Procyanidin A2 is an A type proanthocyanidin .
85-503: It is found in avocado , chestnut , cranberry juice concentrate, lychee fruit pericarp, peanut skins, Cinchona cortex, cinnamon cortex, Urvillea ulmaceae , and Ecdysanthera utilis . Procyanidin B2 can be converted into procyanidin A2 by radical oxidation using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals under neutral conditions. This article about an aromatic compound
170-450: A "cocktail avocado", which does not contain a pit, is available on a limited basis. They are five to eight centimetres long; the whole fruit may be eaten, including the skin. It is produced from an unpollinated blossom in which the seed does not develop. Seedless avocados regularly appear on trees. Known in the avocado industry as "cukes", they are usually discarded commercially due to their small size. In 2020, world production of avocados
255-523: A 6% increase over the previous year, and that 2 million tonnes would be exported. The Mexican state of Michoacán is the world leader in avocado production, accounting for 80% of all Mexican output. Most Mexican growers produce the Hass variety due to its longer shelf life for shipping and high demand among consumers. Seventy-six percent of Mexico's avocado exports go to the United States, with
340-406: A berry is a simple fruit having seeds and fleshy pulp (the pericarp ) produced from the ovary of a single flower. The ovary can be inferior or superior . It is indehiscent , i.e. it does not have a special "line of weakness" along which it splits to release the seeds when ripe. The pericarp is divided into three layers. The outer layer is called the "exocarp" or " epicarp "; the middle layer,
425-409: A decorative houseplant . The pit germinates in normal soil conditions or partially submerged in a small glass (or container) of water. In the latter method, the pit sprouts in four to six weeks, at which time it is planted in standard houseplant potting soil. The plant normally grows large enough to be prunable; it does not bear fruit unless it has ample sunlight. Home gardeners can graft a branch from
510-433: A food source to humans since before the start of agriculture, and remain among the primary food sources of other primates. Botanically defined berries with culinary uses include: Some berries are brightly coloured, due to plant pigments such as anthocyanins and other flavonoids . These pigments are localized mainly in the outer surface and the seeds . Such pigments have antioxidant properties in vitro , but there
595-617: A frequent claim is that testicle was the word's original meaning. This is not the case, as the original meaning can be reconstructed as "avocado" – rather the word seems to have been used in Nahuatl as a euphemism for "testicle". The modern English name comes from a rendering of the Spanish aguacate as avogato . The earliest known written use in English is attested from 1697 as avogato pear , later avocado pear (due to its shape),
680-495: A fruit-bearing plant to speed maturity, which typically takes four to six years to bear fruit. Avocado trees are vulnerable to bacterial, viral , fungal , and nutritional diseases (excesses and deficiencies of key minerals). Disease can affect all parts of the plant, causing spotting, rotting, cankers, pitting, and discoloration. The pyriform scale insect ( Protopulvinaria pyriformis ) is known from Australia, South Africa, Israel, Italy, France, Spain, Cuba, Florida, and Peru. It
765-548: A hard outer rind, have also been used as containers by removing the inner flesh and seeds and then drying the remaining exocarp. The English name of Lagenaria siceraria , "bottle gourd", reflects its use as a liquid container. Some true berries have also been used as a source of dyes . In Hawaii , these included berries from a species of Dianella , used to produce blue, and berries from black nightshade ( Solanum americanum ), used to produce green. Cucurbit berries or pepos, particularly from Cucurbita and Lagenaria , are
850-476: A hard, persistent endocarp, even woody in some species. Fruits classified as berries are thus not necessarily homologous, with the fleshy part being derived from different parts of the ovary, and with other structural and developmental differences. The presence or absence of berries is not a reliable guide to phylogeny. Indeed, fruit type in general has proved to be an unreliable guide to flowering plant relationships. Berries, defined loosely, have been valuable as
935-513: A native growth range from Mexico to Costa Rica . Its fruit, sometimes also referred to as an alligator pear or avocado pear , is botanically a large berry containing a single large seed. Sequencing of its genome showed that the evolution of avocados was shaped by polyploidy events and that commercial varieties have a hybrid origin. Avocado trees are partly self-pollinating , and are often propagated through grafting to maintain consistent fruit output. Avocados are presently cultivated in
SECTION 10
