Avocado

Naming

The word "avocado" comes from the Spanish ''aguacate'', which in turn comes from the Nahuatl word ''āhuacatl'' [aːˈwakat͡ɬ], which goes back to the proto-Aztecan ''*pa:wa'' which also meant "avocado". Sometimes the Nahuatl word was used with the meaning "testicle", probably because of the likeness between the fruit and the body part.

The modern English name comes from an English rendering of the Spanish ''aguacate'' as ''avogato''. The earliest known written use in English is attested from 1697 as "avogato pear", a term which was later corrupted as "alligator pear". Because the word ''avogato'' sounded like "advocate", several languages reinterpreted it to have that meaning. French uses ''avocat'', which also means ''lawyer'', and "advocate"-forms of the word appear in several Germanic languages, such as the German ''Advogato-Birne'', the old Danish ''advokat-pære'' and the Dutch ''advocaatpeer''.In other Central American and Caribbean Spanish-speaking countries, it is known by the Mexican name, while South American Spanish-speaking countries use a Quechua-derived word, ''palta''. In Portuguese, it is ''abacate''. The fruit is sometimes called an avocado pear or alligator pear . The Nahuatl ''ahuacatl'' can be compounded with other words, as in ''ahuacamolli'', meaning avocado soup or sauce, from which the Spanish word ''guacamole'' derives.

In the United Kingdom, the term "avocado pear" is still sometimes misused as applied when avocados first became commonly available in the 1960s.

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 goes by the name "bơ" [ɓɘː] in Vietnamese, which is the same word that is used for butter. In eastern China, it is known as ''è lí'' or ''niú yóu guǒ'' . In Taiwan, it is known as ''luò lí'' or "cheese pear".

Reproduction

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 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 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.
⤷  A cultivars: 'Hass', 'Gwen', 'Lamb Hass', 'Pinkerton', 'Reed'
⤷  B cultivars: 'Fuerte', 'Sharwil', 'Zutano', 'Bacon', 'Ettinger', 'Sir Prize', 'Walter Hole'

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 , 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.

Defense

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 is poisonous to some birds, and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals 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 the tissues of the heart, and even death. Birds also seem to be particularly sensitive to this toxic compound. A line of premium dog and cat food, AvoDerm, uses oils and meal made from avocado meat as main ingredients. The manufacturer says the avocado's leaves and pit are the source of toxicity, and only in the Guatemalan variety of avocados, and the fruit is often eaten by orchard dogs as well as wildlife such as bears and coyotes.

Evolution

''Persea americana'', or the avocado, possibly originated in the Tehuacan Valley in the state of Puebla, Mexico, although fossil evidence suggests similar species were much more widespread millions of years ago. However, there is evidence for three possible separate domestications of the avocado, resulting in the currently recognized Mexican , Guatemalan , and West Indian landraces. The Mexican and Guatemalan 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 a wide range through human agency before the arrival of the Europeans. The three separate landraces were most likely to have already intermingledintermingled in a trade or cultural sense, but not necessarily a genetic one in pre-Columbian America and were described in the Florentine Codex.

Remains of an avocado plant were discovered in what is now Peru, carbon-dated from 8,000 to 15,000 years ago in the Mesolithic period. This evidence was found in an earth mound intended to be a ceremonial structure called Huaca Prieta, 600 kilometers north of Lima, Peru. The earliest residents were living in temporary camps in an ancient wetland eating avocados, 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 the presence 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 native, undomesticated variety is known as a ''criollo'', and is small, with dark black skin, and contains a large seed. It probably coevolved with extinct megafauna. 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, was discovered in the pre-Incan city of Chan Chan.

The earliest known written account of the avocado in Europe is that of Martín Fernández de Enciso in 1519 in his book, ''Suma De Geographia Que Trata De Todas Las Partidas Y Provincias Del Mundo.''...hieroglyph snipped......hieroglyph snipped... 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. The first written record in English of the use of the word 'avocado' was by Hans Sloane, who coined the term in 1669, in a 1696 index of Jamaican plants. 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 Israel in 1908. In the United States, the avocado was introduced to Florida and Hawaii in 1833 and in California in 1856.

