Ripen Your Avocado Faster

Nothing is more frustrating than wanting to eat your delicious heritage avocado - and its not ripe yet! So here is a test we are doing at the Diva's office (we did this Friday, 7/29/11).

To ripen avocados faster - you put them in a nice, thick paper bag (we send you a great one with your order). To make it go even faster - you can put in a fruit that produces ethylene, like a tomatoes, bananas or apples.

So we were wondering what works BEST -- green bananas? Ripe bananas? or apples? We put 3 avocados into each of 3 bags -
(a) with ripe bananas
(b) with green bananas
(c) with apples

We'll open them up on Tuesday and see which ones are the ripest and let ya'll know.

BTW - are you ever worried if you order a box of avocados from the Diva that they will go to waste? No way - we ship them right off the tree - so they are very hard (don't get damaged in shipment that way). Then we send you detailed instructions as well as a "Diva ripening bag" - so you can stagger the avocados to ripen over a long period of time.

Order some today! They are beautiful, full of minerals, protein and DELICIOUS!

Picking an Avocado - TIP!

If you are lucky enough to have a tree -- or get to pick from a friend's tree -- you should always CUT the stem and not just "pluck" the avocado off the tree. Why? Because plucking rips the avocado off the tree and often rips open the top of the avocado - even if just a bit. And that makes it open to "intrusion" - from bacteria, mold, pesticides, bird doo-doo - you get the idea.

By snipping the stem and leaving a bit on it (like an "outie" belly button!) - you are just being that much more careful to not get "stuff" into your avocado. Also -- you will find that the avocado ripens more evenly and you don't get those nasty, rotten "strings" going through the viens of the avocado.

One other tip -- if you buy them from a road side stand or farmer's market, etc. -- if there are no stems... its probably a stolen avocado! Someone jumped over the fence or did a drive-rip-dash in the middle of the night. That's how come SOMETIMES you can find avocados at "3 for a $1" at a roadside stand or farmer's market. And that's not fair to the small farmers and ranchers who follow the rules.

Get your avocados from a reputable seller... Thanks friends!

"Roger" is growing like a weed!

Update on the Diva's latest "baby" - Roger.

He's growing like a weed! And like all good momma's, we shall make a video on our baby soon.

This week we'll create a video of how to plant "Roger" into a pot. So keep watching this blog to see step by step how to get YOUR avocado pit growing into a potted plant.

If you want info on how we got "Roger" to this stage, please see the two previous blog posts on this topic:

1. To Grow an Avocado Plant

2. How to Grow an Avocado Plant (part 2).

One recommendation: It's MUCH easier to grow a plant from a heritage avocado (especially those with big pits) like a Bacon or Gwen or Reed.

New Recipe Alert! Cool, creamy pie for summer

Are you FRYING in this summer heat?! Try this easy, cool, protein filled dessert! It's from my mommy - The Diva

AVOCADO PIE

2 ripe avocados

1 can Eagle Brand milk

2 oz lemon juice

1 graham cracker crust

1 carton Cool Whip

Blend avocado, milk & lemon juice in blender until smooth.

Pour into crust and top with Cool Whip. Refrigerate.

(Can be frozen.)

What's Wrong with THIS Avocado?

Shall we play the "what's wrong with this avocado" game again? Note the "star like" scarring on this thin, green skinned avocado.

The answer is again - there is NOTHING wrong with the flesh of this avocado. It's perfect to eat. In fact, the scarring of this avocado happened while it was still a "flower" - in the bud stage. A mite chewed on the bud while it was tiny - and caused the fruit to grow out with this star-like scar.

What does that mean for you? A. It's an indicator that no toxic insecticide for mites was used, and B. It's ok to choose this avocado and eat it (even if it doesn't look "perfect") - like you might find in the store.

Does it mean it is "organic" - no. Organic means a LOT more (e.g. - no pesiticides, no herbicides, for years and years on the ranch - its very complicated). However - the "star scar" is an indicator that the rancher is probably smaller AND doesn't over-spray.

One other note - remember that ALL avocados should be washed before you eat them. Like all fruits - they have "stuff" on the skin that could get cut into the flesh when you open them. "Stuff" like pesticides, herbicides, etc. ALSO -- even if they are organic - they will have dust, bird poo or even mite droppings! So wash with soap for at least 30 seconds (they say "sing the ABC song" = 30 seconds) then rinse well with water.

