The avocado (Persea
americana) is a tree native to Mexico and Central America, classified in
the flowering plant family Lauraceae along with cinnamon, camphor and bay
laurel. Avocado or alligator pear also refers to the fruit, botanically
a large berry that contains a single seed.
Avocados are commercially
valuable and are cultivated in tropical and Mediterranean climates throughout
the world. They have a green-skinned, fleshy body that may be pear-shaped,
egg-shaped, or spherical. Commercially, they ripen after harvesting. Trees are
partially self-pollinating and often are propagated through grafting to
maintain a predictable quality and quantity of the fruit.
