Garden Blog - Top Tropicals
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Avocado Variety Guide: Snack or Guacamole?
Collector's inspiration
Photo above: It's NOT an egg plant! It's a Red Russell :)
A comprehensive guide to Avocado varieties by: flower type A or B, tree habit, fruit shape and quality, cold hardiness, origin, season and more!
Many gardeners who are eager to purchase their first avocado tree often wonder which variety to choose. Most people are familiar with two primary classifications commonly found in grocery stores: Small & Black or Large & Green.
Frequently, we hear customers ask, "Do you have the one I like, the smaller fruit with bumpy skin? Not that big, tasteless, and watery one!" What they may not realize is that this basic (but practical!) classification doesn't encompass all the wonderful qualities avocados have to offer. There are numerous hybrids in cultivation, and once you plant your first tree and taste the REAL fruit (not from the grocery store), you'll be eager to explore other varieties. It's a guarantee! While it's true that avocado fruit can vary in "butter" content and how "watery" or "buttery" it is, most superior varieties are equally delicious. Or perhaps we should say they are so versatile and distinct in taste that you'll start building your collection of these trees, much like fruit enthusiasts do with mango varieties.
Every garden has unique requirements based on climate, temperature, and property size. These factors must be considered before planning your avocado garden. Additionally, many gardeners may wonder about Type A vs. Type B classifications and whether they need more than one tree to yield fruit. You'll find all this valuable information in our Avocado Variety Guide.
Basic classifications of avocados
1) By flowering pattern and pollination behavior: Type A and Type B
2) By origin: Mexican, Guatemalan, and West Indian (along with many hybrids)
3) By fruit appearance, texture and taste: Guacamole Avocado ("Smooth skin") and Snack Avocado ("California" or "Hass" type)
4) By growth habit: full size trees, free branching or upright, semi-dwarf low growing, and dwarf ("condo avocados")
5) By cold hardiness: Cold sensitive (requiring frost-free conditions), cold tolerant (able to withstand light frost), and cold hardy (capable of enduring some hard freezes once established)
6) By ripening season: Early or Spring (March-June), Mid or Summer (July-September), and Late or Fall-Winter (October-February).
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What is the best Avocado variety?
Grow Your Own Food
Q: Most trees in my yard were destroyed by hurricane Ian and now I have to start my landscape from scratch. So I decided to plant something useful. Avocado is my favorite. In the stores I see two kinds, large green or small black, but I was told there are many varieties. When I googled the best variety of avocado I found your website. You have quite a selection! Now I don't know which variety to chose. Can you please help? I have room for several trees.
A: Indeed there are many varieties of Avocado (we grow over 50 kinds). Some avocado lovers try
to get as many varieties as they can fit in their yards because every variety
has its unique flavor and texture.
2 main Avocado kinds that we usually see in grocery stores are -
1) smaller black fruit with rich, buttery texture - Mexican and Guatemalan
hybrids
2) green avocado, some can be as large as a small melon, but they have
light texture - West Indian types
There are many hybrids. How to pick the right variety for your yard?
Check out our Avocado variety page and scroll down to see a chart that shows characteristics of fruit, tree size, cold hardiness, and chose the right variety that fits your needs.
Below are just a few picks from our horticulturist - our favorite varieties that we enjoy and highly recommend to others.
Best tasting large green Avocado hybrids:
Bernecker, Beta, Doni, Catalina, Pollock.
Best tasting black or dark green, buttery Avocado hybrids:
Winter Mexican, Brogdon, Black Prince, Day, Fantastic, Florida Hass, Marcus Pumpkin, Mexicola Grande, Nishikawa, Waldin
Dwarf trees (black fruit):
For local customers: see large 15-gal size Avocado trees, delivery and installation available!
Today all avocados are 13% off instantly with no min. order, take advantage of this quick sale and get all varieties you want!
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The Magic of the Avocado
The Magic of the Avocado... Is it a super-food? A super fruit? The
perfect side dish for any meal? Or does the avocado just taste great? If you need
a proof of the Avocado's status as a super-food, here are some of the benefits.
READ MORE >>
At TopTropicals, healthy and tasty avocados are available in a number of varieties, over 30 choices right now! We also have prices as low as $59 and you can always use our newsletter coupons to save even more. Try all the varieties and start or expand your Avocado Super Garden today!