To conclude - there's NOTHING wrong with this avocado's delicious FLESH - and maybe the star-scar is even a "badge of accomplishment" - this little guy survived a nibble by a mite and grew up to be a delicious fruit with less pesticides.

Would you buy a "star scarred" avo now?! Let us know!

The Winners of Avocados for a Whole Year Are...

Linda Wetter of Virginia and Staci Cook of California!

For everyone else - the Diva (who was in Santa Barbara all day...) authorized the IT staff to set up a special 24% off coupon code for 24 hours (starting now - 9pm PST).

Buy anything and everything you like at www.AvocadoDiva.com and get 24% off! Use the code 300LIKES at checkout - but only for 24 hours.

And for everyone who wants a little someth'n someth'n mailed to them - email your snail mail address to "diva@avocadodiva.com" in the next 10 days and we'll get those out to you too.

Congrats to Linda and Staci - and THANKS to ALL of you for being our FB Friends!

Post Number 2 - How to Grow an Avocado Plant

If you have been successful and got your pit to root and sprout - "Yeah for you!" (If you don't know what the Diva is talking about, see the blog post #1 for info).

Your avocado pit (after about 2 - 6 weeks) should look like these photos - with some white roots coming out of the bottom and a strong green sprout coming out of the top.

If it didn't work - throw it out and try again. Some people say you need to peel off the bottom brown skin OR change the water more.

Another common hint is to keep it in a bright, sunny room - but not in direct sunlight.

Once you get it to this stage - (or perhaps another week or two - with lots of roots) its time to plant it into a pot. Gather the following:

1. 6" pot with drainage hole(s) on bottom
2. a piece of broken pottery or a sea shell
3. 1/2 cup of stones or pebbles or marbles
4. 3 or 4 cups of potting soil
5. 1 or 2 cups of sand or perlite (or other recycled material that makes soil drain well - e.g. cut up egg cartons, cut up "peanuts" from a shipping package, etc.).
6. a plate or shallow pan to go under the 6" pot

Basically - remember that avocado plants are "exotic" and from tropical or subtropical places originally. They like moist air and moist soil - but they do NOT like to sit in water. So you need to MAKE a soil that drains well.

Take the pot and put a "chard" of broken pot OR a sea shell over the drainage hole - so that water can get out (e.g. - the pot hole is not plugged by a rock or marble). Next, put in the stones (pebbles, marbles) so the bottom is covered and water can drain easily out of the pot.

In another bowl or bucket - mix the soil and sand (or perlite, recycled materials, etc.) so that you have a very light soil.

Put the soil mixture in the pot on top of the rocks - fill about half way.

"Snuggle" your pit and roots into the soil (gently!) and fill it up the rest of the way (so the roots are covered) and the pit's "head" sticks out about 1/2 inch - as well as all of the green shoot. (The top of the pit should stick out of the soil).

Over the sink (or outdoors) - water the soil & your baby plant well and let it drain. Put the plate or dish under the pot so water can continue to drain. Water your plant a lot at first - but make sure it drains well. Keep in a bright, warm place - but not in direct sunlight. Always water from the top - don't let water sit in the plate.

When your plant reaches about 12" - you can gently pinch it back - and it will grow a couple of "side branches" which will be stronger. If you want it "bushy" - keep pinching the top back. If you want a taller plant or tree -- pinch off side branches (only keep 3 to 5 on it).

Once your plant fills up it's pot with healthy roots - you should repot into larger and larger pots. It's best if you can do this in the spring (when its hormones are strong and it will have a fighting chance to keep growing). In summer, use a liquid fertilizer every 2 or 3 weeks. Cut back in the winter to every 6 weeks. Always keep its soil moist but never let it "sit" in water (avocados hate that!). Keep it's leaves moist with a spray bottle (to simulate a tropical climate). They do like bathrooms and shower areas for this reason!

I'll put up another post soon about growing it into a tree, what kind of trees, pollination, etc. There's is a LOT to know about all that stuff... so keep coming back or sign up for the blog so you don't miss any!

The Avocado Diva (www.avocadodiva.com)