My neighbour has planted Ava ado tree in his retaining wall very next to common fence between his and my boundary. Does his tree can cause damage to my sidewalk which is at same height or level where the tree is planted. The distance is less than 1 metre
I cannot thank you enough for your FANTASTIC posts! You are a true gem in this world!
Is this a setup? Well, thank you anyway, Susie. You are so kind.
I just want you to know I enjoy your articles and thank you for sharing all the information. It’s been so helpful🙂
How about planting behind my sons mobile home (located in park) there is a slope behind house.
Hi Barbara,
Avocados do very well when planted on slopes. Sounds possible to me.
Can I keep a small tree pruned to only 4 feet wide by 10 feet tall?
Hi Asif,
You can do that. I have a Lamb Hass that I keep pruned to 6 feet wide and about 9 feet tall; I had a SirPrize that was 5 feet wide and about 12 feet tall; and I know of avocado groves that keep their Reed trees pruned to 5 feet wide and 8 feet tall.
But notice that none of these trees are only 4 feet wide. That’s certainly possible, but more restricting to the tree’s ability to produce fruit. If you want a narrow tree, I’d go with a variety that naturally grows upright and not so spreading. Lamb and Reed are two that come to mind.
Do not choose these: Hass wants to spread more. Fuerte wants to spread a lot more. Holiday almost refuses to grow up at all.
Thanks for the advice.
I was thinking the Reed tree at first, until I saw a Little Cado tree at a local nursery and thought this might be the best fit for the space. I can go wider that 4-5 feet, however it would be right up next to a Citrus tree on one side.
I haven’t planted the Little Cado yet, I’m still reading reviews on taste. I’m starting to lean more towards the Reed, based on reviews. I was just worried that it might be too big for my space and the best bet is to go with a dwarf tree like Little Cado.
Two thoughts on Reed vs Little Cado for your situation:
While taste is subjective, I’ve never heard of anyone ranking Little Cado near the top of the list. Reed, however, is often mentioned as one of people’s favorites.
Although you could stake and prune it so, Little Cado does not naturally grow vertically. It wants to be more bushy. Reed, however, is more vertically inclined.
No doubt, you could make either of these varieties work, but I suspect Reed might be more satisfying.
I have a Wurtz avocado Greg it is 9ft 6″ tall and less than 4 feet wide at the widest point.
This is a concrete contradiction to your comment about Wurtz not growing tall and skinny. If you want a photo I have one. I live in Port Saint Lucie.
Hi Bill,
Thanks for sharing that. I don’t grow Wertz myself so I haven’t experienced training the variety or watching it grow. I only know other people’s Wertz trees and what they look like. Good to know that you have a Wertz that is far taller than it is wide.
Can I ask if you have tied it up a stake? And does it get full sun all day or might it be reaching high in order to gather more sun? I wonder also if there could be a difference in growth habit due to the Florida climate.
I’m reminded of my Holiday tree compared to my friend’s. Mine is about three feet tall and eight feet wide whereas his is eight feet tall and three feet wide. The trees are the same age, it’s just that he has tied his up a stake.
I try to keep in mind that varieties all have their natural inclinations, but we shouldn’t feel limited by them. We can shape them as we want to a large degree.
As regards the Reed variety mentioned above, I formed my first Reed tree into a bush shape by frequently pinching its growing tips. Reed naturally grows somewhat upright, but we can easily alter that.
Avocado tree was growing in Taiwan for 20 years in soil placed on top of concrete. But suddenly the leaves and flowers started to dry out from the top down during a cool rainless period. Adding more water did not help.
Enjoyed your post! I live in Sacramento and would really like to have an avocado tree. Is it possible to grow avocados here in Sacramento? If so, what variety would you recommend? I heard the Mexicola might be a good choice due to it’s cold resistance. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Rob,
Cold temps on winter nights are definitely your limiting factor in Sacramento. I’ve never seen an avocado tree in Sacramento myself; I’ve only heard of them in pots there.
Some varieties I would try are Mexicola, Stewart, and Bacon. Try whichever one you can get your hands on.
Plant it in the warmest microclimate you can (near a south-facing wall, for example). A bit of direct overheard covering from a roof overhang to the tree’s north would be great too.
Plant it on a mound to enhance drainage since your soil is probably on the heavy side. Protect it during the first couple winters at least, any time the temperature looks to drop below 34; it’s most convenient to use a frost blanket.
After that, once the tree is about ten feet tall, it can withstand a lot more cold damage. Light frost won’t even faze it. You can still drape frost blanket over the top to give a little help. (See my post, “Protecting avocado trees from cold.”)
Still, I bet you’re going to have to accept that in some years the tree will get some damage during winter. So some years you won’t get any fruit. But maybe in others you’ll get lots. It can’t hurt to try . . . and good luck!
Rob, I found this article which talks about avocados near Sacramento from 90 years ago that you might like to read: “The Avocado in Northern California.”
Great article.I recognize only the Fuerte and Duke. Platings at 2 foot intervals? That’s like a 2 in 1 hole. Growing avocados in central California at 600 feet gives me hope living further north in a 9b zone west of the Coastal range. Hoping the newer varieties (Lamb,Gem, Pinkerton, Sharwil and others will do well when I take them from the green house come April and put them in the ground.
