Avocado Hass pruning

[HaxSennin]

Hello,
I'm new on this forum and was looking for some advice.
I have an avocado hass plant at my home, it has been almost 2 years since I planted the seed and now spring is approaching again and I wanted to understand if it would be beneficial for it to prune or not. I never done this, before the trunk was full of leaves but they eventually felt during winter (I'm happier this way actually), the 2 branches developed by them selves (actually they where 3 but 1 was short and felt also) and now it is starting to grow leaves again on all tip sides (trunk and 2 branches).
What should I do with it?
Thanks fro your help!

 

[cpp gardener]

Welcome to the site!
Avocados don't need regular pruning generally. You can cut anywhere there is a bud. Keep it as close to the window as you can and you could put it outside in the summer if you want. If you are in southern Italy you could probably keep it outside all year.
Since it was grown from a seed it isn't exactly the same as Hass. It may take up to 20 years for it to flower and produce fruit.

 

[HaxSennin]

Yeah I know it could not be the same avocado but just to give as much info as I can I wrote it (and possibly it will never grow flowers and fruit but I have hope anyway).
I'm in the further north of Italy now (moved in November 2022), this seed was planted when I was in Czech Republic (April 2022) and it thrived there, now it has slowed down a bit, last spring did not grow so much and yeah during summer I put it outside but covered by a parasol I have (I didn't want it to burn, sun it's strong here anyway).
As you can see from the photos there is just the spot where the 2 branches develop to cut out for pruning, but seems so awful to do it I'm afraid of it ahahah

 

[cpp gardener]

When it warms up a bit you can repot it either back in the same pot or a slightly larger one. To repot into the same pot, lift it out and put 2-3" of fresh soil in the bottom, remove 1" of soil and roots from the bottom and all around the sides, replace it in the pot and add fresh soil around the sides. Then thoroughly soak it 3 times, letting it drain fully in between, and put it back in its home. This acts like refreshing the soil and removing any build-up of mineral salts in the soil. You should see a burst of fresh growth within a month and maybe some extra branching.
I have to tell you that yours is one of the happiest potted Avocados I've ever seen. Good work!

 

[HaxSennin]

I usually change soil (and pot if needed) every spring to all my plants just to give them a fresh start, I bottom water them during most of the year, just in summer I change and do it from top since I noticed during summer works best (but maybe it's just my impression). Is it okay or you suggest to do it more often according to the heat?
Thank you for the appreciation, I put the seed directly in the soil for this one and it is a very nice plant so far (second only to my ficus that I have had for 5 years and it's gorgeous ahah)
This is a past photo from last spring

 

[cpp gardener]

I water all my plants from the top. I find they get a more complete soaking.

 

[johndavis]

Hey there! Welcome to the forum and the plant-growing adventure. So, you've got an avocado plant you've been nurturing from a seed for a couple of years – that's pretty cool! As for pruning your avocado plant, it's actually a good idea, especially if you want it to grow bushier and stronger. Since spring is rolling around and you're noticing new leaves popping up (which is awesome), this is a great time to give it a little trim. You don't have to go wild with it. Just snip off the very tips of the branches and the trunk where it's starting to grow leaves. This encourages the plant to branch out more and get fuller. Since it's your first time, maybe start with the tips and see how it goes. Remember, plants are pretty resilient, and pruning helps them focus their energy on growing more vigorously. Keep an eye on your avocado buddy as it gets its spring growth spurt, and enjoy watching it flourish!