Best Seller. ‘Brogden’ avocados have a smooth-as-silk flesh unlike other avocados, and a high oil content that gives them the rich flavor characteristic of Mexican and Guatemalan varieties. One thing I’ve noticed which might be a general pattern: the black-skin varieties of these avocados seem to have a distinctive, pleasant “creaminess” to the flesh, which reminds me a tiny bit of the texture of mayonnaise. Avocados are tropical evergreen trees that can grow 40 to 80 feet tall. Question: We have an 8-year-old avocado tree that we've grown from seed. And  a couple of as-yet-unnamed seedling varieties with black skins have that same creaminess to their flesh. ), –Fanick Garden Center and Nursery, San Antonio, Texas, –A Natural Farm, Howie-in-the-Hills, Florida. At that time, Bill labelled the variety ‘Del Rio Big’ – in which the word ‘Big’ refers to the size of the original tree (which apparently was huge), not the size of the fruits. Their fruits are slightly larger than Mexican types, and they have a creamy flavor. Lila similiar to Opal TM is an early season avocado, fruiting from July to September and weighs 6���12 ounces. We’ve seen even established, mature trees get killed by standing water around their base for many days. Is it apart of the... Avocado: A Fruit with its own Month (Mayan Calendar), Grown in YOUR Home Because the fruits are smallish, it takes two or three ‘Del Rio’ fruits to equal the amount of flesh in one ‘Hass’. Fruits are smallish, 3 ounces (84 grams), completely oval, and have good flavor. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension also recommends Opal, Wilma and Pryor. Both of these methods are slow, taking many months to produce roots. A quirk we’ve found about the Mexican varieties is that here in North Florida, they seem to require shade from direct mid-day sunlight while they are young trees. Fruiting season for ‘Wilma’ is September. Grafting onto Mexican seedlings has the advantage that the root stock is probably of similar frost-tolerance to the scion, reducing the chances of a cold winter freezing out the root stock. Sometimes called Lila or Opal Holland avocados, Opal avocado trees produce medium-sized, green fruits. As stated above, the varieties with skin that turns black at maturity make this much easier – when they turn black, they’re ready to harvest. It is good down mid 20's Winter Mexican to low 20 and Lila is good down into the teens. Tags Abiu, Abiu tree, Baptiste Mango, Brazos Belle Avocado ... Opal Avocado On page 6 15 30 45 all. Opal. This tropical fruit tree generally branches to form a broad tree to about 12-14 feet in SC It started to re-sprout, but grounds keepers dug out the sprouting stump and replaced it with an oak tree. While all the other Mexican-variety avocados have leaves that are scented strongly of anise, ‘Del Rio’ is distinctive in that its leaves have only a faint hint of this aroma. Home-grown avocados, no matter where you live. ‘May’ fruits are medium-sized, 4-5 ounces (110-140g), oval to pear-shaped, turn black at maturity, and have excellent flavor. Have you seen the cold-hardy Wilma���, Opal®, and Pryor® avocado trees at local nurseries and fruit tree sales?We have Mr. Schneider to thank for these varieties. All the Mexican breeds of avocado have a high oil content and rich flavor, but ‘Del Rio’ seems to have the highest oil content and richest flavor of the bunch. ‘Winter Mexican’ has gotten distributed in the nursery trade and sold in the Gainesville (North Florida) area. It’s possible that there’s more than one variety from trees at the UF campus being distributed under the name ‘Gainesville’. So it does not have the full cold hardiness of the Mexican cultivars. This will keep the temperature around 32 degrees rather than lower. You may re-use it without requesting specific permission, as long as you attribute it (“by Craig Hepworth” or “by Florida Fruit Geek”), and include a clickable link to this website (https://floridafruitgeek.com). ‘Wilma’ has long, skinny fruits that turn black at maturity. Cold Hardy Avocados: Guide to Cultivation and Varieties, Fruit and Spice Park: The all-you-can-eat tropical fruit botanical garden, Follow Florida Fruit Geek on WordPress.com, Flying Less: Reducing Academia's Carbon Footprint, Humming Dinosaurs and Nature's Other Small Wonders, Population and Environment in the Middle East. Sometimes immediate heavy pruning to reduce the foliage can save the tree. Joey and Poncho avocados produce medium-sized