Growing an Avocado Tree at Home

A great way to save money and brighten up your home is sprout your own plants. One of the easiest things you can do is use the seeds and pits you would normally toss out. Avocados make beautiful indoor plants, and if you live in a warm climate, in a few years you can plant it outside to grow a tree! Fruit bearing-trees take many years before they start to give fruit, but are still lovely and rewarding to grow at home. Below are instructions on sprouting an avocado.

1) Cut open a fresh, ripe avocado length-wise and scoop out the pit. Eat the fruit! Yum yum yum.

2) Wash off the pit, removing any traces of fruit.

3) Press 4 toothpicks into the pit, half-way up and around the middle. Use them to balance the pit in a glass of water. The pointy side should be up, and the bottom quarter of the pit should sit in the water.

4) Let the pit rest in the water, keeping it at room temperature or warmer, for a few weeks. If you live in a colder climate or are doing this in the winter, you might want to use a heating pad or a grow lamp.

5) Refill the water as needed to keep the pit moist.

The pit will sprout roots, and eventually will crack in half with a sprout coming out at the top. This will probably take a few months. Once it sprouts, you can transplant it to a pot, gently covering the roots with soil and putting it in a place with plenty of sun.

Sprouting is the hard part, so once you have the sprout you can sit back and enjoy! Until next time, keep it clean!