Editing Persea americana (section)

== Flowering, fruiting, and harvest ==
[[File:Persea americana flowers.JPG|thumb|right|260px|Beginning of flowering on an avocado tree in Réunion. Photo by B.navez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.]]

Avocado flowers open twice. In the first opening the female parts function; after the flower closes, the male parts function during the second opening. Cultivars are commonly grouped as type A or type B according to the timing of those phases. Self-pollination can occur, and cross-pollination by wind and large insects can also contribute to fruit set. Some cultivars crop well alone, while others set more reliably when an appropriate contrasting flowering type is nearby.[[#cite_note-2|[2]]]

Less than one percent of flowers may ultimately become mature fruit, and varieties differ in crop load and alternate-bearing tendency. UF/IFAS reports that grafted trees begin cropping after about three to four years and that Florida avocado varieties mature from June through March; those figures are regional and cultivar-specific rather than a universal harvest schedule.[[#cite_note-2|[2]]]

Avocado fruit generally does not ripen on the tree. Pick a representative large fruit at the beginning of the expected cultivar season and test it indoors. Under the UF/IFAS guidance, a mature fruit commonly softens in about three to eight days after picking. Fruit can remain on the tree for a period, but late-hanging fruit are increasingly likely to drop or develop quality problems.[[#cite_note-2|[2]]]