Cat Philimon (a.k.a. Philly Cheesesteak) eating Avocado
Avocado makes everyone happy! It is Cat Philimon's favorite food. We always have to share with him. Otherwise he just helps himself. He knows it's good for you!
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10 secrets of growing a perfect Mango tree
Grow Your Own Food
How to grow a healthy and productive mango tree?
1. Right variety. Select a vigorous grower for
in-ground planting, or a condo mango cultivar for growing in container. More info on varieties.
2. Soil must be well-drained. If planted in the ground, plant on a
little elevation (see How to plant a tree)
3. Full sun is a must. The more sun, the more flower and fruit.
4. Water. Keep mango tree on a dry side, water young trees regularly
but let top of the soil dry before next watering. Mango trees don't like wet
feet.
5. Air circulation is important for mango tree to eliminate
diseases. Allow enough space from other trees and buildings.
6. Fungicide. Mango leaves are very susceptible do fungal issues,
especially in humid climates likу Florida. Spray fungicide (Copper or similar)
according to the label, once a month.
7. Fertilize year around with every watering with liquid fertilizer
Sunshine
Boosters Mango Tango. Apply Micro-elements once a month and use other good supplements.
8. Shape. Check out Video:
">Tipping your mango tree - to shape the most vigorous and productive
tree.
9. Protect from hard freeze. Mango tree doesn't take freezing
temperatures well. In subtropical areas Mango can be protected. Alternatively, it can successfully produce in
container, if moved indoors during cold weather.
10. Fruit. Mango tree produces thousands of little flowers, many of
them can set fruit. Do not let a small, young tree to keep more than 1-2
fruit, remove extra, to avoid exhaustion. Allow 2-3 years for the tree to
establish until it produces a full crop. Apply Sunshine Honey supplement to your tree for sweeter fruit.
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Avocado Black Prince
Grow Your Own Food
Avocado variety - what's the taste?
We obtained Black
Prince Avocado variety this year and at first didn't know much about it.
Until we tried the first fruit! The fruit was large, oval, green and
slightly pebbly. We were not sure if it would taste like some green avocados -
watery and less buttery? The fruit turned black couple days after it was picked,
ripened and softened. We were pleasantly surprised, Black Prince deserves its
title! The fruit pulp is thick, and has a rich, nutty flavor. The little
trees grew this year vigorously and didn't show any bug or deficiency problems.
Superior variety for a backyard grower! Giving it 5 stars! *****
We have Black Prince
Avocado in 3 gal pots, as well as in XX-Large size for local pick up - for those who want a large fruiting
size tree, please contact our Garden Center to pre-order from our Growing Farm (B-Farm).
It can be delivered and installed for you!
Why grow your own Avocado tree?
Why grow your own Avocado tree? This is why. Now we import 89% of the U.S. avocado from Mexico. How much of a difference we could make if we were all growing our own avocados? Support our own horticulture, help Avocado to become grown in the USA!
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Grow your own food:
Avocado Q & A
from Ed Jones, the Avocado Guy
Q: Do I need to have more than one avocado tree in order to produce fruit?
A: While a single avocado tree will normally produce enough fruit for most people, it never hurts to have more than one tree and even more than one variety to increase the chances for good pollination. Be sure to look at our catalog for the many different varieties available from our store.
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7 secrets of a Happy Avocado Tree
Q: I purchased an avocado tree from local garden centers three times but every time it dies on me. My neighbor has a nice tree in his yard and it grows beautifuly. I just purchased one online from you and I need to know what I was doing wrong? Are there any secrets how to make an Avocado tree happy? I have a big garden and several mango trees, but no luck with Avocado...
A: Avocado tree is famous for being such a pain to establish. But once it starts growing, it's growing! We will share a few simple tricks how to make it right.
1. Plant high and provide good drainage. Wet feet is number one
reason for failing an avocado tree. It doesn't like wet soil and won't
tolerate soggy conditions. Plant it in the highest spot of your yard and slightly on
a "hill" (3-4" higher than the surrounding ground).
DO NOT plant Avocado tree in low spots or wet spots of your yard. Save
those spots for Cannas or Black Sapote or even a Mango if you want a fruit tree there.