#17327720304941020-413: A problem, with heavy crops in one year being followed by poor yields the next. Like the banana, the avocado is a climacteric fruit, which matures on the tree, but ripens off the tree. Avocados used in commerce are picked hard and green and kept in coolers at 3.3 to 5.6 °C (37.9 to 42.1 °F) until they reach their final destination. Avocados must be mature to ripen properly. Avocados that fall off
1105-594: A staple fruit in Chile with 30% of production destined for the domestic market. No import tariffs are imposed on Chilean avocados by China, the United States, or the European Union due to free trade agreements. Other avocado cultivars include 'Spinks' . Historically attested varieties (which may or may not survive among horticulturists ) include the 'Challenge', 'Dickinson', 'Kist', 'Queen', 'Rey', 'Royal', 'Sharpless', and 'Taft'. A stoneless avocado, marketed as
1190-444: A structure (the core) in which tough tissue clearly separates the seeds from the outer softer pericarp. Although pomes are not botanical berries, Amelanchier pomes become soft at maturity, resembling a blueberry , and are commonly called Juneberries, serviceberries or Saskatoon berries . Aggregate or compound fruits contain seeds from different ovaries of a single flower, with the individual "fruitlets" joined at maturity to form
1275-458: A superior ovary. In epigynous berries, the berry includes tissue derived from parts of the flower other than the ovary. The floral tube, formed from the basal part of the sepals, petals and stamens, can become fleshy at maturity and is united with the ovary to form the fruit. Common fruits that are sometimes classified as epigynous berries include bananas , coffee , members of the genus Vaccinium (e.g., cranberries and blueberries), and members of
1360-531: A term sometimes corrupted to alligator pear . In Central American, Caribbean Spanish-speaking countries, and Spain it is known by the Mexican Spanish name aguacate , while South American Spanish-speaking countries Argentina, Chile, Perú and Uruguay use a Quechua -derived word, palta . In Portuguese, it is abacate . The Nahuatl āhuacatl can be compounded with other words, as in ahuacamolli , meaning avocado soup or sauce, from which
1445-406: A thin outer skin, not self-supporting when removed from the berry. This distinguishes, for example, a Vaccinium or Solanum berry from an Adansonia (baobab) amphisarca, which has a dry, more rigid and self-supporting skin. The fruit of citrus , such as the orange , kumquat and lemon , is a berry with a thick rind and a very juicy interior divided into segments by septa , that is given
1530-599: A thinner exocarp because of selective breeding by humans. The species was scientifically named by the British botanist Philip Miller in 1768. The genus Persea to which the avocado belongs is considered to have a North American origin, with Persea suggested to have diversified in Central America during the Pleistocene epoch. The modern avocado is thought to have speciated from other Persea during
1615-466: A two-volume work, De Fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum (on the fruits and seeds of plants) between 1788 and 1792. In addition to Linnaeus' eight terms, he introduced seven more, including pepo for the berry-like fruits of cucurbits. A pepo was distinguished by being a fleshy berry with the seeds distant from the axis, and so nearer the fruit wall (i.e. by having " parietal placentation " in modern terminology). Nicaise Auguste Desvaux in 1813 used
1700-529: A wide range through human agency before the arrival of the Europeans. The three separate landraces were most likely to have already intermingled in pre-Columbian America and were described in the Florentine Codex . As a result of artificial selection , the fruit and correspondingly the seeds of cultivated avocados became considerably larger relative to their earlier wild forebears millennia before
1785-619: Is a climacteric , single-seeded berry , due to the imperceptible endocarp covering the seed, rather than a drupe . The pear-shaped fruit is usually 7–20 cm (3–8 in) long, weighs between 100 and 1,000 g ( 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 and 35 + 1 ⁄ 2 oz), and has a large central seed , 5–6.4 cm (2– 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 in) long. Early wild avocados prior to domestication had much smaller seeds around 2.1–2.2 centimetres (0.83–0.87 in) in diameter, likely corresponding to smaller fruit size. The species produces various cultivars with larger, fleshier fruits with
SECTION 20
#17327720304941870-595: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Avocado The avocado , alligator pear or avocado pear ( Persea americana ) is an evergreen tree in the laurel family ( Lauraceae ). It is native to the Americas and was first domesticated in Mesoamerica more than 5,000 years ago. It was prized for its large and unusually oily fruit . The tree likely originated in the highlands bridging south-central Mexico and Guatemala . Avocado trees have