Before 1915, the avocado was commonly referred to in California as ''ahuacate'' and in Florida as ''alligator pear''. In 1915, the California Avocado Association introduced the then-innovative term ''avocado'' to refer to the plant.In 1982, evolutionary biologist Daniel H. Janzen concluded that the avocado is an example of an 'evolutionary anachronism', a fruit adapted for ecological relationship with now-extinct large mammals . Most large fleshy fruits serve the function of seed dispersal, accomplished by their consumption by large animals. There are some reasons to think that the fruit, with its mildly toxic pit, may have coevolved with Pleistocene megafauna to be swallowed whole and excreted in their dung, ready to sprout. No extant native animal is large enough to effectively disperse avocado seeds in this fashion.

Uses

The fruit of horticultural cultivars has a markedly higher fat content than most other fruit, mostly monounsaturated fat, and as such serves as an important staple in the diet of consumers who have limited access to other fatty foods . Having a high smoke point, avocado oil is expensive compared to common salad and cooking oils, and mostly used for salads or dips.

A ripe avocado yields to gentle pressure when held in the palm of the hand and squeezed. The flesh is prone to enzymatic browning, quickly turning brown after exposure to air. To prevent this, lime or lemon juice can be added to avocados after peeling.



The fruit is not sweet, but distinctly and subtly flavored, with smooth texture. It is used in both savory and sweet dishes, though in many countries not for both. The avocado is popular in vegetarian cuisine as a substitute for meats in sandwiches and salads because of its high fat content.

Generally, avocado is served raw, though some cultivars, including the common 'Hass', can be cooked for a short time without becoming bitter. The flesh of some avocados may be rendered inedible by heat. Prolonged cooking induces this chemical reaction in all cultivars.

It is used as the base for the Mexican dip known as guacamole, as well as a spread on corn tortillas or toast, served with spices.

In the Philippines, Brazil, Indonesia, Vietnam, and southern India , avocados are frequently used for milkshakes and occasionally added to ice cream and other desserts. In Brazil, Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia, a dessert drink is made with sugar, milk or water, and pureed avocado. Chocolate syrup is sometimes added. In Morocco, a similar chilled avocado and milk drink is sweetened with confectioner's sugar and hinted with orange flower water.

In Ethiopia, avocados are made into juice by mixing them with sugar and milk or water, usually served with Vimto and a slice of lemon. It is also common to serve layered multiple fruit juices in a glass made of avocados, mangoes, bananas, guavas, and papayas. Avocados are also used to make salads.

Avocados in savory dishes, often seen as exotic, are a relative novelty in Portuguese-speaking countries, such as Brazil, where the traditional preparation is mashed with sugar and lime, and eaten as a dessert or snack. This contrasts with Spanish-speaking countries such as Chile, Mexico, or Argentina, where the opposite is true and sweet preparations are rare.



In Australia and New Zealand, it is commonly served in sandwiches, sushi, on toast, or with chicken. In Ghana, it is often eaten alone in sliced bread as a sandwich. In Sri Lanka, well-ripened flesh, thoroughly mashed with sugar and milk, or treacle is a popular dessert. In Haiti, it is often consumed with cassava or regular bread for breakfast.

In Mexico and Central America, avocados are served mixed with white rice, in soups, salads, or on the side of chicken and meat. In Peru, they are consumed with ''tequeños'' as mayonnaise, served as a side dish with ''parrillas'', used in salads and sandwiches, or as a whole dish when filled with tuna, shrimp, or chicken. In Chile, it is used as a puree-like sauce with chicken, hamburgers, and hot dogs; and in slices for celery or lettuce salads. The Chilean version of Caesar salad contains large slices of mature avocado. In Kenya and Nigeria, the avocado is often eaten as a fruit eaten alone or mixed with other fruits in a fruit salad, or as part of a vegetable salad.

Avocado is a primary ingredient in avocado soup. Avocado slices are frequently added to hamburgers, ''tortas'', hot dogs, and ''carne asada''. Avocado can be combined with eggs , and is a key ingredient in California rolls and other ''makizushi'' .

In the United Kingdom, the avocado became available during the 1960s when introduced by Sainsbury's under the name 'avocado pear'.