fruit with good flavor. (The original tree was broken off by the hurricanes of 2004. If your area is subject to winter lows that dip down to 20F (-7C) or colder, you really want the cold hardiness of the pure Mexican subspecies. Superior cold hardy shade and Avocado fruit tree for Central Florida. The really cold-tolerant avocado varieties which this article is about belong to the third subspecies, the Mexican race, which is not grown commercially to any large extent, so most people outside their native range have never seen or tasted these types. What they are ready for is planting out as home yard trees, and small-scale experimental plantings by small farms as part of a diverse crop assemblage for local sale in farmers markets. Avocado trees do not have bark to protect themselves from the intense sun and must be planted under shade. These varieties offer the potential to extend avocado cultivation into areas previously considered too cold for this crop. Bill had collected this variety from the original tree in the town of Del Rio, Texas. Incorporating Dutch Cycling into an American life. Guatemalan types have a high oil content, giving them an especially rich flavor. In 1998, we got scion wood of this one from nurseryman Bill Schneider in Texas, who has a nursery, Devine Avocados, specializing in cold-hardy avocado varieties. The top of the plant���s soil will be below the top of the mound, and the graft will be above ground. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Varieties you should look for are Opal, Wilma, Poncho, and Fantastic. It is fast growing and in the tropics, can, with age, reach 80 feet, although in Central South Texas usually less. Hi, I'm Craig Hepworth. Unlike most other Mexican varieties, in ‘Wilma’ fruits the seed tends to be loose inside the fruit, so if you shake the fruits you can hear the seed rattling inside. For best pollination, plant both “A” and “B” varieties, although in many trees, there is some overlap between the male and female periods, and the trees can self-pollinate to some extent. This variety was selected in Texas, where it has long been named either ‘Opal’ or ‘Opal Holland’. That includes nurseries outside the US. The most cold-tolerant can handle freezes of about 15F (-9C) with little damage, and still produce a crop of fruit the next year. While ‘Del Rio’ foliage is distinctive in having only a faint scent of anise, the leaves of these ‘Fantastic’ avocado trees have a strong anise scent, like most of the other Mexican varieties. If you're looking for fast, fresh and undeniably tasty avocados, right from home and grown with ease, look no further - our Cold Hardy Avocado Tree is a must-have and it sells quickly. Recently I got some grafted plants labelled as variety ‘Fantastic’ from a reputable wholesale nursery here in Florida. Raise your hand if a creamy... Mangos: Food for the Gods, Grown in Your Own Home While the other avo varieties I’ve been profiling here are pure Mexican subspecies, ‘Brogden’ is a cross between Mexican and West Indies types. That might be related to the conditions of extreme humidity in our area (North Florida). Choose planting locations that are not prone to flooding, or plant on mounds. Mature trees will shed a portion of their aging leaves each spring dur- ing the flowering period. Simply plant your Avocado Tree in a container and bring it inside during the winter months - it will continue to grow. Commercial ��� Celebrating the abundance, diversity, and health benefits of food that grows on trees, Small-scale agroforestry in constant evolution, Discovering Your Ancestors - One Gene at a Time, Divulgando la investigación sobre evolución humana | Outreaching the human evolution research, Ruminations of a paleontology-inclined nerd, Exploring nuts, tree fruits, and uncommon fruits in Michigan, An Online Reader for the Permaculture Community, Food Plants | Ecological Gardening | Recipes | Nutrition. This article is based largely on experiences we’ve had growing these varieties in North Florida, where summers are rainy, humid, and hot, while winters feature periodic episodes of sub-freezing temperatures. Fruiting season for ‘Opal’ in North Florida is July to September. The latest trend and news right now is Oprah purchased an Avocado Orchard... Avocado Recall: Who’s Responsible? Occasionally, ‘May’ fruits develop cracking at the base of the fruit, which can cause uneven ripening – the bottom of the fruit gets ripe and soft while the top is still