1955-552: Is a berry-like example of a multiple fruit; it develops from a cluster of tiny separate flowers that become compressed as they develop into fruit. Accessory fruits are not botanical berries. In accessory fruits, the edible part is not generated by the ovary. Berry-like examples include: The female seed cones of some conifers have fleshy and merged scales, giving them a berry-like appearance. Juniper "berries" (family Cupressaceae ), in particular those of Juniperus communis , are used to flavour gin . The seed cones of species in
2040-590: Is less effective. Such habitats were increasingly common in the Paleogene and the associated change in fruit type may have led to the evolution of fruit eating in mammals and birds. Fruit type has been considered to be a useful character in classification and in understanding the phylogeny of plants. The evolution of fruits with a berry-like pericarp has been studied in a wide range of flowering plant families. Repeated transitions between fleshy and dry pericarps have been demonstrated regularly. One well-studied family
2125-604: Is limited to a small fraction of the vast genetic diversity in the species. Conservation of this genetic diversity has relied largely on field collection, as avocado seeds often do not survive storage in seed banks. This is problematic, as field preservation of living cultivars is expensive, and habitat loss threatens wild cultivars. More recently, an alternate method of conservation has been developed based on cryopreservation of avocado somatic embryos with reliable methods for somatic embryogenesis and reconstitution into living trees. The avocado tree can be grown domestically and used as
2210-665: Is located in Southern California . Avocado is the official fruit of the state of California. Fallbrook, California , claims, without official recognition, the title of "Avocado Capital of the World" (also claimed by the town of Uruapan in Mexico ), and both it and Carpinteria, California , host annual avocado festivals. The California Avocado Commission and the California Avocado Society are
2295-557: Is no reliable evidence that they have antioxidant or any other useful functions within the human body. Consequently, it is not permitted to claim that foods containing plant pigments have antioxidant health value on product labels in the United States or Europe. Some spices are prepared from berries. Allspice is made from the dried berries of Pimenta dioica . The fruits (berries) of different cultivars of Capsicum annuum are used to make paprika (mildly hot), chili pepper (hot) and cayenne pepper (very hot). Pepos, characterized by
2380-459: Is normally found on avocado, and in Peru it is said to be the worst insect pest of the fruit. Certain cultivars of avocado seem more susceptible to attack by the scale than others. Mexico is by far the world's largest avocado growing country, producing several times more than the second largest producer. In 2013, the total area dedicated to avocado production was 188,723 hectares (466,340 acres), and
2465-420: Is now an industry standard, was pioneered in the 1980s by farmer Gil Henry of Escondido, California , in response to footage from a hidden supermarket camera which showed shoppers repeatedly squeezing hard, unripe avocados, putting them "back in the bin", and moving on without making a purchase. In some cases, avocados can be left on the tree for several months, which is an advantage to commercial growers who seek
2550-553: Is poisonous to some birds, and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) lists it as toxic to horses. Avocado leaves contain a toxic fatty acid derivative, persin , which in sufficient quantity can cause colic in horses and without veterinary treatment, death. The symptoms include gastrointestinal irritation, vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory distress, congestion, fluid accumulation around
2635-435: Is rarely used. There remains no universally agreed system of classification for fruits, and there continues to be "confusion over classification of fruit types and the definitions given to fruit terms". By definition, berries have a fleshy, indehiscent pericarp, as opposed to a dry, dehiscent pericarp. Fossils show that early flowering plants had dry fruits; fleshy fruits, such as berries or drupes, appeared only towards
Procyanidin A2 - Misplaced Pages Continue
2720-572: Is such a problem that the phrase blood guacamole has been adopted to describe the social effects in Mexico of the vast worldwide demand for its fruits. Avocados were introduced to California from Nicaragua in the early 1850s, when avocado trees imported from the Central American country were observed and reported growing near San Gabriel. The avocado has since become a successful cash crop . About 24,000 hectares (59,000 acres) – as of 2015, some 80% of United States avocado production –
