Did you select an avocado that was extremely ripe? Those have the pits that are most likely to spout without any problem.

All of my experience with avocado pits consists of planting them, nose side up, directly into a coarse textured, fast-draining potting medium. If the avocado was ripe enough, the pit may already show signs of splitting so you won't have to wait very long.

Place the container in a warm, bright location and keep the potting medium moist, but not soaking wet.

I never have luck when I use the water and toothpick to grow an avocado from seed, but a few weeks ago I got three seeds (from very ripe avocados) and wrapped them in wet paper towels and put them in a zip-lock baggy and threw it in a dark kitchen drawer, and they're starting to grow already. I'm so excited cause it's growing so fast, where unlike when I've waited months and months with the water and toothpick and NEVER got anything..it was very depressing...

I have a friend who also has ALOT of success just by putting the seed in dirt from the beginning and her's grew really fast also...

I'm gonna be planting mine here very soon also...I need to do some research first on the kind of soil it grows best in. These are my first success after many many tries...

-FPT

Y'all are making me want to try this again. I've done the toothpick/water thing and even got germination a few times but never had enough light to keep the plant alive after.

Rhizo, it was a very ripe avacado. It was delicious.

There is a hairline crack in the pit right now so hopefully it won't take too long.

I guess as soon as I see a root I'll put it directly into soil.

Anyone who has done this successfully post your pictures and gloat a lil'.

Exactly what the others have said.
My own Avocado was simply a pit tossed in the compost pile. It sprouted in the Summer,
and then I dug it up in the Autumn and potted it. Otherwise, wet paper towel in a ziplock
in a drawer has always worked for me and my friends. As soon as that seed splits, pot it in a
fast-draining soil just as Rhizo said.

Josh

phal pal, don't wait! Plant it immediately into a good potting mix; most people leave a bit of the 'nose' exposed when they bury it in the soil. If you don't plant it and begin watering it, it's gonna shrivel up and die.

Trust me, you don't have to SEE the root form. Let it happen in the dark, in the soil just where it's supposed to. You'll have plenty to watch as the pit splits and send up a nice stem.

Again, plant it now, keep the soil moist but not soggy, and place it in a warm, bright location. Don't wait.

ok, I'll put it in some soil in the morning. Its not doing anything anyway yet.

So I leave the top half exposed is that the idea? And do avacado roots go down like a taproot or do they branch off the sides more? How deep of a pot should it be?

I Have a five inch pot about five inches deep would that be an ok starter pot? How deep of a pot ultimately does an avacado tree need?

Thanks in advance.

The pit won't do anything without moisture...except dry up and die. Be SURE that you water it thoroughly, drench the heck out of it, after you plant it. Just leave the a little bit of the nose exposed, not half of the seed.

Your 5 inch container will be fine for the first several months. How large a container you will need depends entirely on how long you get the plant to live, lol. Mine have ALWAYS croaked after a year or two. By that time, they will need to be in 12 inch or greater container.

Be sure that your potting medium is a coarse textured one; it must drain rapidly.

I "accidentally" took about 6 avocado's growing on trees at an empty foreclosure home we were thinking of buying...

We trashed the buy, but the Avocados are ripe, so I may try this!

Thanks!
Suzi

Well, I put it in soil this afternoon. Just the tippy tip exposed. Its in a five by five pot with seed starting soil with fertilizer in the soil. So I didn't add any extra.

How long until I see anything? Anyone who has done this please post your pictures and show off. I'd love to see them.

I have done this several times. No pictures.

The time required for some visible proof that the seed is developing depends on many factors. In my opinion, the most important element is how ripe the fruit was when you removed the pit.

Avacados are a bit unusual in that they continue to ripen even after harvesting. That process includes seed maturity. I learned to allow an avacado to become overripe ...even mushy...before removing the seed.

I've had these seeds take less than a week to several weeks. Just keep it in a warm, sunny location and remember to water occasionally. If you water TOO frequently, though, the seed can rot.

Anybody else gotten a twin embryo out of an avocado? Apparently I'm lucky in that regard, since I have an avocado, a lemon and a kumquat tree that all did that.

I've had 2 1/2 successes with avocados, I find the toothpick method useful, although if I were to grow another, I'd just use some gritty mix modified for heavier water retention. Definitely was neat to watch, especially because I was such a newbie!

Had success doing the baggie method with mangoes, btw, which are similar in size and germination habits to avocados.

here is a link to some ovacato care

http://www.willsavocados.com/index.php/grow-avocado-tree

Hexalm,
polyembryony is common in Avocado and many citrus, too.

Josh

I'm documenting my avocados as they grow. Feel free to check it out! http://plants.kellyyeh.com/
By the way, I got a twin avocado too (picture on the right)!
Does anyone know how to separate them??

Here is a link that might be useful: My 4 avocados