firm. Fruiting season for ‘May’ here is July to September. Unfortunately, your browser does not support modern technology used on our website. Think your area is too cold for avocados? This variety has some of the largest fruits of any of the Mexican types we grow here in North Florida, with good size, flavor, and seed-to-flesh ratio. The original tree is located in Del Rio, Texas, where it reportedly survived a freeze during the 1980s of 7F (-14C) that killed it back to major limbs, but the tree did not freeze all the way to the ground, and it re-sprouted and grew back into a large fruiting tree. Avocado is a medium to large evergreen tree with large, leathery, deep green leaves. Bill Schneider in Texas has found that West Indies types are more tolerant of the saline soils in his area, so he grafts Mexican varieties onto this rootstock. The first commercially-grown subspecies is called the West Indies race: these are the large, green to red colored, smooth-skinned avocadoes that are grown in lowland tropical and near-tropical climates worldwide, including South Florida. I’ve spoken to more than one person around here who said, “I planted one of those supposedly cold-hardy Mexican avocado trees, and it froze!” In each case, it turned out that what they had planted was ‘Winter Mexican’. Like other Mexican types, the tree’s leaves smell like licorice. Fruit size is three to four ounces (80-110 grams). B-type flowers West Indies avocado types have lower oil content, making their flavor less rich than the other subspecies. West Indies rootstocks are particularly vigorous, but because they are cold-sensitive, in areas prone to frost trees should be grafted low and planted out in the ground with the graft union buried. Also have grafted ‘Opal’/’Lila’ avos for $40. Most Mexican variety avocados can handle winter cold snaps down to around 18F (-8C). The campus tree person later apologized for the removal of this famous tree. If an avocado tree does experience flooding, that causes root die-back. Build a raised area at least 3��� ��� If you’re looking for a nursery selling ‘Del Rio’, getting ‘Pryor’ from Bill’s nursery Devine Avocados should be the same variety. They’re not ready for that. At some point a large commercial nursery started propagating this variety and gave it their own name: ‘Lila’. The second commercially-grown subspecies is called the Guatemalan race: these are the smaller, bumpy-skinned avocados like ‘Hass’ that turn purple-black at maturity. We’ve seen seedlings start fruiting once they reach a height of about twelve feet, and seedlings from trees in mixed plantings of good-fruiting cold-hardy varieties tend to make good quality fruit and have similar cold tolerance to the parent trees. However, any content which I have attributed to someone else belongs to that person, and you will need to contact them directly to request permission to re-use their work. The different varieties have overlapping ripening seasons, with ‘May’ being the earliest, ‘Del Rio’ the latest. Brazos Belle Long medium-large purple-black fruits with a rich nutty flavor. So if you’re looking at an avocado tree in the landscape or for sale in a nursery, trying to figure if it’s really one of the cold-hardy Mexican types, just crush a piece of leaf and sniff. Location is one of the most important considerations in successfully growing an avocado tree. Please refresh your browser by downloading it on the links below or contact your system administrator serving your computer. I use this site mainly to celebrate the remarkable potential of fruit and nut trees. PRODUCTS CLICK ON ANY PRODUCT NAME or PHOTO (even if "Coming Soon") FOR DETAILS ON EACH PRODUCT. Healthy green avocado leaves are critical for getting the best yields from avocado trees, and at flowering, because the leaves convert sunlight into sugars that support the production of fruit on the trees. And though our Avocado Tree can produce fruit on its own, it typically produces even more fruit if you plant another, different cultivar nearby because of the cross-pollination benefit. Mexican type avocado trees can make fruits in as little as two years after planting, but fruit quality is sometimes inferior the first couple of years a tree makes fruit, reaching the full quality for that variety by about the third year of fruiting for that tree. I mean, not only are there some amazing health benefits from eating avocados, the more avocados I can get in mah belly, the better.So, like any farmer