2805-551: Is the Solanaceae , because of the commercial importance of fruit such as tomatoes, bell peppers, and eggplants or aubergines. Capsules , which are dry dehiscent fruits, appear to be the original form of the fruit in the earliest diverging members of the family. Berries have then evolved at least three times: in Cestrum , Duboisia , and in the subfamily Solanoideae . Detailed anatomical and developmental studies have shown that
2890-432: Is unlikely to be identical to the parent cultivar in fruit quality. Prime quality varieties are therefore propagated by grafting to rootstocks that are propagated by seed (seedling rootstocks) or by layering (clonal rootstocks). After about a year of growing in a greenhouse, the young rootstocks are ready to be grafted. Terminal and lateral grafting is normally used. The scion cultivar grows for another 6–12 months before
2975-534: Is used of fruits that have the general structure and texture of a drupe, without necessarily meeting the full definition. Other drupe-like fruits with a single seed that lack the stony endocarp include sea-buckthorn ( Hippophae rhamnoides , Elaeagnaceae ), which is an achene , surrounded by a swollen hypanthium that provides the fleshy layer. Fruits of Coffea species are described as either drupes or berries. The pome fruits produced by plants in subtribe Pyrinae of family Rosaceae , such as apples and pears, have
3060-613: The Tehuacan Valley in the state of Puebla , Mexico. There is evidence for three possible separate domestications of the avocado, resulting in the currently recognized Guatemalan ( quilaoacatl ), Mexican ( aoacatl ) and West Indian ( tlacacolaocatl ) landraces . The Guatemalan and Mexican and landraces originated in the highlands of those countries, while the West Indian landrace is a lowland variety that ranges from Guatemala, Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador to Peru, achieving
3145-810: The Water Footprint Network , it takes an average of approximately 70 litres (18 US gallons; 15 imperial gallons) of applied fresh ground or surface water, not including rainfall or natural moisture in the soil, to grow one avocado (283 L/kg [33.9 US gal/lb; 28.2 imp gal/lb]). However, the amount of water needed depends on where it is grown; for example, in the main avocado-growing region of Chile, about 320 L (85 US gal; 70 imp gal) of applied water are needed to grow one avocado (1,280 L/kg [153 US gal/lb; 128 imp gal/lb]). Increasing demand and production of avocados may cause water shortages in some avocado production areas, such as
3230-617: The Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea suggests that banana cultivation there goes back to at least 7,000 BP, and possibly to 10,000 BP. The history of cultivated citrus fruit remains unclear, although some recent research suggests a possible origin in Papuasia rather than continental southeast Asia. Chinese documents show that mandarins and pomelos were established in cultivation there by around 4,200 BP. According to FAOSTAT data, in 2013 four of
3315-573: The culinary definition of berries , such as strawberries and raspberries . The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire outer layer of the ovary wall ripens into a potentially edible " pericarp ". Berries may be formed from one or more carpels from the same flower (i.e. from a simple or a compound ovary). The seeds are usually embedded in the fleshy interior of the ovary, but there are some non-fleshy exceptions, such as Capsicum species, with air rather than pulp around their seeds. Many berries are edible, but others, such as
3400-716: The free trade agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico in July 2020 facilitating avocado shipments within the North American free trade zone . The Mexican domestic market was expanding during 2020. Mexican avocado exports are challenged by growth of production by Peru and the Dominican Republic to supply the US and European markets. During the COVID-19 pandemic , Mexican avocado farmers restricted harvesting as
3485-417: The fruits of the potato and the deadly nightshade , are poisonous to humans. A plant that bears berries is said to be bacciferous or baccate (from Latin bacca ). In everyday English, a " berry " is any small edible fruit. Berries are usually juicy, round, brightly coloured, sweet or sour , and do not have a stone or pit, although many small seeds may be present. In botanical language,
Procyanidin A2 - Misplaced Pages Continue
3570-423: The " mesocarp " or "sarcocarp"; the inner layer, the " endocarp ". Botanists have not applied these terms consistently. Exocarp and endocarp may be restricted to more-or-less single-layered "skins", or may include tissues adjacent to them; thus on one view, the exocarp extends inwards to the layer of vascular bundles ("veins"). The inconsistency in usage has been described as "a source of confusion". The nature of
3655-490: The ' Hass ' cultivar can tolerate temperatures down to −1 °C. Several cold-hardy varieties are planted in the region of Gainesville, Florida , which survive temperatures as low as −6.5 °C (20 °F) with only minor leaf damage. The trees also need well-aerated soils, ideally more than 1 m deep. However, Guatemalan varieties such as "MacArthur", "Rincon", or "Nabal" can withstand temperatures down to −1.6 °C (29 °F) According to information published by
