I linked to this article on “stumping avocados” in yesterday’s post, but it’s worth linking further here:

“If you drive through Southern California and look at the hillsides where avocados are grown,  you will see acres of white stumps.  These are the avocados that have been cut down and painted to protect the trees from sun damage.   The stumps take less water while they regrow,  and will produce beautiful avocados again in about 3 years.  Sometimes we graft a different variety to the stump and when it grows back it produces that variety of avocado.  I’ll write more about that at a different time.

We have stumped several times over the years. Taking acres of avocado trees  out of production for several years is a challenge financially,  but it also helps to save water and is considered a good practice in avocado farming” (click here to keep reading)

Rejuvenating or grafting an unproductive tree is often a better investment of time than removing it and replanting. Think of the root system of a mature tree – it can reach for dozens of feet beneath the ground. A baby tree takes a lot of time to get established.

Though stumping an avocado tree is drastic, if it’s working for commercial producers, it’s worth trying. Check out the pictures on the article – it’s fascinating.