Hi! I love in Roseville, near Sacramento. I have two trees, a Little Cado and a Lamb. Both do fairly well. Both are in wine barrels. We protect in winter by covering etc. My little Cado has 100’s of blooms this year! I’m so excited! My question is, the leaves are yellowing and dropping like crazy. There is still some new growth, but man. Tons of leaves fall everyday. Also, how long until you harvest the fruit? We had 1 little fruit last year after a bug ate all the other blooms. It lasted for a bit but then dropped. It was still super small.
Hi Greg,
I live in Tustin, California. Love to plant a avocado tree in a pot since our area soil is contaminated. Which avocado do you recommend?
Hi Christina,
Too bad you can’t plant in the ground. Tustin is an awesome place to grow avocados.
I’ve yet to see an avocado tree grown successfully in a pot long term. The oldest, biggest, fruiting avocado trees in pots that I’ve ever seen with my own eyes have only been about five years old and in pots from 15 gallons to 24 inches in size. I posted a photo of one such Hass tree in this post: “Growing fruit trees in Southern California”.
In terms of variety, I’d go with one that is productive, tasty, and not too vigorous. I’m thinking good options would be Reed, Pinkerton, Gwen, GEM, or Lamb. Since Reed has more salt tolerance than those others, I’d try Reed first. In a pot, the salts seem to affect the trees more in my experience. Reeds also produce well without another kind of avocado nearby to pollenize.
You’re making me want to try this myself just to see if I can make it work!
An update to this comment is my post on growing avocado trees in containers: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/growing-avocado-trees-in-containers/
Christina – You have a great supplier right near you, Laguna Hills Nursery on Tustin Ave, north of 17th St.. Gary, the owner, is a wizard with avocado trees, and he sends out weekly emails with seasonal info about all types of plants, and those that he has in stock. Good luck!
Hello!
We have just planted a hass tree about 5 meters from the driveway….do you think that it will lift the drive way once the roots have established? We can move it a meter or so if we really need.
Thanks
Hi Mala,
You should have no problem with that Hass tree and the driveway. I know of huge, century-old avocado trees with their trunks only a few feet from concrete that don’t lift it. Avocado roots are relatively weak.
Hi Greg:
Great website. I took your advice and just purchased 3 – GEM clonal rootstocks from Subtropica Nursery, Fallbrook to plant in Northern California (Oroville). Do you have experience with GEM. Relatively new fruit; hard to find info on spacing. It is said it is a smaller tree than Hass. I plan on keeping it trimmed to about 12 feet. Any thoughts on spacing?
Also, these plants are babies, about 2′ tall. There are lots of buds growing out of where the small branches meet the stalk, and at the same time leaves on the branches are turning brown and curling at the same time which is bothering me greatly. Eli at Subtropica says this is normal at this stage of growth. He says these leaves (they obviously are the first set) will fall off! Do you agree that this is how these plants grow?
Hi Rick,
I doubt you have anything to worry about with the old leaves on your GEM tree. Eli is right: they’ll fall off and be replaced by new and beautiful leaves. Expect this to happen by the end of spring.
GEM avocado trees are smaller than Hass, it’s true. I’ve seen similarly aged Hass and GEM trees where the GEMs were about half the size of the Hass.
Commercial farmers generally plant them no farther apart than 10 feet, more like eight or nine. At that spacing, the canopies will eventually touch. My own GEM trees are planted eight feet from their neighbors because I want their canopies to touch.
If, however, you want to keep space between your trees so you can easily walk between them, plant them more like 10-14 feet apart.
Keeping your GEM trees to 12 feet tall will be no problem.
Greg:
Thanks for the answer. I’ve been looking for videos on how these young GEMs grow; no luck. So what happens to the branches that the leaves are on after their leaves die and drop off? Do the branches also die and drop, or do the new leaves grow out of the same branches? Is this a pattern of young trees only, or will this leaf dying thing continue? Again, I was dismayed to see leaves dying after driving 1200 miles ST to get these trees! I may be one of the first to plant GEMs North of Sacramento. I’ll let you know how they do for your fans.
Hi Rick,
The branches shouldn’t die. They will grow new leaves that replace the old ones that drop.
As long as you water the young trees well this summer, you’ll likely have only a little browning on the leaves next fall and winter. But avocado leaves only live for about a year until the tree sheds them and replaces them with new ones. This happens many times throughout the year but most numerously during the spring flush.
I’m eager to see how these trees grow for you so far north. How will you be protecting them through winter?
Greg:
Thanks for additional info on GEM leaves. Regarding hardiness, according to the nursery, GEM’s do fine down to about 28 degrees. I have read that it was developed by researchers at UC Riverside for Central Valley commercial production (ie can handle hotter summers..colder winters than Hass). I am in hardiness zone 9b so I’m confident that by next winter they will be fine outdoors all winter. It is rare to see below 30 degrees here at night during winter, and if it does, it’s only for an hour or so in the early morning. If I do ever see temps dipping into 20’s, I’ll take mitigation steps to protect them (probably netting). I’m waiting a few more weeks to plant…I’m keeping them cozy and watered in my moderatly heated garage until planting. I put them outside during the day to get sun.
