Growing California Avocados

To assist California avocado growers impacted by the Mountain Fire, the California Avocado Commission has gathered tinformation concerning how to report damage, informative webinars and available funding.

Through June 2025, the San Diego County Water Authority is offering higher incentives for on-farm irrigation efficiency improvements. Eligible growers can receive $1,000 per acre with no limit on acreage. This represents an increase from $550 per acre and a cap on acreage.

Dr. Ben Faber recently shared a blog post on the Topics in Subtropics webpage concerning the best pruning timing and practices. Importantly, while growers may feel that fall and winter — which provides more downtime — is an ideal time to prune their avocado trees that is, in fact, not the case. 

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation has issued a section 24(c) Special Local Needs registration for Forfeit® 280 (glufosinate-ammonium) herbicide for use in avocado groves through October 31, 2029. Growers wishing to use Forfeit® must have a copy of the SLN label in their possession during use. The label can be found on the California Avocado Commission website.

On October 3, the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Avocado Inspection Program announced the avocado release dates for the upcoming season.

The Community Alliance with Family Farmers is accepting applications for the California Underserved and Small Producer Drought Relief Grant Program. The CUSP program provides grants up to $20,000 to reimburse producers for drought-related losses and expenses that occurred within the last three years.