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Persea americana
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Family:
LAURACEAE
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Citation: Persea americana Mill., Gard. Dict. (ed.8).1768; Anil Kumar et al., Fl. Pathanamthitta 426. 2005; Ratheesh Narayanan, Fl. Stud. Wayanad Dist. 704. 2009.
Persea gratissima Gaertn., Suppl. Carp. Leipzig. 222, t. 221. 1807; Gamble, Fl. Pres. Madras 1241(869). 1925.
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Malayalam Name(s):
Vennappazham
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Tamil name(s):
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English name(s):
Avocado Pear, Alligator Pear, Aguacate, Abacate, Soldier's Butter
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Description:
Trees, to 15 m high. Leaf buds perulate with imbricate scales. Leaves simple, alternate, estipulate; petiole to 20 mm long, slender, glabrous; lamina 8-18 x 4-6 cm, elliptic, elliptic-ovate or elliptic-oblong, base attenuate, apex obtuse, margin entire, glabrous, coriaceous; lateral nerves 5-8 pairs, pinnate, prominent, intercostae reticulate. Flowers bisexual, subsessile, greenish, in compact terminal panicles on branchlets; perianth tomentose, tube turbinate, lobes 3+3; stamens 9, perfect, those of the first and second row opposite the perianth lobes, introrse, those of third row opposite the first row, extrorse with slender filaments and a pair of stipitate glands at their base; staminodes of fourth row opposite the second row, cordate, stipitate; ovary superior, sessile, hairy; style slender; stigma simple. Fruit a berry, 10 x 8 cm, with copious mesocarp; seed 5 x 1.5 cm.
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Habit:
Tree
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Flowering & Fruiting:
March-September
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District(s):
All Districts
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Medicinal:
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Habitat:
Grown in homesteads
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Distribution:
Native of Tropical America; extensively cultivated in the tropics
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Aquatic:
No
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Epiphyte(s):
No
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Saprophyte:
No
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Stem parasite:
No
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Root parasite:
No
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Flower colour(s):
Green
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Weed:
No
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Monocot/Dicot:
Dicotyledonous Plants
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Exotic:
Yes
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Garden:
No
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Edible:
Yes
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Vegetable:
No
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Endemic to:
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IUCN status:
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Altitude:
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Localities:
Upper Moozhiar
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