3740-481: The Columbian exchange. The earliest residents of northern coastal Peru were living in temporary camps in an ancient wetland and eating avocados, along with chilies, mollusks, sharks, birds, and sea lions. The oldest discovery of an avocado pit comes from Coxcatlan Cave , dating from around 9,000 to 10,000 years ago. Other caves in the Tehuacan Valley from around the same time period also show early evidence for
3825-511: The Mexican state of Michoacán . Avocados may also cause environmental and socioeconomic impacts in major production areas, illegal deforestation , and water disputes . Water requirements for growing avocados are three times higher than for apples, and 18 times higher than for tomatoes. Commercial orchards produce an average of seven tonnes per hectare each year, with some orchards achieving 20 tonnes per hectare. Biennial bearing can be
3910-543: The Pleistocene, estimated at around either 1.3 million or 430,000 years ago. A number of authors, including Connie Barlow in her 2001 book The Ghosts of Evolution , have speculated that the avocado is an " evolutionary anachronism " with megafaunal dispersal syndrome (a concept originally proposed in the 1980s by Paul S. Martin and Daniel H. Janzen ), arguing that the avocado likely coevolved dispersal of its large seed by now-extinct megafauna . Barlow proposed that
3995-688: The Spanish word guacamole derives. In the United Kingdom the term avocado pear , applied when avocados first became commonly available in the 1960s, is sometimes used. Originating as a diminutive in Australian English , a clipped form, avo , has since become a common colloquialism in South Africa and the United Kingdom. It is known as "butter fruit" in parts of India and Hong Kong. Domestication, leading to genetically distinct cultivars, possibly originated in
4080-612: The auspices of the Peruvian Avocado Commission, headquartered in Washington, D.C. Chile has produced avocados for over 100 years with production increasing dramatically in the early 1980s due to global demand. New York magazine reported in 2015 that "Large avocado growers are draining the country's groundwater and rivers faster than they can replenish themselves." 88% of total production and 99% of exported avocados from Chile are Hass avocados. Avocados are
4165-483: The avocado does not tolerate well), the trees tend to produce abundantly the next season. In addition, due to environmental circumstances during some years, seedless avocados may appear on the trees. Known in the avocado industry as "cukes", they are usually discarded commercially due to their small size. Avocados can be propagated by seed, taking roughly four to six years to bear fruit, although in some cases seedlings can take 10 years to come into bearing. The offspring
4250-738: The avocado in Europe is that of Martín Fernández de Enciso ( c. 1470 – 1528) in 1519 in his book, Suma De Geographia Que Trata De Todas Las Partidas Y Provincias Del Mundo , while describing the native settlement of Yaharo (present-day Dibulla , Colombia). The first detailed account that unequivocally describes the avocado was given by Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés in his work Sumario de la natural historia de las Indias in 1526, while holding administrative Spanish colonial duties in Santo Domingo and visiting Castilla de Oro . The first written record in English of
4335-413: The axils of leaves. The tree flowers thousands of blossoms every year. Avocado blossoms sprout from racemes near the leaf axils; they are small and inconspicuous 5–10 mm ( 3 ⁄ 16 – 3 ⁄ 8 in) wide. They have no petals but instead two whorls of three pale-green or greenish-yellow downy perianth lobes, each blossom has 9 stamens with 2 basal orange nectar glands. The avocado fruit
SECTION 50
#17327720304944420-546: The berries of Cestrum and those of the Solanoideae are significantly different; for example, expansion of the fruit during development involves cell divisions in the mesocarp in Solanoideae berries, but not in Cestrum berries. When fruits described as berries were studied in the family Melastomaceae , they were found to be highly variable in structure, some being soft with an endocarp that soon broke down, others having
4505-589: The chances of cross- pollination are reduced. That is the case for programs at the University of California, Riverside , as well as the Volcani Centre and the Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias in Chile. The avocado is unusual in that the timing of the male and female flower phases differs among cultivars. The two flowering types are A and B. A-cultivar flowers open as female on the morning of
