This Saturday, March 4, marks the 11th anniversary of the Hawaii Avocado Festival. It’s a great time to learn all you ever wanted to know about growing and using avocados.
The event is slated for 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at Hale Halewai in Kailua-Kona. For more details about the festival, check out the website at AvocadoFestival.org.
On the Hilo side, the Big Island Association of Nurserymen is having a monster plant sale on Friday and Saturday (March 3-4) at the Edith Kanakaole Multi-Purpose Stadium, so it is a busy start to our spring garden projects.
All kinds of plants will be available from fruits to nuts and bamboo to palms. Of course, the common plants will be there, too, but there also are many new introductions available. It’s an opportunity to do one-stop garden shopping and talk with the experts.
It is always good to add plants to the garden that supply food. Citrus, lychee, banana, mango and avocado are favorites, but don’t forget the newer introductions such as durian, mangosteen, dragon fruit and rambutan.
When it comes to avocados, trees are ideally suited for West Hawaii’s winter dry and summer wet weather as well as our well-drained soils. However, they do well in wetter locations as long as the soil is not soggy or poorly drained.
This year, we’ve had abundant flowering of avocado, citrus, mango and coffee trees. Now, we need rain or supplementary irrigation to set and keep the fruit.
Spring flowering trees such as the flamboyant royal poinciana and bougainvillea respond to the dry winter in showy mass blooming, but we must be diligent in supplying water now or might lose trees and shrubs for lack of irrigation. Avocado and other trees in some gardens are suffering for lack of water, so pray for rain or irrigate as needed.
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No Hawaiian garden is complete without an avocado tree for shade and fruit. The avocado for centuries has been the great food crop of Central and South America. It is unusual in having its stored food chiefly in the form of fat and protein instead of sugar as in nearly all other fruits.
The fruit is very high in vitamins and minerals. It is especially high in phosphorous, Vitamin A, riboflavin and niacin. The fat contains no cholesterol.
The avocado is a native American fruit that was growing wild from Southern Mexico to Ecuador and the West Indies at the time of Columbus’ arrival. When it was introduced in Hawaii, no one really knows, but it naturalized and can be commonly found where conditions are favorable.
Avocados are now found on the markets throughout the country at all times of the year. The major Florida crop comes on the market from June to February and the California crop from January to June. Hawaii has fruit all year.
The avocado is borne on large evergreen trees with large, somewhat leathery leaves. This tree is tolerant of a wide range of soil types, but it must be provided with good drainage.
Flowers are produced in late winter or spring, and the fruit matures in anywhere from six to 18 months, depending on location and variety. The avocado can be left on the tree for some weeks after it first matures with comparatively little dropping.
The avocado is a little strange when it comes to sex and fertilization. For example, the flower opens and closes twice. During its first opening, every flower behaves as if it were female only, able to be pollinated but not able to shed pollen. Then it closes for 12 to 24 hours, and when it opens again it is essentially a male flower, shedding pollen but usually no longer in condition to be pollinated.
Furthermore, all of the flowers on a tree open and close almost at the same time and all the trees of a given variety behave alike. This makes interplanting of two or three varieties a very important practice.
Even after more than 100 years of culture in Hawaii, there is no one variety or set of varieties that is wholly satisfactory. Each has its faults and advantages. Sharwil, Yamagata, Murashige, Ohata and Kahaluu are local favorites.
If you are in a hurry, avoid seedlings and grow grafted trees. Seedlings grow quite tall and can take seven to 12 years to bear fruit, and then you might not get good quality fruit. Grafted trees are carried at some nurseries. Grafted trees begin to bear in two years and are not as tall.
Avocados can be planted successfully at any season of the year. Frequent irrigations are necessary until the tree is established. Remember that avocado trees do not like saline water or soils. Choose a rich, well-drained soil. If your soil is poor, mix in peat moss and well-rotted manure to improve it.
Shading and wind protection of newly planted trees is important to give them a good start. Strong winds will cause leaves to burn or shed. Avoid planting avocados near the ocean, exposed to winds and salinity.
Avocados are heavy feeders. Fertilizer should carry a high percentage of nitrogen with a good portion derived from organic sources. Good results are obtained under widely varying treatments.
Animal and poultry manures are very beneficial as they add humus and bacteria to the soil besides being valuable as a fertilizer. Be careful not to overfertilize or you might burn roots and leaves.
Newly planted trees should be fertilized at planting time with a 1-1-1 ratio fertilizer that has at least 30 percent of its nitrogen derived from natural organics. Fertilize according to label directions.
Like most other fruits, you are bound to get bumper crops. Finding ways to incorporate this nutritious fruit into your family’s diet can be a chore.
Although most commonly associated with being a salad fruit, the avocado also can be used in soup, smoothies, as a sandwich spread or dip and in desserts.
Because of its rich, butter-like flavor, the avocado combines well with vinegar or lemon juice and with acid fruits and vegetables, such as pineapple, oranges, grapefruit and tomatoes. A contrast in texture, such as celery, carrots, pepper and watercress, also make appetizing combinations.
There are a number of molded avocado salad recipes available. These molded salads, using plain lime or lemon flavored gelatin, include fruit combinations, fish or chicken meat or can be made with cottage cheese or cream cheese.
A very easy but filling lunch main dish can be prepared by using half an avocado per person and stuffing them with crab meat, chicken, tuna or shrimp salad. The salad should include a crunchy vegetable such as cabbage, celery or green pepper. Strips of red pimento will add the proper accent to the stuffed avocado salad.
Avocado tends to darken on standing. To prevent this from happening after cutting, sprinkle with lemon juice or pineapple juice. If using only half an avocado, save the unused portion by keeping it unpeeled, with the seed still embedded in it, and wrap tightly in plastic or foil wrap and store in the refrigerator.
The avocado pulp, which is easily prepared in a blender, freezes well if pineapple or lemon juice is added. This pulp can be used in making a delicious bread or cake by following a banana bread or cake recipe. The pulp also can be used to prepare a chilled summer soup that calls for 2 cups of condensed cream of chicken soup heated to a smooth consistency and chilled. One-half cup of pureed avocado, 1/2 cup of cold milk and a dash of white pepper complete the soup.
Stay healthy by including high quality local fruits such as avocados in your diet and remember fats are vital in your diet. Avocado is one of the best sources of healthy fat.