Very interesting, Rick. Yes, I’ve also heard from someone involved in the testing up in the San Joaquin Valley that GEMs have done better than Hass in both heat and cold.
Hi, I called all the nurseries (the main two in San Diego) and some near me and no one has Reed avocado trees. I live in Orange County and I was willing to drive to San Diego.
I wanted to buy Reed instead of Hass because Hass grows wider and my space is limited. Do you think the avocado tree will do fine in between two citrus trees (lemon and orange) and how far from the brick wall should I plant it? Also, does Reed type self pollinate well? I don’t have any other avocado trees, just 2 citrus and one fig tree.
Also, if you know of a place where I could get a Reed avocado tree, please let me know. Thanks
BTW, love your blog and your avocado trees are awesome!
Hi Katrin. Laguna Hills Nursery in Santa Ana has a bunch of young grafted Reed, Holiday and Carmen Hass avocado trees in stock. I was just there today (2/19). The price of the young grafted trees are $24.99 each.
Owner told me that these young trees were grown by a nursery whose name escapes me. But it is not La Verne or Durling.
it may be brokaw nursery.
Hi Katrin,
Thanks for the kind words!
As Jim said, definitely check out Laguna Hills Nursery: http://www.lagunahillsnursery.com/
If there is an Armstrong location closer to you, give them a call too to see if they have a Reed in stock — or if not, they can certainly get one in for you. (No rush on planting an avocado tree here in February. Planting in March is even better if your yard gets any frost.) Armstrong’s website: https://www.armstronggarden.com/
How far apart are the lemon and orange, and about how tall are they?
Is the brick wall to the north, south, east, or west of the avocado planting area?
Just for reference, my own Reed tree is between a small orange tree and a Lamb avocado tree. It’s 12 feet from the orange and 7.5 feet from the Lamb. It’s also 10 feet to the south of a chain link fence.
The leaves of the Reed and Lamb avocado trees touch but don’t crowd each other (I’ve never pruned them in this area), and they’re both going into their sixth year in the ground.
Next year for the first time, I’ll probably prune the Reed a little bit on its north side to keep it away from the fence.
Reed avocado trees in general can fruit well without other avocado trees nearby. If you have a lot of bees in your yard, especially visiting those citrus trees, then there shouldn’t be a pollination problem.
Thanks Jim and Greg. I’ll check out these places.
My lemon and orange trees are 20 feet apart. They are young trees, 3.5″ tall. I believe they are semi-dwarf trees.
The brick wall is to the south so it will block the sun somewhat, until the trees grow taller. The wall is 6″ tall.
I see. Then you can certainly fit an avocado tree between the citrus trees although years down the line you’ll probably need to do some pruning to keep them from overcrowding one another.
The only thing to consider with a brick wall to the south is whether it will shade the avocado through winter, and if your yard is cold enough to where this will cause a cold damage issue. Has there been any frost in the shade of that wall this last week? If not, then don’t worry about it. But if so, then you’ll want to plant the avocado out of the winter shadow of the wall, if possible (especially the morning winter shadow).
Hey Greg,
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.
Yes, there has been frost all over the yard, not only in the shade but everywhere. This winter has been especially cold and I’m not even close to the ocean. Is there a way I can protect the avocado tree from cold like this?
How far should I plant the tree from the wall? I was thinking maybe 3-4 feet. Is that too close?
I’ll get the tree tomorrow and wait about a month to plant it.
Hi Katrin,
You can protect young avocado trees from cold in various ways. See this post: “Protecting avocado trees from cold.”
It would be ideal to plant the tree far enough from the wall so that it is out of the wall’s winter shadow. Just have a look tomorrow morning at where the shadow stops and mark that spot. If that’s too far, then plant where you can and just be vigilant next winter about giving the tree some protection on the few extra cold winter nights. You’ll only have to do this for a year or two and then the tree will be taller and tougher.
Greg: On my young GEM’s, the first bunch of flower buds are appearing on the plants. They have been in the ground now for about 1.5 months. I have been advised to remove the flower buds, but was not given a technical reason or benefit. Have you heard of this as a practice for young newly planted trees? The little bit of info I see says this will provide stronger roots and quicker as the plant won’t have to expend energy trying to grow fruit. If this IS a standard practice, I assume it will delay the growing of fruit of a year while the tree grows stronger? Can you comment? Thanks.
Hi Rick,
This is one of those things that sounds sensible in theory but for which I’ve never seen evidence of the benefits, not in person nor in published research. Maybe it is a good thing to do for the vegetative growth of the young tree. Do it if it makes you feel good. But I don’t bother.
Avocado trees are perfectly capable of growing a lot of leaves at the same time that they grow flowers. I let mine flower at will. The little ones almost never set fruit that they’ll hold until maturity anyway, despite forming some BB-sized fruitlets; they almost all drop in the next couple months.
If you run across any hard evidence for this practice, please share it with me. But if someone says they removed flowers and noticed that the young tree then grew a lot of leaves, that is not the hard evidence we need. Even if you do no flower removal, young trees that are healthy are going to grow lots of leaves this time of year.
P.S. I just spoke with someone who has grown many more GEM avocado trees than me, and he said that he does remove the flowers from very small trees if they flower heavily. By small, I mean less than hip high. And by flower heavily, I mean not just one or two inflorescences (groups of flowers) but more flowers than leaves. He says that he’s certain that he notices that when he removes the flowers from such trees, the trees do then switch to leaf growth.
