New red leaves appear as the trees begin to bud!
March is one of my favorite times of year in the avocado grove. The trees begin to sprout beautiful new growth in tones of red and pink. As the new leaves sprout, the buds of the avocado flowers begin to appear too!
The buds grow faster than the new leaves!
As the buds grow bigger and begin to open, the trees begin to look shaggy with the spindly flowers making a splash of light lemon-lime color on the hillsides.
Instead of fall colors, we have Spring Colors in the avocado grove!
The tiny flowers begin to open, one by one.
The first flower has opened!
Like tiny stars, each flower has the potential to become an avocado! But not every flower will be pollinated, or will have the chance to develop into a fruit.
This bee has found the open flowers!
As the flowers open, the avocado trees become a busy place, with bees gathering nectar. The sound of bees buzzing in the trees is quite loud! Humming, buzzing….bees! They aren’t paying attention to people…only to the flowers!
Some trees are in full bloom while others are just beginning to open.
Some trees begin to bloom early, while others take more time. The new leaves continue to grow so they will be able to shade the new baby avocados from the warm springtime sun!
Have you heard about avocado flowers? They are female one day and male the next!
If you haven’t heard the story of avocado flowers, check out the post about Where Baby Avocados Come From! It’s a fascinating story! Flowers that can be male one day and female the next!
Low-hanging fruit!
At the same time, the new crop of avocados is mature and sizing up! It’s time to pick those beauties so that the tree will have energy to set the new fruit and allow them to begin to grow! This year’s crop is on the tree at the same time that next year’s crop is getting started.
Want some of these fresh California avocados? Visit California Avocados Direct to order a box for yourself or as a gift. ! They will be picked to order and shipped to your door. You can even set up a monthly subscription to get a whole season of the best tasting avocados you will ever eat!
A box of fresh California Avocados comes to you in the mail every month!
March 19, 2020 at 7:05 pm
The fruit will form after the flower is pollinated, and it takes 9-12 months to grow. You’ll be eating those avocados next March/April/May, if you like good flavor. I have several posts about how avocados ripen. You might want to read more of those posts. The flavor depends on the oil content, and the oil content will be too low in December to give you any flavor.
Mimi Holtz recently posted..Springtime and COVID19 on the Avocado Farm
May 2, 2021 at 2:37 pm
We have a fuerte that was loaded this year, in fact there are still about 100 mature left on the tree. Is it safe to still pick if it is flowering and the new cycle has started? My concern is that it will shake off flowers as I pick the fruit.
Any advice would be great. Thank you
May 2, 2021 at 3:49 pm
Hi Jaclyn,
Go out and get those Fuertes and enjoy them! You won’t shake off the flowers. Those flowers will fall on the ground anyway, hopefully after they’ve been pollinated by bees and other insects. The mature fruit will be delicious! And by picking last year’s crop, you’re helping the tree set the new crop of fruit. The trees need the energy for the flowers and the new fruit and new foliage. And those Fuerte avocados are the BEST for eating!
mimi
May 2, 2021 at 7:18 pm
Mimi –
Thank you! I will continue picking. They are the best – everyone loves them.- J