Avocado - Ettinger - winter/spring ripening

Ettinger avocados are similar to Fuerte avocados, pear-shaped with smooth, thin, bright green skin, and pale green flesh. The Ettinger avocado tree is very vigorous, and as a heavy bearer of fruit it is often the most profitable B variety of many orchards. The tree has an upright growing habit with little spreading, and has the same tendency as the Fuerte variety to sometimes produce seedless fruits, called “cukes”. Unlike most fruits, the avocado is one of the very few that does not ripen on the tree, and so the fruit can keep mature fruit on the tree for several months, allowing for greater control of the harvest volume.

Ettinger is an B flowering type. Avocado trees in our climate are self fertile, but produce more fruit if 2 are planted near each other with opposing flower types. In this case, best planted with an A type like Hass, Reed, Esther, Pinkerton etc.

Avocado trees are generally easy to care for, but here are a few tips to help ensure your tree thrives:

1. Plant your tree in well-draining soil in a sunny location. Protect from wind and frost when young.

2. Water your tree regularly, but be careful not to over-water. Avocado trees prefer to be kept evenly moist, but not waterlogged. If planting in a clay soil, it is important to either create a mound, or build a raised planter box to plant your tree into. This helps keep the sensitive feeder roots out of the wet zone.

3. Fertilise your tree with a balanced fertiliser twice a year, once in the spring and once in the summer.

4. Prune your tree regularly to remove any dead or damaged branches, and to shape the tree to promote good fruit production.