So maybe this is a good practice? Either way, it certainly can’t hurt since you don’t want such a small tree spending energy trying to carry fruit yet.
We have had success with potted citrus trees. I have been reading this is possible with avocado trees as well. Granted we are happy to get 2-4 fruits a year starting out. But after moving out of Californiato DC had us missing out back yard trees. And a few fresh fruits a year is better than none plus the blossoms sent is worth it alone. So, thoughts on potted trees or ones that will grow in DC/VA
Hi Mary,
I remember living away from Southern California for a few years and missing avocados so much.
Yes, it’s possible to grow an avocado tree in a pot. My best luck has been had in plastic pots as opposed to clay pots, and I’ve seen others growing healthy and fruitful avocado trees in wood containers as well as RootBuilders.
You say for Hass: “the fruit will hang on the tree waiting for you to pick it from about February until July”.
Is this the same for Reed?
Hi Ralph,
The season for Reed is later, starting as early as June and going until September or beyond. If you live close to the beach, the fruit will hang longer.
Will Avocado trees grow well in clay soil? I live in Orange County, California.
Hi Ralph,
It depends. If you have a clay loam with decent drainage, yes. If you have a hard layer of clay or rock just below the surface, like some people do because their yard was scalped when the house was built, then you’ve got a challenge. Best to plant an avocado on a mound in such a situation.
See my post “How to plant and stake an avocado tree”: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-to-plant-and-stake-an-avocado-tree/
Hi Greg. I was at an Armstrong’s nursery yesterday looking for avocado trees , specifically a Little Cado because it doesn’t need another tree nearby. Since it is late in the planting season, they were out of them. In talking to the manager he never mentioned that the Reed variety would be okay as a stand alone if planted near a citrus tree.
In reading through the comments here, you mentioned something to that effect.
I will plant the tree next to a very prolific dwarf grapefruit tree in a rather small space in Sierra Madre.
Do you think that would work?
Hi Mary,
Reed fruits well without any other avocado trees nearby. I’d say the smallest you’d want to keep a Reed is five feet wide and eight feet tall.
Is it a good idea to plant avocado trees in lawn area which gets regular water from the sprinkler system?
Hi Ken,
That can work. A lot of people like to advise against it. There are a couple of good reasons to avoid it, but I’ve seen people make it work many times. I know of old and fruitful avocado trees with irrigated lawn growing right under and all around them. It’s perfectly possible.
Hi Greg,
Thanks for your feedback. I will go ahead to plant them
Thank you! That is about the dimensions of where I would plant it. Now to find one. I may just have to wait until October. At any rate, you have really encouraged me.
Armstrong should be able to order one for you. Good luck!
I didn’t see a listing for “Bacon Avocados “. We used to be able to buy them in the grocery stores, here in the valley, but they don’t have a long shelf life. If anyone has ever eaten them, you never forget that fantastic flavor and they really do taste like bacon. I know you can order the trees online or your nursery can order them for you too.
Hi Shari,
I also like Bacon avocados. You could prune a Bacon tree to keep it small, for sure, but on their own they grow very tall.
I started an avocado seed in a jar and planted it in a good size pot. It’s a few feet now. I heard avocado trees need to be grafted with a “known” (tree that is “known” to give GOOD avocados) tree, so I bought all the wax, wax tape, etcetera that I read would be needed. I also heard that I would need two avocado trees so they could cross pollinate. There’s an orange tree over one of my side walls and a pomegranate tree over my back walls.
Questions: 1) Based on the above, would these other trees be all it needs for the pollination?
2) Do avocado trees really need to be grafted with a “known” tree?
Hi John,
I think you’ll find good answers to these questions in a couple of my other posts:
“What kind of avocado tree do you get when you plant a seed?”
“Do you need two avocado trees to get fruit?”
Hi Greg,
Is there a certain amount of feet I should plant a reed tree from my house? I’m trying to get as close to the house as possible, but I’m worried it may damage the slab.
The house wall is on the North side, so the tree will get sun most of the day.
Hi Josh,
In terms of damaging the slab, if you don’t water next to the wall you shouldn’t have a problem with roots proliferating there.
As far as planting on the north side of the house wall, I’d just make sure your yard doesn’t get too cold in the winter because that spot will be totally shaded on the ground all winter. That could spell death for a young tree in a marginal climate. If you have never seen frost on the ground there in past winters, then there’s nothing to worry about.
Hi Greg, thank you so much for your informative posts. I have learned so much! I live in Camarillo, which I’m sure you know is in Ventura County. Most of the older homes here have avocado trees in their yards, but where I live unfortunately most of the topsoil was displaced during the building process, as the home owners in the vicinity complained about their views being obstructed. So, the home sites were dug lower, about four feet I would guess. Can you advise me regarding reconditioning the soil? I do have a significant slope, and the top of the slope has the original soil. However, that’s likely too close to the fence line for an avocado. Haas, Lamb and Reed are so plentiful here I can get bags full for free or trade. So, I purchased a SirPrize and Gwen, and will add two more later in the year, probably Sharwill and a JB if I can find one. I am just concerned about the soil not being good for avocados. Other than the water test you’ve described, is there any way to tell what my soil needs for optimal growth of my trees?
