Author Topic: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.  (Read 2658 times)

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
With a heater failure in Jan. and a complete die back of all my greenhouse stock including this bearing Reed, I thought I had lost it. Temps went down to 18F, for how long I don't know.  I think the heavy mulch and thick canopy was enough of a heat blanket to save it and more importantly it had been acclimated to low/mid 30F temps days before the big one hit.

Stump in March 6:



August 15.  This is a big tree with 3 trunks now.  Photo doesn't do it justice.  It's in a raised bed, a bottomless 100 gal. RootBuilder pot which is dwarfed by this tall and wide gorgeous tree.  There's not a blemish anywhere on it and fast approaching the 10' gutter.
 


I don't know what happened to all my greenhouse trees that survived but it's like they're on steroids now.  I had a complete die back of my citrus.  I now have a key lime that I've grafted 3 orange varieties to, persian lime, limequat, etc. that's 9' tall.  Fertilizer has been like always, a slow release pill, this year Osmocote Indoor/Outdoor, 6 mo.


Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #1 on: August 16, 2018, 09:57:26 AM »
Citrus after the January freeze. March 6. Open that up and you'll see how devastated they (and me) were.  Leaves littered the floor.



One of the many grafts going nuts.  Am getting 2 outputs at each budeye on some of these T-Bud grafts:



Just planted a Persian lime tree.  Am getting certified disease free budwood from the Agrilife certified citrus program next week to put on it and some of my other citrus like the Key lime, Moro blood orange, Meyer lemon, etc.

« Last Edit: August 16, 2018, 10:01:10 AM by Mark in Texas »

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2018, 10:11:03 AM »
Very woody 6" trunk girth, was an Oro Negro that froze back.  Thanks to the graciousness of one our members it now has about 1 Lamb Hass, 1 Pinkerton and 3 Sharwil grafts that are very vigorous.  Green on green shoots that pushed from the lower trunk.



There's a young PIN Pickering mango with an Orange Sherbet graft behind it.

Samu

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 722
    • North Tustin, So. California, Zone 10A
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #3 on: August 16, 2018, 11:12:03 AM »
Your greenhouse trees transformation is amazing!
I suppose you have added safety measure(s) so that the January
disaster won't get repeated again, right?
Glad to see your accomplishment, Mark!
Sam

spaugh

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5126
    • San Diego County California
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #4 on: August 16, 2018, 11:14:44 AM »
The reed tree looks amazing Mark.  Citrus tree is looking pretty happy as well. 

What have you been feeding the avocado tree?
Brad Spaugh

starch

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 819
  • My brain is like oatmeal
    • Chandler, AZ. zone 9b
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #5 on: August 16, 2018, 11:20:14 AM »
That is simply an incredible phoenix story. Congrats Mark!
- Mark

johnb51

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4782
    • USA Deerfield Beach, FL Zone 11a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #6 on: August 16, 2018, 11:35:57 AM »
Phenomenal growth.  So happy for you.  Most everything has come back with great vigor here in South Florida after the damage Hurricane Irma did last September.
John

Coach62

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 518
    • Naples, FL Zone 10a
    • View Profile
    • Naples Home Inspections
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #7 on: August 16, 2018, 12:37:16 PM »
Phenomenal growth.  So happy for you.  Most everything has come back with great vigor here in South Florida after the damage Hurricane Irma did last September.

Maybe on your coast. The weeks long flooding over here killed everything but my citrus and oddly enough my dragonfruit. We were much harder hit over here.
www.ableinspector.com

Stop New Yorking my Florida!

Bruce

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #8 on: August 16, 2018, 02:56:32 PM »
Thanks folks. 

Samu, yes I've got a safety net.  It's a wireless alarm paired with my Davis Instruments Vantage Pro weather console.  Hard lesson learned.

The reed tree looks amazing Mark.  Citrus tree is looking pretty happy as well. 

What have you been feeding the avocado tree?

Osmocote Indoor/Outdoor 6 mo. food.  Everything gets encapsulated foods with a rare tweek with a soluble food like Peters.

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #9 on: August 16, 2018, 03:02:34 PM »
Phenomenal growth.  So happy for you.  Most everything has come back with great vigor here in South Florida after the damage Hurricane Irma did last September.

