The avocado is a familiar nutritious exotic fruit native to South America and Africa. The tree belongs to the Laurel family and has dense green, varnished leaves and fruits that vary in color from green to purple. Another name of the plant is the alligator pear.
In room conditions it is a tree with a hard trunk and leaves located closer to the top. With proper care can bear fruit.
Making avocado bonsai in 5 steps
Of course, you can cultivate an avocado as a bonsai. Any tree can be cultivated as a bonsai, with some it is more difficult than with others. The more large-leaved a tree is, the more difficult it is.
As a beginner who has never grown a bonsai before, it may make more sense to start with a simpler tree that has smaller foliage. The large foliage leaves need to be kept small.
It is quite a lengthy process, around five to ten years must be allowed for a deciduous tree.
Step number 1
The very first thing you need to do is free the root system, carefully remove the soil for this. Knock off the soil and wash the roots once with water.
Now, unfortunately, you have to cut off parts of the root system. A bonsai typically has a rather shallow pot, the avocado unfortunately has a rather long root system. For this reason, unfortunately, the root system needs to be shortened a bit. Cut off the lower parts of the roots.
There is an alternative method. To allow the lower part of the roots to die and the upper part of the roots to continue to develop, you can also tie a cable tie around the lower part of the root tree. As a result, the lower roots die and the upper root area continues to spread. This has the advantage over cutting with a knife to ensure that no fungal infection can develop.
Step number 2
Replant the avocado in a shallow pot with fresh soil. The soil should be well permeable to water and oxygen. It depends on the grain size. It should not be too fine. The coarser the soil, the more permeable it is.
Step number 3
Cut off all the leaves, I know it hurts, but unfortunately the leaves are too big for a bonsai. The leaves also come back faster than you think. It takes about a month for the first shoots to form again.
Step number 4
Put a wire to let the stem grow around the avocado tree the way you want, I force the avocado tree to grow sideways here
Step number 5
Water and fertilize the avocado bonsai, the tree has now suffered a lot of damage and can now use nutrients to grow back quickly.
Home care
If you successfully grow orange or lemon in your apartment, then the avocado is easy to keep in the right conditions. The plant is very heat-loving, any temperature jumps affect its well-being. The pot should be placed in a well-lit place, but the shade is not bad for this tropical plant. From direct sunlight is better shaded or removed.
Watering
In summer it needs abundant watering, and in winter – moderate watering. In home conditions “alligator pear”, as a rule, does not flower and fruit, but if a miracle happened and flowers and fruits appeared on the shoots of the tropical plant in your apartment, it needs more water, which ensures the juiciness of fruits. Watering with cold water is not recommended.
Soil
The soil is very demanding, the substrate should be very light, loose, so that the roots can be oxygenated. The best for this plant is a mixture of peat and sand.
Humidity
Another very important condition when caring for avocados. If the humidity is low, the plant will drop its leaves and lose its decorative appearance. You should always have a sprayer on hand and spray the leaves of the plant daily during the summer.
Feeding
Fertilizer is applied during the active vegetation period. It is not necessary to fertilize in winter. It is best to use mineral complex compositions, which are sold in the store.
Pruning
To make the crown look neat, and the leaves were more lush, you should prune or pinch the shoots. Most often pruned 3-4 cm from the uppermost cuttings.
Avocado propagation by seed
Avocados are propagated by cuttings, but the most interesting way to grow the tree at home is to plant the seed of the fruit. An important condition for germination and rooting is temperature. In the room where the stone is germinated, it must be very warm. In a container is poured ready substrate, bought in the store, moisten the soil and plant the seed with the sharp end at the top. At the same time, half of the pit should be on the surface. Cover the seedling with foil and regularly moisten the soil, not letting it dry out. It may take 1-2 months for the seedling to germinate. After a few leaves appear, the plant can be transplanted into a separate pot.
Rooting the seed can also be done in water. To do this, the lower, blunt part of the seed is pierced with a sharp object or cut with a knife and placed in water. In 2-3 weeks the nut will start to crack, and white shoots will appear in the cracks that will open. At this point, you can plant the seed in the soil and cover it with foil from time to time opening and watering it.
Avocado species
In indoor floriculture avocado is not common, it is almost impossible to buy this tree and in the store. Most often, flower growers grow it from the seeds of the fruit, which are imported to us from tropical countries.
This species is called Persea Americana (Persea americana). Another name is alligator pear (alligator pear).
Avocado leaf diseases
The main problems in care are related to leaf loss and drying out. This occurs most often due to high air dryness. Avocados need to be sprayed, but this must be done carefully, making sure not to get too much water on the trunk.
Withered leaves can indicate a phytophthora infection on the roots. This fungal disease is untreatable in avocados, so you need to remove the plant from the pot immediately and remove the infected part of the roots.
Pythium mite and scab may appear if the room is too dry. These pests can kill the plant very quickly, so its leaves, trunk and soil should be treated immediately with insecticides (Actofit, Fitoverm, etc.).