Hi Jackie,
That’s a good question, and I actually have a similar situation in my own yard although not as drastic. Where the soil is shallow and there is weathered granite subsoil within inches below the surface, I have planted on mounds by bringing some soil from elsewhere in my yard. You want at least two feet (some people say three feet) of soil so you make your mound as high as necessary to get that depth above the hard subsoil. And you want it to be more of a mound instead of a pyramid, so make it four to six feet wide, depending on how high it is. On top of the mound add compost and then coarse mulch like arborist wood chips.
Where I’ve done this, my trees have grown about as well as where my other trees are planted in deeper, unscraped soil.
Good luck on finding your Sharwil and JB. La Verne Nursery (in Piru) now propagates both of those varieties so you can find them at many retail nurseries and garden centers. Special order through your local nursery if necessary.
And hello to Camarillo. I was there for a few days last October and enjoyed walking the neighborhoods and seeing all of the old avocado trees.
Hi!
I planted a 5 gal Bacon a few months and it’s doing well. I chose it because I read it grows up more than out. How small can I keep its width before it restricts production? Also, I saw someone using weights on branches to train them down (once free is tall and big). Have you heard of this and is it a good idea for a Bacon?
Thx!
Hi Liz,
It’s true that Bacons grow more upright than some other types of avocado trees. While any pruning reduces a tree’s production potential, you could keep your tree to around ten feet wide and ten or fifteen feet tall and still expect dozens of fruit each year, on average. If you prune it more severely, the tree will still fruit but just not as much.
I’m unclear as to what the purpose of bending avocado branches down with weights would be. This happens naturally when the branches are carrying fruit. I guess I could imagine using such a technique for reducing the vigor and vertical direction of growth of branches they call “water sprouts.”
Hi Greg,
Thanks for all the wonderful information. I live in Hollister, CA. My neighbor has a fruiting avocado tree that is over 20 years old and has gifted me some. Two of the pits were rooted and I have placed them in water with tooth picks to try my hand at getting a new tree for my yard. My question : Is it possible for the new tree to produce fruit as is or do I need to somehow graft another type of avocado tree to this one?
Hi Doretta,
That’s a great question. The simple answer is yes, you can get fruit from the seedling tree. The full answer is explored in my post: “What kind of avocado tree do you get when you plant a seed?” I think you’ll enjoy reading it.
I live in Tampa and I planted a Pancho or Poncho some years ago and now it has close to 200 avocados. It is, I think, the smaller of the avocado family and contrary of what everybody says they are delicious and perfect, inside and out. It resist temperature up to 25 degrees here. Now I planted Bacon and Brogdom to have a variety of them.
Hi, I will be moving to a small town near Victoria, Texas. I have an avocado tree started from a pit but want to get another tree to plant. Which variety would you recommend for the south Central part of Texas? Thank you.
Hi Carolyn,
Unfortunately, this is beyond my realm of experience. The closest I can get to helping you here is mentioning that I know a grower near Refugio who has many of the varieties that do well in Southern California (Hass, GEM, Lamb, Reed, Sharwil), and his trees are doing well in their first few years, but how well they produce remains to be seen.
The best thing you could do is find growers nearby, if possible. You could also make a post on Tropical Fruit Forum to see if anyone who visits that website lives near Victoria.
Hi again Greg,
I’m glad you got to walk around Camarillo– I’m assuming it was in the foothills, since you see old avocado trees in nearly every yard. That’s why I’ve been so discouraged when trying to grow my own and they all died. I couldn’t figure out how I was killing them when everyone around was successful without trying– I’ve felt like the grim reaper of avocados! Now I’m sure it was the soil issue, since I found out the soil had been excavated so deeply as I mentioned. I think my best chance of success for the Gwen and SirPrize is to try planting at the top of the slope (with the original soil) by the fence. The slope is fairly wide in some spots, and I think using the original soil might give me my best chance to succeed. It’s quite sandy up there and I have a drip system I can tie into.
How close to the fence do you think I can plant? Behind us is a barranca, so I won’t be impinging on anyone else’s property.
I just lucked onto a Gem today from Laguna Hills Nursery, so I’d better get planting soon!
Hi Jackie,
That sounds like a good spot to plant. How close to the fence to plant all depends on whether you want to prune and whether you want to walk between the tree and the fence.
GEM trees don’t grow very wide for an avocado. I visited an avocado grove in nearby Saticoy that has GEM trees planted 18 feet apart. They were planted back in the 90s, and those trees are still not touching one another here around 25 years later. So I’d guess that if you planted your GEM ten feet from the fence, you could forget about pruning it in the near future and still be able to walk between the tree and the fence.
Greg- I have a 4 year old Lamb hass avocado never pruned “bush” . I was about to prune the bottom so about 2 feet trunk would be exposed since it grew this year.
Surprisingly, when I crawled under the overhanging limbs, there was a 2 feet trunk!
So do I prune back all the healthy looking overhanging limbs so we have a tree trunk OR is it natural to grow like a tall bush touching the ground?
And , is it natural to grow overhanging limbs?
Hi Corinne,
It is natural for avocados to grow their limbs down to the ground. Especially if there is fruit on the lower limbs, they will touch the ground. None of this is a problem, except that the fruit that touches the ground has light skin where it touches the ground.