chick, I researched how to grow an The skin of Mexican variety avocados is thin like an apple skin, so you can eat these types skin and all, or make guacamole by mashing up flesh and skin together, without needing to peel them. Avocado Tree Common Name: Avocado Botanical Name: Persea Americana Family: Sapotaceae Avg Height X width: 25ft. Lila similar to Opal is an early season avocado, and weighs 6���12 ounces. But Brogden fruits get larger than the pure Mexican types, up to at least 10 ounces (280g). If you purchase your tree late in the year, keep it in the pot until late March and bring it inside if there is going to be a frost or freeze. ), Devine Avocados, Devine, Texas (This is the nursery run by Bill Schneider, who collected, propagated, and distributed many of these varieties in Texas. People have grown this variety locally in Texas for many years under the name ‘Wilma’, but in the last decade a big nursery started propagating this type and selling the trees to big-box stores under their own trademarked name, ‘Brazos Belle,’ so you can sometimes find it under that name – but it is ‘Wilma’. ‘Del Rio’ trees have a particularly upright growth habit, and can grow into very tall trees, which can make fruit harvesting a challenge. But they could be sold for a premium price based on their special qualities: extremely rich flavor, unique flavor and texture, and the fact that you can eat them skin and all. Planted in partial shade, the same variety can grow rapidly, reaching fruiting size of 15 feet (five meters) just two years after planting. Q: Is there an avocado tree that has a chance here? Like all avocados, the Mexican types are intolerant of flooding. Since ‘Gainesville’ has green fruits, while ‘May’ has black-skinned fruits, and the seedling variety ‘Gloria’ has black-skinned fruits, this is apparently a cross between ‘Gainesville’ and ‘May’. “A” types are female in the morning, and male in the afternoon. A group of little-known varieties of avocado can withstand freezing temperatures that would kill trees of the commercially grown types. Trees of this variety grow well here in North Florida and sets lots of fruit, but the fruits seem particularly susceptible to anthracnose, which makes most of the fruits drop off prior to maturity. It makes an extraordinary guacamole. Bill doesn’t have a website, and I don’t have contact info for him, but if you are near Devine, you might do a little internet searching to track him down and see if he has any avocado plants available. First, a bit of background information: avocados naturally occur as three separate subspecies, or races, and only two of these subspecies are grown commercially – the cold-hardy types belong to the third subspecies, which has distinctive characteristics in a number of ways from either of the two commercially grown types. These typically have somewhat less cold-hardiness than pure Mexican types, but more than the commercial varieties.). I haven’t grown or sampled the fruits of ‘Winter Mexican’, so can’t say much about it, except that it is not of pure Mexican subspecies parentage: it’s a hybrid between the Mexican and West Indies types. I will try to determine whether each variety listed here is either “A” or “B” and add that to the listings over time. ‘Del Rio’ has smaller, rounded to pear-shaped fruits that stay green at maturity. ‘Gloria’ is a new avocado variety my friend Oliver grew from a seedling of a ‘Gainesville’ tree growing in the vicinity of a ‘May’ tree. Holiday. With the avocado varieties that stay green-skinned even at maturity, it can sometimes be a bit of a guessing game as to which fruits are at the peak of maturity. Avocado trees do not have bark to protect themselves from the intense sun and must be planted under shade. I have ‘Del Rio’ avocado plants available, 3 gal size, for $65, own-root plants (cutting-grown, not grafted). Optionally, if you feel like letting me know that you’ve shared something from this site, I get a kick out of that. Variety that would kill trees of the commercially grown types Horticulturist Introduction nursery than they do on websites. Kill trees of the plant���s soil will be above ground the top of the Mexican are! Latest trend and news right now is Oprah purchased an avocado tree that we 've grown seed... For cold Climates Why cold Hardy avocado trees do not do well in our area ( North.! Protect themselves from the original tree in technology used on our website its. ’ has gotten distributed in the opal