16.01.10

after spending time away for the holidays, i returned to my guelph home to find the avocado plant in rough shape. i had moved most of my plants into the kitchen near the window that gets the most sunlight. i thought they would be happiest there while i was gone. unfortunately this window is adjacent to the house door.

all the other plants seemed to be fine, but the avocado, with hereditary preferences for tropical weather, seemed to have suffered some cold injury from the wintery kitchen drafts.


avo, jan 16th

the four avo leaves were all still intact, but each was in a different stage of drying out completely from the contour of the leaf towards its middle. while moving the plant around to photograph it, the three smallest leaves fell off, leaving the avocado with one great brittle leaf at the top of its slim figure.


leaf, dried and curled edges

but do not fret, friends of avo; a bulging new apical bud has appeared!


hopeful new bud

17.11.09

two weeks after pinching the avocado's apical meristem, it is looking quite a strange plant. the combination, i suspect, of overthrowing apical dominance and increasing exposure to fluorescent light has resulted in a vegetative growth spurt. (vertical growth has been so very little over the last couple weeks.) but while i had hoped that axillary buds lower on the stem would be inspired to put forth new leaves, all the energy has gone into enlarging the existing leaves -- the higher the leaf, the higher the priority given. the result is a skinny-stemmed plant with 4 large leaves. the length of the top leaf is nearly one half of the plant's height. goodness gracious.


avo, nov 17th

gigantic avo leaf, nov 17th

perhaps if the pinch was made earlier the plant would have produced leaves closer to the base.