Lamb avocado trees have a peculiar habit of weeping limbs. Their branches grow out and then droop down toward the ground, again, especially if there is fruit on them. There’s no need to prune any of these weeping limbs, but you can if you want to.
Hi Greg, great post!
I am growing avocados from pit in a not-so-conventional area for these beautiful plants, which is Luxembourg, Europe.
My oldest avocado is now 5 years old and has been growing very well (despite the climate which in winter gets below 32F) in a ceramic pot; no flowers have come out yet and I would like to graft it.
I also have a younger avocado (3 years old bought from Sicily, Italy) which is blooming for the first time this year and you cannot imagine how happy this makes me feel 😀
I read that you are growing avocados and also have friends who have different varieties; do you think it would be possible for you to send me over some branches (well boxed and hydrated ready for a long journey across the oceans) of different varieties so that I can try to graft my oldest one as well as some other seedlings I have?
Ideally, I would like to have a multi-grafted avocado plant, but it’s very difficult to find avocados plants, hence scions, in this area.
I would pay of course the delivery fees and any additional costs.
Looking forward to your reply!
Michael
Hi Michael,
I find it very cool that you are growing avocado trees in Luxembourg. I’d love to help you get some scion wood for grafting. I have a friend who has many varieties and often offers scion wood for sale. The price is minimal compared to shipping costs. I’ll ask him about shipping to your region, and I’ll email you about the possibilities.
Hi Greg, I love love your posts they’re full of information. I live in Rancho Cucamongo we want to plant 2 two. A reed and a Hass. What is the best size to get 5 gal or 15 gal. Also how far apart do the trees need to be. we are think 8 feet from a 6 ft wall. Also the will be in full sun. We will be irrigating using the method you have described in one of your posts. Thank you for your help
I realized I didn’t use my eyes to spell check. We wanted to plant the reed and hass trees 8 ft out from a 6ft high wall, but we are unsure of how far apart they should be. Also should we use some type of soil conditioner when we plant the trees.
Hi Jami,
It so happens that my brother and his family grew a Reed and a Hass in their yard when they lived in Rancho Cucamonga. I lay out the tradeoffs between five- and 15-gallon trees in this post: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/should-you-buy-a-big-or-small-avocado-tree/
It is sufficient to plant the trees eight feet from that wall. Eventually, the canopies will run into it but that’s fine.
As for how far apart to plant the trees, there are myriad options. Your choice depends mostly on how much space you have and how much fruit you want out of each tree. The extremes are planting the trees in one hole, where the trunks are only a foot apart, up to planting them twenty or more feet apart so they can each grow full size. In between these are planting them about twelve feet apart, which will ultimately give you trees big enough to produce around 150 avocados each year, on average in total. I find it pretty easy to keep a Hass tree pruned to 12-15 feet wide, and it is even easier to keep a Reed that wide so planting around twelve feet apart is a happy medium if you don’t have the space or need to spread them farther apart.
Don’t add anything to the planting hole except the dirt you took out of it. But do check the soil’s drainage before you plant. See more in this post: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-to-plant-and-stake-an-avocado-tree/
I live in Dana Point CA – can I plant a 5 gallon haas avocado in a large clay container and expect fruit in the future?
Hi Sandra,
I would avoid a clay container. When I once grew a five-gallon Hass in a clay container it didn’t do so well; it got bad leaf burn in winter. I can’t say for sure if that was from the clay container, but I can say that I’ve had better results growing avocados in plastic containers.
I’ve also seen others get better results with avocados in plastic, or wood, or fabric containers. I wonder if it’s partly related to having more drainage holes in the bottoms of those containers.
But in general, yes, you can get fruit from a Hass tree growing in a container.
Do I need two avocado trees in order to produce avocados? We used to have an inherited one, but it never produce avocado, once in a while, it has very tiny hard non edible avocado on it. We eventfully had the tree cut. Now I really want to grow one, maybe Reed tree. 1) Do I need 2 of them? 2) If I need two, how far apart they have to be from each other? Thanks
Hi Cindy,
No, you don’t need two. There are many other reasons why your inherited one might have produced little to nothing.
Reeds are especially good at producing well as lone trees.
Thanks!
Thanks! I’ve found more info in your posts than anywhere else.
In San Diego, I have a 5’ x 5’ area with a 90• angle vinyl fence and a 2.5 ft block wall in front. I’m hoping to plant and prune a reed tree to about 10’ high.
Would this be workable, without damaging the surroundings? Could I trim roots that could threaten the fence?
How far out could I allow branches to follow the fence line at that height without toppling the tree?
Hi Paul,
It is possible to grow a Reed in that area and keep it to ten feet tall. As the tree gets older, it will require more pruning. At that time, you’ll probably need to prune it once in late winter and once around late spring/early summer. I would train the tree up a stake or pole. Get a ten-foot stake or pole so it sticks about eight feet out of the ground.
As long as you’re not watering under the fence or block wall, then the tree shouldn’t grow many roots there, and therefore cause no damage. You can always prune the roots with a shovel to be extra careful, if you’d like.
