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Persea (ancient Greek name of an Egyptian tree with sweet fruit;
derivation unknown, probably from Perseus). Lauraceae. Woody plants
sometimes grown for ornament; and one of them yields the avocado, one
of the best of the semi-tropical fruits.
Leaves alternate, entire: fls. small, hermaphrodite, usually in
panicles; corolla wanting, the calyx deeply 6-parted; stamens usually
12, in 4 series, with one series sterile; ovary sessile and tapering
into a slender style bearing a simple stigma.—Shrubs and trees
distributed throughout the tropics and subtropics, most of the
species being confined to S. Amer., but one coming from the Canary
Isls. and a few from S. E. Asia. As defined by Bentham & Hooker, the
genus contains about 100 species, but Meissner (DC. Prodr. 15, pt. 1.
43) distributes some of the species in other genera and retains only
50 in Persea. Mez, in his monograph on the American Lauraceae:
(Jahrb. Konigl. Bot. Gart. 1889, 5. 135), describes 47 American
species. P. gratissima, the avocado, widely cult, throughout Trop.
Amer. and elsewhere for its fr., is the only species of great
economic importance. Others are of ornamental value, and may prove
useful as stocks upon which to bud or graft the avocado, although
experiments have not been very encouraging up to the present. P.
Borbonia grows naturally as far north as N. C.; P. indica is now and
then seen in cult, in Fla. and Calif. Some of the Cent. American
types referred to P. gratissima seem distinct, and may be found to
constitute good species.
P. drymifolia, Cham. & Schlect,, is now considered to be a form of P.
gratissima; it is the type with anise-scented lvs. and small,
thin-skinned frs. described above as Mexican. Mez recognizes it as a
botanical variety and describes it along with another variety,
P.gratissima var. Schiediana,also indigenous to Mex-The hardy avocado
or yas of San Jose,Costa Rica has been referred by Werekle to
P.frigida Lind., but this name is of doubtful validity. The fr. is
figured by Collins (Bull. 77, Bur. Pl. Ind.), and is said to be of
possible value for hybridization with more tender species. It is
spherical, about 3 in. diam., with a very large seed.—P. lingue,
Nees, and P. Meyeniana, Nees, are two species which have recently
been intro. to the U. S. from Chile.
F.W.Popenoe.
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