2. Use quality soil. Use only well-drained soil with high content of
organic matter. You may add compost to existing sandy soil, or add some professional potting mix that contains pine bark and perlite. Remove
rocks from the hole if you see any while digging. Dig a big hole and fill it
with a good soil; compact the soil in the hole very well before setting the
root ball. Reminder: plant the tree high!
3. Water regularly. After planting an Avocado tree in a nice high
spot with a good drainage, start watering it... daily! Avocado likes water,
although it doesn't like wet feet! Once you figure out this combination, you've
got the recipe of success. Water by hand daily for the first week after
planting, then twice a week for couple weeks, then once you notice new growth -
you may rely on sprinklers, but keep watching the tree and don't let the soil
over-dry. It must be slightly moist, but not soggy.
4. Fertilize. For such finicky tree, we suggest mild formulas of
fertilizers. Dry fertilizers may burn roots, especially of a young tree. Even
smart-release granulated fertilizers should be used very carefully. The best
way to feed your young avocado tree - get a complete set of Sunshine Boosters Pro system. It has all necessary elements for all
stages of plant development and never burns the roots. Sunshine Boosters Pro can
be used with every watering - no need to guess how much and when. Besides,
it is a natural fertilizer based on amino acids - exactly what you want to use
on your fruit trees and other edibles!
5. Boost immune system of the tree. Apply Sunshine Epi plant hormone every 2 weeks as a foliar spray to boost
immune system and metabolism of the tree and protect it from diseases. Epi makes
plants (especially young plants) grow twice faster! It also enhances effect
of fertilizers by increasing plant metabolism.
6. Do not prune until you see significant growth. The tree is small
and can use as many leaves and branches as possible for photosynthesis and
healthy metabolism. We suggest to avoid pruning for at least the first year. On
the second year your tree most likely will be covered with flowers (assuming
you followed fertilizer program). Let it go through the blooming stage and
setting fruit; prune in Fall after fruiting is over.
7. Keep number of fruit to minimum for the first crop. Don't let the
small tree exhaust itself. Keep just 2-3 fruit to develop. The next year, no
need to control fruit quantity, the tree will develop as many as it can
support.
P.S. If you got the tree from a mail-order, remember to establish it
in a pot before planting in the ground; move gradually from shade to sun.
Follow planting instructions.
Learn more about Sunshine Nutrition System - a Natural solution for your garden.
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NEW VIDEO:
ABC7 Fort Myers News:
Avocado Varieties at Top Tropicals
We continue the series of ABC-7 News on Top Tropicals selections. Previously, we showed you segments about Butterfly Plants, Rare Fruit Trees, and Mango varieties. Today's video is about growing an Avocado tree in your home garden.
Growing your own avocado tree has many benefits. You can enjoy fresh, delicious avocados right from your garden. Avocado trees are attractive, provide shade, and enhance your landscape. There are many avocado varieties to choose from, offering unique flavors, sizes, and ripening times. You will find Avocado trees for sale online right here at TopTropicals.com. Our trees can be shipped to you!
Watch the news segment by Rachel Anderson for ABC-7:
.
Subscribe to our Channel:
Stay updated with TopTropicals Videos by subscribing to our channel at YouTube.com/TopTropicals and get our latest video news of what is fruiting and blooming!
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Condo Mango
Q: I was curious about indoor fruiting mango trees. I live in upstate New York and was thinking about trying to grow an indoor tree for fruit. I have a small heated greenhouse. Is there a variety that can be grown from seed that would suit my purposes and if not what is the most economical way I could obtain a cutting or small grafted plant? I keep my greenhouse around 60F in the winter and have no supplemental lighting. Are there any varieties that may work in a sunroom or other well lit indoor location?
A:
There are many dwarf varieties of mango suitable for container culture. They
are called "condo mangoes".
The most popular condo varieties are: Carrie, Cogshall, Cushman, Fairchild,
Graham, Ice Cream, Julie
, Mallika, Nam Doc Mai,
Pickering. You may read more about them in our online
catalog. You may also look into variety
Lancetilla which is also a compact tree, and produces one of the biggest size
fruit, up to 5 pounds. If you want some rare variety that hardly anyone else has -
try Baptiste, an exotic Haitian dessert
mango.