Hi Greg
I wrote in another post to you recently but just got through reading this post as well. We are in San Diego and want to plant avocado trees in our yard. We spoke to City Nursery and they mentioned to wait until January to plant the trees and that summer is not a good time, especially for the 5 gallons, bc they will get scorched by the heat. Curious on your thoughts of best time to plant trees?
thanks
Hi Adam,
It’s true that planting avocados of any size is easier in a cooler time of year — although if you get any frost in your yard, I’d wait until March rather than planting in January. But even here in Ramona, where it gets hotter than anywhere in San Diego, I plant avocados every summer and they come through fine. You just have to be prepared to water properly, and if the temperature gets near 100 then be able to shade the tree. (Actually, I usually only shade young trees if it gets to around 105.)
So yes, summer is not the easiest time to plant avocados. The best time, in the sense of easiest, is when it’s cooler.
Is it possible to successfully grow productive avocado trees in a container pot in Los Angeles? I do not have any soil or lawn on my property and containers are my only option.
Hi Mark,
Yes, it is technically possible to grow avocado trees in containers that fruit. I’ve done this, and I’ve seen many others. However, I don’t know of anyone who has done it long term, meaning for more than a handful of years.
I currently have 3 Fuertes, 2 Hass, 1 Wurtz, 1 Queen, 3 Lambs, 1 Holiday, 1 Jan Boyce, 1 Kona Sharwil, 1 Sir prize, 2 Reed and 1 unknown variety. Had a Pinkerton and didn’t like the flavor. Any other recommendations for great tasting avocado’s. Thanks!
Hi Curtis,
I really like Gwen and GEM too. Nabal is also very tasty.
Did you find Pinkerton a bit bland or was it something else?
To piggyback off this, I’m looking to get my first tree (along with an orange and lemon tree). I am in Woodland Hills, Ca. I had decided on a gwen due to its smaller size but never hear anyone speak of it from personal experience. Will it fruit well alone? Is the taste as good as I read about? Or am I better with a pruned reed or gem?
Plus I can’t find one to buy anywhere near me.
Will the fruit really stay good on the tree until picked?
Thanks for all the great info.
Hi Sabrina,
Good questions, all. I need to make a Gwen profile soon to address these. Gwen has fruited well alone in some locations (Irvine, for example), but it has not fruited well alone in some others. My own Gwen has fruited decently without any B-type avocados flowering nearby.
The taste of Gwen is top notch, in my opinion. But the fact is that taste is subjective so you might only find Gwen good rather than better than anything else. I will say, however, that I’ve never heard anyone say Gwen is less than very good. Gwen is one of only a handful of avocado varieties that I can eat out of the shell with a spoon and no accompaniment and be praising in my mind until the shell is empty. It’s that good to me.
Reed and GEM can be that good or close to that good too though.
Right now is not the easiest time to find avocado trees to buy, and unfortunately Gwen is rarely propagated these days. But you can find Gwen trees if you look hard enough for long enough. I don’t know anywhere near Woodland Hills that carries Gwen. Atkins, Subtropica, and Four Winds (Four Winds ships to your door) all sell Gwen trees from time to time. See this post for their locations and contact information:
https://gregalder.com/yardposts/where-to-buy-an-avocado-tree/
Hi Greg,
Your posts are a great source of information for avocado afficionados – thanks!!
Do you have any idea what variety this one is: https://imgur.com/a/z9TIrtL
I found them earlier this summer at Safeway or another big supermarket chain, mixed in with other varieties.
It has a very small pit (between a dime and a nickel), and the flesh has a slightly grassy flavor. It’s more watery/less oily than a Hass, but to me tastes great – almost like a grassy olive oil.
Thanks a lot, Sammy! To me, that looks most like a Hass. Sometimes Hass trees will make some fruit with exceptionally small seeds, and sometimes those seeds are also dark and even partially rotten while the flesh remains unspoiled. The avocado variety whose pollen pollinated a particular Hass flower also has some influence on its fruit’s seed size.
Anyway, my first guess is Hass, but my second guess is Lamb although it doesn’t show the typical grit from the peel that a Lamb has upon being cut open. Lamb does have very small seeds usually, and its flesh is very green like the one in the photo, and the grassy flavor makes sense because in summer Lamb would be in the early period of its season and often has that type of flavor.
Hi Greg,
Can one transplant a Avocado tree that is 2m tall. I have planted this little beautiful
tree not knowing it was a Avo tree right next to a wall in the garden.It is now 2m plus and 1.5m wide
HELP
Take care
Mike
Hi Mike,
Technically, yes, an avocado tree that tall can be transplanted. To do it successfully you’ll need to excavate as many roots as possible and keep them intact, which is not always easy. Help from friends might be necessary. Doing it during mild (not hot and sunny) weather is ideal. It can also help to prune the top of the tree a bit because that means the roots will have fewer leaves to support.
Hi Greg,
Thank you so much, can not wait to get started and hope for the best.
Take care.
Kind Regards
Mike
Port Elizabeth.
South Africa
Hi Greg,
I really want to plant a Reed or Wurtz in my backyard. I’m in Zone 9b the location will be NW corner of my block fence. There’s 14’ + between north wall and queen Palm and queen Palm is next to a pool equipment. 13’ between west wall and Redwood. I don’t know if this is enough room for a Reed. Your thoughts will be highly appreciated. Thank you!
