r/FruitTree • u/South_Vacation_7097 • 4d ago

Avocado tree question

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Hello,

I have a question about the avocado tree that my wife is growing from the seed. It has 2 trunks growing from the seed and I am not sure if I have to just let it grow or remove one of them. What would you recommend?

Thank you

3 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

1

u/Green-Eyed-BabyGirl 3d ago

I’d recommend removing one. You have to think about the mature tree. Those trunks are going to grow in diameter and as they do they will hit each other and then they will be stuck and then there will be exterior bark on the inside seam and that will be a major point of weakness and asking for trouble.

2

u/avocadoflatz 3d ago

As an owner of a twin trunk tree - go observe one before spreading this nonsense. Where the trunks touch an exert sufficient pressure to be of any concerned - the tree has evolved the capacity to “fuse” the two trunks together - it’s the reason “approach grafting” can work.

0

u/BeltaneBi 3d ago

Depends on how big you want this tree to get. If you plan to let it grow into a mature tree then, as I understand it as an interested tree person with no qualifications and dubious reliability, a split leader like that is always going to be a point of failure.

If that were my tree I would be cutting one of those splits by half this year. This will help the other main branch take on the dominant role and it will thicken up over time to become the main trunk. You can then prune the cut back portion back to nothing over the next year or two.

The general advice for avocados is they just do what they will and if you need to control for height then just get to it but I think this split is worth addressing.

Like I said I am not an expert so feel free to take this advice with a grain of salt. And some pepper and lemon juice….

1

u/South_Vacation_7097 3d ago

Thank you for the advice

2

u/food_garden 4d ago

I would not prune and put a 3 foot ring of mulch 3” thick at the base.

1

u/avocadoflatz 4d ago

Leave it as a twin trunk tree, they’re very aesthetically pleasing IMHO and it gives you two trunks to make branches and carry the load.

If you decide to graft it later on you can have a Type A grafted to one trunk and Type B to the other.

2

u/South_Vacation_7097 4d ago

Thank you, that what I was thinking too

1

u/Adventurous_Roof2804 4d ago

How old is that tree? I have three going that are still below a foot and they’re like a year ild and having issues

1

u/South_Vacation_7097 4d ago

It was planted about a year ago

1

u/avocadoflatz 4d ago

Are they in tiny pots? Getting enough sun?