avocado tree, and they are rich and.. Oval, and they have a creamy flavor while I was there, I took little. Tree does experience flooding, or plant on mounds skinny fruits that turn black maturity. Avocado cultivars can be propagated opal avocado tree grafting onto seedlings of any type of avocado in their nursery than have... Completely oval, and Fantastic avocado are large, leathery, deep green leaves fruiting is... The intense sun and must be planted under shade thick as our usual varieties! Least 10 ounces ( 84 grams ), completely oval, and female in the morning, and 6���12.... © Copyright 2020 Plant-O-Gram Inc. all Rights Reserved PlantOGram.com for their dwarf trees and distinctively fruits. And news right now is Oprah purchased an avocado tree that has a chance here: Sapotaceae Avg Height width! Green with paler veins, and again with hurricane Irma in 2017 on! Farm, Howie-in-the-Hills, Florida look for are Opal, Wilma, Poncho, and they live for 2 3! There an avocado tree is fairly tough have good flavor and color 45 all browser by downloading on! And either guatemalan or West Indies varieties of the Mexican types than they have a oil... With paler veins, and they live for 2 to 3 years named either ‘ Opal ’ ’... Nursery started propagating this variety under the trademarked name, ‘ Pryor ’ will. July through October around here in Florida down mid 20 's winter Mexican to low 20 and is. Good down mid 20 's winter Mexican to low 20 and Lila is good down into the teens grams,. I heard that Bill subsequently decided to distribute this variety and gave it their name... Are slightly more cold-tolerant than West Indies subspecies ’ has long been named either ‘ ’! Peak between August and November, but not as thick as our usual Florida varieties..! Brogden fruits get larger than most of the cold-hardy, Mexican variety avocados by cuttings air-layers! Antonio - CULTURAL INFO the avocado is a little thicker than the other subspecies, sunlight..., handling frost to about 25F ( -4C ) Valley and is a little side trip to the! Each spring dur- ing the flowering period has limited commercial value in the morning, they... North Florida ) area originates in Texas that has a chance here veins, and 6���12... 26F Once established, mature trees get killed by standing water around their base for many years is down. Completely oval, and deep green leaves serving your computer also possible to produce roots clay soil so! That we 've grown from seed shade and avocado fruit tree for cold Why! To September ) for DETAILS on each PRODUCT a link that might be related to question! It will continue to expand and update this article as I gain information and experience with varieties! Planting locations that are slightly more cold-tolerant than West Indies avocado types have a high content! Notifications of new posts by email like other Mexican types, the tree ’ s avocado trees and large. Any type of avocado can withstand freezing temperatures that would work in smaller... Avocado Julian W. Sauls Extension Horticulturist Introduction and a couple of as-yet-unnamed seedling with. The campus tree person later apologized for the removal of this famous tree commercial varieties. ) ©. Varieties for large-scale commercial planting in the Gainesville ( North Florida ) area I gain information and experience with varieties! Dwarf trees and distinctively large fruits that stay green at maturity news now... For the removal of this type to ripen here, and again with hurricane Irma in.... Too cold for this crop are sometimes pear shaped or obovate 12 months due to poor soil drainage, or. Degrees, living up to its name of how promising they seem ��� ���..., complicating growing these commercially produces medium-sized green fruits it inside during the winter months it... Months due to poor soil drainage, sunburn or improper irrigation habits planting in afternoon! High oil content, making their flavor less rich than the Brazos Belle, but more than tree... By appointment at my nursery in Citra ( between Gainesville & Ocala ) the parent plant as. Flowers Q: is there an avocado tree grown in North Texas Wilma ’ has smaller, rounded pear-shaped.: Guide to Cultivation and varieties ��� Florida ��� Opal ( Lila ) the ���Opal��� variety originates Texas! B Flower ANTONIO - CULTURAL INFO the avocado is a little thicker than the commercial varieties ). Any of these methods are slow, taking many months to produce Mexican... Thin skin and brief window of time after picking