-Kae
Hi Kae,
Technically, this sounds like enough space, but you might have a challenge getting the young tree established since the redwood and palm will start competing with it for its water. I recommend watering in a broad pattern to help with this.
Your site is a wealth of knowledge for a TOTAL novice avocado grower like me. I have a lovely little Gem tree and I’m looking for a buddy B tree for it. Looking for one that isn’t going to grow too big as space is at a premium. I have found a Sharwil. I’m assuming the trees have to have the same flowering season in order to cross-pollinate? I can’t quite find the answer if these two trees would make a good pair. Any information or other suggestion for a buddy would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Hi Tina,
Your question is a good one, and I’ve been meaning to put together a flowering chart to help with this. GEM and Sharwil do overlap in bloom season. I have two of those trees near each other and both are in full bloom today.
Hi Greg,
I just planted a small 5gallon container Hass avocado tree but I am worried that the yard in not big enough. The area I planted the Hass avocado tree is 23 feet by 6.5 feet. Do you think it will be okay in this spot? I would love to plant a Reed tree next to it but it doesn’t seem like there is enough room. Please advice?
Thank you,
Juani
Hi Juani,
If the Hass tree truly can’t go wider than 6.5 feet, you will have a lot of constant pruning work on your hands after the first few years, and especially after a handful of years.
My 6’ tall 3yr old Reed (planted thanksgiving 2020) is in a large bottomless planter. Since that time the soil has sunk and the planter needs 18” of dirt. I don’t know how to add the dirt with out piling up against the tree trunk. Should I dig up tree and put more soil in hole?
Also the leaves are cupping. It was 105* yest in our yard in Murrieta CA yest. I gave it a good drink the day before. Need more water?
I am so afraid that my avocado trees knock my wells and breaks my Florida down can you give me advice? Thank you Angie
Sorry I meant my walls and flooring
Can I plant two avocado trees in one whole on my backyard slope in Mission Viejo, Orange County
I live in San Diego, about 6 miles inland. I have fairly sandy soil. I am planning to plant a few fruit trees including a Hass. Given my flexibility, should I plant a 2nd avo, and if so, what variety do you suggest? Is it best to have both an A and a B tree? Thank you.
Hi Rick,
I think that the best complement for Hass is Reed. See more about this here: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/whats-the-best-kind-of-avocado-to-grow/
Hass will produce well without the Reed or any other avocado in your yard though.
Thanks Greg. Very helpful link.
Is 10×10 foot necessary even for the dwarf varieties like wurtz? I unfortunately don’t have that much space available for one tree. I’m wondering if I could grow a Wurtz in a 4×4 area or even in a 22″ wide container?
Hi Ross,
I’ve been wondering the same thing. I would like to plant an avocado tree 9 feet from my house. It seems like LittleCado/Wurtz would be the best companion to my mature Bacon avocado tree. I hope someone can comment on this.
Hi Ross and Paul,
You are right that a 10 foot by 10 foot space is not truly necessary. The reason I said that is anything less gives you few fruit.
As long as you know that keeping an avocado tree pruned to under 10×10 will prevent it from making much fruit, then go for it.
How much is “few” and “much” anyway? I think you could average a maximum of around 40 avocados per year from a tree kept smaller than 10×10. I say this based on how much trees in my yard have yielded at that size and based on how much I’ve seen trees yield in high density commercial groves.
I wouldn’t expect 40 avocados from such a tree every year, but you could reach around 60 one year and 20 the next and so on in order to average around 40. That would be from a high-yielding variety like Reed or GEM and a tree maintained in excellent condition. (Wurtz could also produce nearly that much.)
Very important question I haven’t seen addressed here. How tall is it safe to allow a tree in a ~10×10 square to grow? I’m in a garden home with a small strip for a yard and I put in a stainless barrier to prevent the tree from exceeding this boundary, but with such limitation, can I just let it grow? At what point do I need to prune it to prevent the wind from knocking. It over? I’ll gladly take an answer from anyone that has a clue. Thank you!
Hi Greg,
I’ve seen avocado trees growing in patches of dirt 10′ x 10′ or similar get more than 20′ tall and stay like that for decades without problems. I’m specifically thinking of some Bacon and Zutano trees.
We lives in the southern tip of North Carolina. Which avocado tree might do best for us?
Littlecado question for you from Glendora. I moved my Littlecado to a new backyard location about 5 years ago when it was about 5 yrs old. My idea was to espalier it near my fence line. It is an unusual grower with branches growing around each other, an almost congested habit, so different from the other cultivars I have in my yard. It stands about 8’ tall & 4’ wide, I did stake the leader because its habit is floppy. About 8-10 fruit have formed in clusters of about 3 to 4. The fruit appears shiny & green. The ripening period states September..could this be just a week away? Would love to hear when others pick the fruit in southern CA. Honestly, this is a phenomenal little tree & the possibilities of growing an avocado in the modern tiny yards of today’s homes make this cultivar very valuable.
Hi Audrey,
I like how you described your Wurtz (Littlecado) as congested. That’s a good way of putting it. The earliest I have eaten a good Wurtz avocado harvested in Southern California is late April. I doubt your fruit will be anywhere near ready in September. Please update me on how yours taste when you do pick them.