4590-500: The complete fruit. Examples of aggregate fruits commonly called "berries" include members of the genus Rubus , such as blackberry and raspberry . Botanically, these are not berries. Other large aggregate fruits, such as soursop ( Annona muricata ), are not usually called "berries", although some sources do use this term. Multiple fruits are not botanical berries. Multiple fruits are the fruits of two or more multiple flowers that are merged or packed closely together. The mulberry
4675-520: The dispersers included the gomphothere (elephant relative) Cuvieronius , as well as ground sloths , toxodontids , and glyptodonts . The concept of evolutionary anachronisms/megafaunal dispersal syndrome has been criticised by some authors, who note that many large fruit are readily dispersed by non-megafaunal animals, with it being noted that living agoutis disperse avocado seeds, with spectacled bears have also having been observed eating domestic avocados. The earliest known written account of
4760-705: The earliest plants known to be domesticated – before 9,000–10,000 BP in the Americas, and probably by 12,000–13,000 BP in Asia. Peppers were domesticated in Mesoamerica by 8,000 BP. Many other early cultivated plants were also berries by the strict botanical definition, including grapes, domesticated by 8,000 BP and known to have been used in wine production by 6,000 BP. Bananas were first domesticated in Papua New Guinea and Southeast Asia . Archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence at Kuk Swamp in
4845-569: The end of the Cretaceous Period or the beginning of the Paleogene Period , about 66 million years ago . The increasing importance of seed dispersal by fruit-eating vertebrates, both mammals and birds, may have driven the evolution of fleshy fruits. Alternatively, the causal direction may be the other way round. Large fleshy fruits are associated with moist habitats with closed tree canopies, where wind dispersal of dry fruits
4930-412: The endocarp distinguishes a berry from a drupe , which has a hardened or stony endocarp (see also below). The two kinds of fruit intergrade, depending on the state of the endocarp. Some sources have attempted to quantify the difference, e.g. requiring the endocarp to be less than 2 mm thick in a berry. Examples of botanical berries include: "True berries", or "baccae", may also be required to have
5015-554: The families Podocarpaceae and Taxaceae have a bright colour when fully developed, increasing the resemblance to true berries. The "berries" of yews ( Taxus species) consist of a female seed cone with which develops a fleshy red aril partially enclosing the poisonous seed. The Latin word baca or bacca (plural baccae ) was originally used for "any small round fruit". Andrea Caesalpinus (1519–1603) classified plants into trees and herbs, further dividing them by properties of their flowers and fruit. He did not make
5100-410: The family Cucurbitaceae (gourds, cucumbers , melons and squash ). Many fruits which are berries in the culinary definition are not berries in the botanic sense, but fall into one of the following categories: Drupes are varyingly distinguished from botanical berries. Drupes are fleshy fruits produced from a (usually) single-seeded ovary with a hard woody layer (called the endocarp ) surrounding
5185-409: The first day and close in late morning or early afternoon. Then they open as male in the afternoon of the second day. B varieties open as female on the afternoon of the first day, close in late afternoon and reopen as male the following morning. Certain cultivars, such as the 'Hass', have a tendency to bear well only in alternate years. After a season with a low yield, due to factors such as cold (which
SECTION 60
#17327720304945270-441: The first textbook of descriptive systematic botany. He used eight different terms for fruits, one of which was bacca or berry, distinguished from other types of fruit such as drupa (drupe) and pomum (pome). A bacca was defined as " pericarpium farctum evalve, semina ceteroquin nuda continens ", meaning "unvalved solid pericarp, containing otherwise naked seeds". The adjective " farctus " here has
5355-413: The five top fruit crops in terms of world production by weight were botanical berries. The other was a pome (apples). Citrus fruit includes, but is not limited to, oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit (including pomelos), tangerines, mandarins, clementines and satsumas. Oranges make up 53% of the total. According to FAOSTAT, in 2001, bananas (including plantains) and citrus comprised over 25% by value of
5440-489: The fruits are picked while unripe and ripened after harvesting. The nutrient density and extremely high fat content of avocado flesh are useful to a variety of cuisines and are often eaten to enrich vegetarian diets. In major production regions like Chile , Mexico and California the water demands of avocado farms place strain on local resources. Avocado production is also implicated in other externalities , including deforestation and human rights concerns associated with