Happy to hear that, have a friend in Naples.  Having been thru many a hurricane I feel for you guys.  We lived near the bay in Corpus Christi when Hurricane Celia blew through.  it was like a giant F4 tornado.  Anenometer blew off at 168 mph in nearby Port Aransas.  Didn't have electricity during that hot, mosquito infested August for 2 weeks.  Being that all the fences were down everyone finally got to meet their neighbors and waft the smell of bar-b-ques.  :D

zephian

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 432
    • USA, CA, Yuba City Zone 9B
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #10 on: August 16, 2018, 04:17:59 PM »
Not to hijack your thread but congrats on the recovery! I recently had 2/3 of my avocados suffer from over watering. I stumped two of them and I think my Holiday is a total loss, but I just got back from a short vacation in so-cal and my Lamb-hass sent out a sucker from the base! Hopefully this is a good sign! I cut it back to about a foot above the graft.. hopefully mine recovers as well as yours.
-Kris

zands

  • mango_zango
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4455
    • Zone 10b, Florida, USA, 33321
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #11 on: August 16, 2018, 04:51:23 PM »
Nice to see such a great comeback for your plants. Some plants and trees just refuse to be denied. Similar to Oscar having his plants trees come back after three months of being showered to by moist clouds of toxic volcanic gasses. Mostly SO2 I believe.

ScottR

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2222
    • USA,Arroyo Grande,Calif. 93420,zone 9b
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #12 on: August 16, 2018, 06:46:37 PM »
Wow, nice come back on the Reed Avo Mark ;) 8)

OCchris1

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 718
    • Old Towne Orange, CA 10B
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #13 on: August 17, 2018, 01:56:34 AM »
Those sure are some "purdy" trees Mark! Great job and good luck. Chris
-Chris

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #14 on: August 17, 2018, 08:24:48 AM »
Thanks again amigos.  I finally filling up the greenhouse.  Also have a nice bench of 11 pineapples that I expect to fruit next year, a cocktail cherimoya going nuts, annona seedlings, etc. 

Wonder about Oscar and Kiluaea?  I don't hear a thing on the news anymore except the same old crap of Stormy Daniels, collusion, gloom and doom....   ;D

Not to hijack your thread but congrats on the recovery! I recently had 2/3 of my avocados suffer from over watering. I stumped two of them and I think my Holiday is a total loss, but I just got back from a short vacation in so-cal and my Lamb-hass sent out a sucker from the base! Hopefully this is a good sign! I cut it back to about a foot above the graft.. hopefully mine recovers as well as yours.

I was forced to graft to green shoots that came from stumps.  Good luck with yours.
« Last Edit: August 17, 2018, 08:29:56 AM by Mark in Texas »

Mark in Texas

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4220
    • Fredericksburg Texas, (central TX), zone 8a
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #15 on: August 17, 2018, 08:46:59 AM »
For all you avocado lovers, am privy to get open pollinated, both wild and cultivated "creole" aka crillio avocados from the highlands of Nuevo Leon, Mexico.  Persea americana var. drymifolia.  These are from the ancestors found in caves dating back 7,000 B.C.  Friend is a friend of a guy who has an orchard in Hidalgo.  If you are interested in cold hardy Mexican avocados then this PDF file which stuides the molecular diversity of 42 fruits is for you.  There's every type of shape, size, and color, even yellow skin.  From golf ball size to huge fruits, the diversity is unreal.  Will get one of the more popular cultured ones.  Apparently the skin is thin and edible, flesh is rich and oily on most, seed is large.  Got mixed feelings as I don't want to reinvent the wheel and will quarantine with a damn good dose of imidicloprid and isolation for a while.  https://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/47902.pdf



macias_97

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 12
    • Gilbert, AZ
    • View Profile
Re: Reed avocado, from death warmed over to a fine, big tree in months.
« Reply #16 on: August 19, 2018, 05:47:54 PM »
whats your feeding schedule for containers?  Also what do you use?? i have a reed in the ground that got sun burnt(my fault) and i am going to chop and move it into a container.
getting there...