Your greenhouse should work for the winter time. Mango trees can take
as low as mid 40s during winter and even lower as long as that cold is
occasional. If you keep the temperature around 60, this should work well for over
wintering. Just make sure to reduce watering to a minimum, because cool
temperatures, low light and wet soil - is a bad combination for tropical plants,
especially for mango trees which prefer to be kept on a dry side.
Many indoor gardeners have fruiting mango trees in their collection. However,
keep in mind that the most important requirement for a mango is full sun.
While you may over winter the plant for a few months in a low light conditions,
in order for it to flower and produce fruit it needs lots of light. If moving
the tree into full sun your yard during the summer is possible, this would
be the best solution.
We always recommend
SUNSHINE boosters for both over wintering tropical plants in colder
climates, and for indoor gardening. SUNSHINE applications will help your tree to
cope with cool temperatures and low light conditions. This will also
dramatically increase flowering and fruiting performance. Another important factor for
keeping your container plant healthy is quality of your potting soil. We
offer a special
professional mix that contains lots of good stuff: coconut fiber, peat moss, pine
bark, and perlite. Fertilizing potted plants
is also very important during the warm season, because this is the only way
for them to get nutrients (which in the ground can be reached by spreading
root system).
As far as seedlings vs. grafting - the only way to
have a nicely fruiting mango tree is to plant a grafted variety. Seedlings start
producing only after 8-15 years, and the quality of such fruit may be
questionable. Only grafted plants can guarantee the desired taste of a variety.
Besides, grafted mangoes start producing immediately - you may see fruit forming
on plants as small as 3 ft, in 3 gal containers. However, during the first
1-2 years you will need to remove extra fruit and leave only 1-2 fruit so the
plant doesn't get exhausted and has enough energy to establish strong root
system.
For fun stories about growing mango, check out our Radio
Show recording YO Tango Mango!
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How to feed a Mango tree...
and to grow a Dwarf Mango
How to fertilize a Mango tree
Q: My mango trees that I bought and planted last august now have fruit. I bought 2 types of fertilizer from you and never used it. Should I use your fertilizer now?
A: It is a perfect time now to fertilize your plants as they
start active growth.
For mango trees, we recommend liquid fertilizer Sunshine Booster - Mango Tango. It is formulated for Mango trees,
especially for container grown. It improves quantity and quality of flowers and
ability to set fruit, reduces bud-flower-fruit drop. Can be used as often as
with every watering. For best results, use in combination with Sunshine Honey and Sunshine Superfood plant supplements. Its scientifically-balanced
stable formula is organic Amino-acid based and has NO EDTA chelators to eliminate
nutrients lockup; it does not affect crop taste.
Additionally, you may use slow-release granulated fertilizer Mango-Food once a month during hot season only. Dosage: 1 teaspoon per
each gal of soil.
Water-soluble fertilizers can be also used, however, those are usually
EDTA-chelated which is not as efficient as Amono-acid based Sunshine Boosters and
may create nutrients build up, especially if overdosed in containers.
For in-ground mango trees, you may use all the above, and slow-release
granulated fertilizer can be applied in larger quantities: spread a handful
around the drip line.
Remember that only liquid Sunshine Boosters can be applied year around. With other fertilizers, you need to be careful not to overdose, and apply only during hot weather (when night temperatures are steadily above 65F).
How to grow a Dwarf Mango tree
Q: I received the Ice cream mango tree in great condition (thank you for the ingenious packing job) on Wednesday and have planted it in a pot slightly bigger than the root ball. I plan to grow the tree on my front porch, so how big a container should I ultimately use when the tree outgrows this pot? How big a container does it need to fruit? I hope to keep it around 6-7 feet high, if possible. I live in Hawaii.
A: Ice Cream mango is a perfect variety for container culture, and it should be happy in Hawaii. You did everything right. Keep it in this small pot for now and wait until it starts vigorous growth in Summer. Once it starts growing (and you will notice roots growing too, sometimes they try to grow through the holes in the bottom of the pot), then it's time to step up into a bigger container (7-10 gal). Eventually you may use container size as large as 15 gal. Ice cream mango is slow growing and compact, and you will be able to maintain it under 7 ft with very minimal pruning if any.