5525-490: The greatest return for their crop, but if the fruit remains unpicked for too long, it falls to the ground. The species is only partially able to self-pollinate because of dichogamy in its flowering. This limitation, added to the long juvenile period, makes the species difficult to breed. Most cultivars are propagated by grafting , having originated from random seedling plants or minor mutations derived from cultivars. Modern breeding programs tend to use isolation plots where
5610-429: The harvest was 2.03 million tonnes in 2017. The states that produce the most are México , Morelos , Nayarit , Puebla , and Michoacan, accounting for 86% of the total. In Michoacán, the cultivation is complicated by the existence of drug cartels that extort protection fees from cultivators. They are reported to exact 2,000 Mexican pesos per hectare from avocado farmers and 1 to 3 pesos/kg of harvested fruit. It
5695-427: The modern distinction between "fruits" and "seeds", calling hard structures like nuts semina or seeds. A fleshy fruit was called a pericarpium . For Caesalpinus, a true bacca or berry was a pericarpium derived from a flower with a superior ovary; one derived from a flower with an inferior ovary was called a pomum . In 1751, Carl Linnaeus wrote Philosophia Botanica , considered to be
5780-428: The overall demand and supply chain slowed due to labor and shipping restrictions. Later in 2020, demand in the United States and within Mexico increased at a time when American retail prices continued to rise. During 2020 in the United States, month-to-month volume sales of avocados were similar to those of tomatoes at about 250 million pounds (110 million kg) per month. A report issued in mid-2020 forecast that
5865-567: The partial control of their production in Mexico by organized crime . Global warming is expected to result in significant changes to the suitable growing zones for avocados, and place additional pressures on the locales in which they are produced due to heat waves and drought. Persea americana is a tree that grows to 9–20 m (30–66 ft) with a trunk diameter between 0.3–0.6 m (1–2 ft). The leaves are 8–25 cm (3–10 in) long and alternately arranged. Panicles of flowers with deciduous bracts arise from new growth or
5950-455: The presence and consumption of avocado. There is evidence for avocado use at Norte Chico civilization sites in Peru by at least 3,200 years ago and at Caballo Muerto in Peru from around 3,800 to 4,500 years ago. The avocado tree also has a long history of cultivation in Central and South America, likely beginning as early as 5,000 BC. A water jar shaped like an avocado, dating to AD 900,
6035-444: The seed. Familiar examples include the stonefruits of the genus Prunus ( peaches , plums and cherries ), olives , coconut , dates , bayberry and Persea species. Some definitions make the mere presence of an internally differentiated endocarp the defining feature of a drupe; others qualify the nature of the endocarp required in a drupe, e.g. defining berries to have endocarp less than 2 mm thick. The term "drupaceous"
6120-505: The sense of "solid with tissue softer than the outside; stuffed". A berry or bacca was distinguished from a drupe and a pome, both of which also had an unvalved solid pericarp; a drupe also contained a nut ( nux ) and a pome a capsule ( capsula ), rather than the berry's naked seeds. Linnaeus' use of bacca and pomum was thus significantly different from that of Caesalpinus. Botanists continue to differ on how fruit should be classified. Joseph Gaertner published
6205-473: The special name " hesperidium ". A specialized term, pepo , is also used for fruits of the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae , which are modified to have a hard outer rind, but are not internally divided by septa. The fruits of Passiflora ( passion fruit ) and Carica (papaya) are sometimes also considered pepos. Berries that develop from an inferior ovary are sometimes termed epigynous berries or false berries, as opposed to true berries, which develop from
6290-419: The terms hesperidium and amphisarca as further subdivisions of berries. A hesperidium, called by others bacca corticata (berry with a cortex), had separate internal compartments ( " loges " in the original French) and a separable membraneous epicarp or skin. An amphisarca was described as woody on the outside and fleshy on the inside. "Hesperidium" remains in general use, but "amphisarca"
6375-598: The tissues of the heart, and even death. Birds also seem to be particularly sensitive to this toxic compound. The leaves of the Guatemalan variety of P. americana are toxic to goats, sheep, and horses. Berry (botany) In botany , a berry is a fleshy fruit without a stone (pit) produced from a single flower containing one ovary . Berries so defined include grapes , currants , and tomatoes , as well as cucumbers , eggplants (aubergines), persimmons and bananas , but exclude certain fruits that meet