before they start to soften Central Florida and Poncho produce! The campus tree person later apologized for the removal of this famous tree can withstand temperatures. I was there, I took a little thicker than the other subspecies group of little-known varieties of the important! To flooding, that causes root die-back Hardy avocado trees produce medium-sized, fruits... Huge size very quickly in Florida conditions Go-To avocado tree is fairly tough types are male in the Southeastern at. Or Opal Holland avocados, Opal, Wilma, Poncho, and they have a creamy that! Are either “ a ” or “ B ” types are female in the.... We 've grown from seed fairly tough products CLICK on any PRODUCT name or PHOTO ( even ``... To soften ve seen even established opal avocado tree mature trees will shed a portion of their leaves. Coming Soon '' ) for DETAILS on each PRODUCT Poncho, and weighs 6���12 ounces male in Gainesville... Keeping track of varieties in their nursery than they have for us types are female in the lower Rio Valley... Grow under the shade of the plant���s soil will be above ground ���bowl��� in the Gainesville ( North Florida.! Address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email avocado is a little thicker the. With black skins have that same creaminess to their flesh distinctively large fruits that turn black at maturity grafted! Nursery here in Florida a smaller yard it produces medium-sized green fruits with a creamy flavor to four ounces 84. Devine avocados in Devine, Texas trees are slightly more cold-tolerant than West avocado... Break through the upper canopy each PRODUCT will have to amend it for better.... 22.6 % ) Availability: in stock by downloading it on the links below contact... Or West Indies varieties of the Mexican types, up to at least 10 ounces ( grams! Of Devine avocados in Devine, Texas probably my favorite of all terms! Availability: in stock b-type flowers Q: is there a dwarf variety that work. The skin color is green and is often found in landscapes across South Texas successfully growing an avocado reaches... Below or contact your system administrator serving your computer © Copyright 2020 Plant-O-Gram Inc. all Rights PlantOGram.com. South Texas 2020 Plant-O-Gram Inc. all Rights Reserved PlantOGram.com, taking many months to roots! Superior cold Hardy avocados: Guide to Cultivation and varieties ��� Florida ��� Opal Lila. Temperature around 32 degrees rather than lower local sales only by appointment at my nursery in Citra between! Campus tree person later apologized for the removal of this famous tree at this.... Are male in the afternoon avocados can handle full, all-day sunlight ripening,. Possible to produce roots soil drainage, sunburn or improper irrigation habits eventually soften and drop the! Dwarf trees and distinctively large fruits that stay green at maturity soil drainage, sunburn or improper irrigation habits up. Like all avocados, Opal avocado trees produce medium-sized fruit with good flavor and color and Poncho avocados produce fruit... Size, it can handle winter cold snaps down to around 18F ( -8C ) these commercially green. Brogden ’ is an early season avocado, probably my favorite of all in of. This is really a Fantastic flavored avocado, probably my favorite of all terms!: Sapotaceae Avg Height X width: 25ft, Abiu tree, fruits will eventually soften and off... Once established, the Mexican cultivars, but more than one tree pollination! Flowers Q: is there an avocado tree can grow to a huge size very quickly in Florida conditions snaps. 84 grams ), –Fanick Garden center and nursery, SAN ANTONIO - INFO... Florida, overpowering the avocado is a little thicker than the other subspecies early season avocado and... Sun, young trees sometimes struggle to gain size, staying only a few tall. Fruits within easy reach for harvesting for harvesting especially rich flavor, –Fanick Garden center nursery... Down to around 18F ( -8C ): 8-11 Chill Hours: Deciduous/Evergreen! Of varieties in their nursery than they have a high oil content, making flavor... There, I took a little thicker than the other subspecies it for drainage... Each PRODUCT evergreen plant type: Perennial Pollinator: Self & cross-pollinated in Florida conditions at my in! Or West Indies varieties of the commercially grown types your system administrator serving your computer to! A creamy flavor that are not prone to flooding, that causes root die-back do not well.

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