Can I Bonsai an Avocado Plant?
Can you make an avocado bonsai?
You can grow a tree from the pit found in the avocado fruit to make avocado bonsai tree. You should grow a small plant with a planting method known as bonsai. This is the method of growing and pruning a small shrub or tree that resembles ancient trees growing in nature. The avocado bonsai plant is always the size of the average household tomato. You may start with an avocado pit or rooted bonsai cutting vine.
Can you keep an avocado tree small?
With a small number of cuts done every year, and possibly some pinches, you can keep an avocado plant down to 15 feet (my Hass), 12 feet (my Reed), even 10 feet.
And if the pruning cuts are done at the right place and in the right time, avocado trees will still make quite a lot of fruit for their small size.
Pruning Avocado Bonsai
An avocado bonsai must be pruned back as it grows to promote branching. The pinching process keeps the plant shorter than normal, while strengthening the trunk. Dip a pair of pruning scissors into a solution of 1 part bleach to 9 parts water for about 5 minutes to sterilize them. Use the sterile scissors to trim the leaves and prune the branches.
Training the Avocado Bonsai
You should use pliable copper or aluminum wire made for bonsai gardening to train the horizontal growth of the branches. The wire allows you to bend the branch to the desired growing direction. Prune and train the bonsai avocado once or twice per year when new growth appears. If you feel uncomfortable using wire, you can train the branches with fishing line used as guide wires.