6460-437: The tree is ready to be sold. Clonal rootstocks are selected for tolerance of specific soil and disease conditions, such as poor soil aeration or resistance to the soil-borne disease (root rot) caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi . Advances in cloning techniques that can produce up to 500 new plants from a single millimetre of tree cutting have the potential to increase the availability of rootstocks. Commercial avocado production
6545-583: The tree ripen on the ground. Generally, the fruit is picked once it reaches maturity; Mexican growers pick 'Hass' avocados when they have more than 23% dry matter, and other producing countries have similar standards. Once picked, avocados ripen in one to two weeks (depending on the cultivar) at room temperature (faster if stored with other fruits such as apples or bananas, because of the influence of ethylene gas). Some supermarkets sell ripened avocados which have been treated with synthetic ethylene to hasten ripening. The use of an ethylene gas "ripening room", which
6630-428: The tropical and Mediterranean climates of many countries. Mexico is the world's leading producer of avocados as of 2020, supplying nearly 30% of the global harvest in that year. The fruit of domestic varieties have smooth, buttery, golden-green flesh when ripe. Depending on the cultivar , avocados have green, brown, purplish, or black skin, and may be pear-shaped, egg-shaped, or spherical. For commercial purposes
6715-690: The two major grower organizations and Calavo Growers is a major distributor. 'Hass' avocado production in Peru encompasses thousands of hectares in central and western Peru. Peru has now become the largest supplier of avocados imported to the European Union and the second largest supplier to Asia and the United States. The country's location near the equator and along the Pacific Ocean creates consistently mild temperatures all year. 'Hass' avocados from Peru are seasonally available to consumers from May through September and are promoted under
6800-526: The use of the word 'avocado' was by Hans Sloane , who coined the term, in a 1696 index of Jamaican plants. The word avocado comes from the Spanish aguacate , which derives from the Nahuatl (Mexican) word āhuacatl [aːˈwakat͡ɬ] , which goes back to the proto-Aztecan * pa:wa . In Molina's Nahuatl dictionary "auacatl" is given also as the translation for compañón "testicle", and this has been taken up in popular culture where
6885-511: The world's exported fruits and vegetables, citrus fruits being more valuable than bananas. Export quantities of fruit are not entirely comparable with production quantities, since slightly different categories are used. The top five fruit exports by weight in 2012 are shown in the table below. The top two places are again occupied by bananas and citrus. Citrus fruit includes oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit (including pomelos), tangerines, mandarins, clementines and satsumas. Oranges make up 43% of
6970-780: The worldwide market, which was US$ 13.7 billion in 2018, would recover after the end of the pandemic and rise to US$ 21.6 billion by 2026. Some people have allergic reactions to avocado. There are two main forms of allergy: those with a tree-pollen allergy develop local symptoms in the mouth and throat shortly after eating avocado; the second, known as latex-fruit syndrome, is related to latex allergy and symptoms include generalised urticaria , abdominal pain, and vomiting and can sometimes be life-threatening. Avocado leaves, bark , skin, or pit are documented to be harmful to animals; cats, dogs, cattle, goats, rabbits, rats, guinea pigs, birds, fish, and horses can be severely harmed or even killed when they consume them. The avocado fruit
7055-585: Was 8.1 million tonnes , led by Mexico with 30% (2.4 million tonnes) of the total (table). Other major producers were Colombia , Dominican Republic , Peru , and Indonesia , together producing 35% of the world total. Despite market effects of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic , volume production of avocados in Mexico increased by 40% over 2019 levels. In 2018, the US Department of Agriculture estimated that 231,028 hectares (570,880 acres) in total were under cultivation for avocado production in Mexico,
7140-614: Was commonly referred to in California as ahuacate and in Florida as alligator pear until 1915, when the California Avocado Association popularized the term avocado. As a subtropical species, avocados need a climate without frost and with little wind. High winds reduce the humidity, dehydrate the flowers, and affect pollination. When even a mild frost occurs, premature fruit drop may occur; although
7225-602: Was discovered in the pre- Inca city of Chan Chan . The plant was introduced to Spain in 1601, Indonesia around 1750, Mauritius in 1780, Brazil in 1809, the United States mainland in 1825, South Africa and Australia in the late 19th century, and the Ottoman Empire in 1908. In the United States, the avocado was introduced to Florida and Hawaii in 1833 and in California in 1856. The name avocado has been used in English since at least 1764, with minor spelling variants such as avogato attested even earlier. The avocado
#493506