Avocado

The avocado, alligator pear or avocado pear (Persea americana) is an <a href="/facts/Evergreen/bcLptUdV">evergreen</a> tree in the laurel family (<a href="/facts/Lauraceae/PPnQfy5n">Lauraceae</a>). It is native to <a href="/facts/Americas/hEuUTL4K">the Americas</a> and was first domesticated in <a href="/facts/Mesoamerica/cFjUFklr">Mesoamerica</a> more than 5,000 years ago. It was prized for its large and unusually <a href="/facts/Avocado_oil/NS3HoMvA">oily fruit</a>. The tree likely originated in the highlands bridging south-central Mexico and <a href="/facts/Guatemala/MoMcSnla">Guatemala</a>. Avocado trees have a native growth range from Mexico to <a href="/facts/Costa_Rica/baw0GTI1">Costa Rica</a>. 
Its fruit, sometimes also referred to as an alligator pear or avocado pear, is botanically a large <a href="/facts/Berry_(botany)/2JfhI0vw">berry</a> containing a single large seed. Sequencing of its genome showed that the evolution of avocados was shaped by <a href="/facts/Polyploidy/L7xyKHdK">polyploidy</a> events and that commercial varieties have a <a href="/facts/Hybrid_(biology)/pzVJ54xU">hybrid</a> origin. Avocado trees are partly <a href="/facts/Self-pollination/zvnJrYSx">self-pollinating</a>, and are often <a href="/facts/Plant_propagation/tHTSBRTI">propagated</a> through <a href="/facts/Grafting/s1hfSwTR">grafting</a> to maintain consistent fruit output. Avocados are presently cultivated in the tropical and <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_climate/gGsJAKE5">Mediterranean climates</a> of many countries. As of 2023<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Avocado&action=edit">[update]</a>, <a href="/facts/Agriculture_in_Mexico/FqRvYwqL">Mexico</a> is the world's <a href="/facts/List_of_countries_by_avocado_production/VL8l39Wy">leading producer</a> of avocados, supplying 29% of the global harvest of 10.5 million <a href="/facts/Tonne/gMymLmWv">tonnes</a>.
The fruit of domestic varieties have smooth, buttery, golden-green flesh when ripe. Depending on the <a href="/facts/Cultivar/nfaLJJM3">cultivar</a>, avocados have green, brown, purplish, or black skin, and may be pear-shaped, egg-shaped, or spherical. For commercial purposes, the fruits are picked while unripe and ripened after harvesting. The nutrient density and high fat content of avocado flesh are advantages for various cuisines, including vegetarian diets.
In major production regions like <a href="/facts/Chile/uEyTfEcx">Chile</a>, <a href="/facts/Mexico/IT5bwhdh">Mexico</a> and <a href="/facts/California/zLW2vdQJ">California</a>, the water demands of avocado farms place strain on local resources. Avocado production is implicated in other <a href="/facts/Externality/hGgw7gtT">externalities</a>, including <a href="/facts/Deforestation/L1TNhN9p">deforestation</a> and human rights concerns associated with the partial control of their production in Mexico by <a href="/facts/Organized_crime_in_Mexico/IzTff8pn">organized crime</a>. Global warming is expected to result in <a href="/facts/Effects_of_climate_change_on_agriculture/ru4tQClx">significant changes to the suitable growing zones</a> for avocados, and place additional pressures on the locales in which they are produced due to <a href="/facts/Heat_wave/33bJ5jh9">heat waves</a> and drought.

Avocado open-in-new

Avocado