Persea americana Mill. GRIN-Global

Taxon: Persea americana Mill.

Summary

Genus:

Persea

Subgenus:

Persea

Family:

Lauraceae

Nomen number:

27393

Place of publication:

Gard. dict. ed. 8: Persea no. 1. 1768

Verified:

01/23/1992 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

0 (0 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System.

Other conspecific taxa

Persea americana Mill. race guatemalan (0 active accession[s])
Persea americana Mill. race mexican (0 active accession[s])
Persea americana Mill. race west indian (0 active accession[s])

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Heterotypic Synonym(s)


Laurus persea L.
Persea persea (L.) Cockerell
Persea floccosa Mez
Persea americana Mill. var. nubigena (L. O. Williams) L. E. Kopp
Persea nubigena L. O. Williams
Persea gigantea L. O. Williams
Persea steyermarkii C. K. Allen
Persea americana Mill. var. floccosa (Mez) Scora, nom. inval.
Persea americana Mill. var. steyermarkii (C. K. Allen) Scora, nom. inval.
Persea americana Mill. var. tolimanensis (Zentmyer & Schieber) Scora, nom. inval.
Persea americana Mill. var. zentmyeri Scora, nom. inval.
Persea zentmyeri Schieber & B. Bergh, nom. inval.
Persea tolimanensis Zentmyer & Schieber, nom. inval.

No images

Reference(s)

Aldén, B., S. Ryman & M. Hjertson. Våra kulturväxters namn - ursprung och användning. Formas, Stockholm (Handbook on Swedish cultivated and utility plants, their names and origin). 2009
Burger, W. C., ed. Flora costaricensis. 1971-
Chanderbali, A. S. et al. 2013. Chapter 3. Taxonomy and botany. The avocado: botany, production and uses. 2013 35.
Chanderbali, A. S. et al. 2013. Chapter 3. Taxonomy and botany. The avocado: botany, production and uses. 2013 35.
Duke, J. A. et al. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs. 2002
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Grellin, J. K. & J. Philpott. A reference guide to medicinal plants. 1990
Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm.
Hackett, C. & J. Carolane. Edible Horticultural Crops. 1982
Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
IPGRI. New World Fruits Database (on-line resource).
Iwatsuki, K. et al. Flora of Japan. 1993-
Kingsbury, J. M. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. 1964
Kopp, L. E. 1966. A taxonomic revision of the genus Persea in the Western Hemisphere (Perseae-Lauraceae). Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 14(1):15.
Liogier, A. H. Flora of Hispaniola: Part 1; La Flora de la Española. Part II-. 1981-
Liogier, H. A. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands. 1984-
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2. 2000
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2. 2000
Munro, D. B. Canadian poisonous plants information system (on-line resource).
Núñez Meléndez, E. Plantas medicinales de Puerto Rico: Folklore y fundamentos científicos. 1982
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Scora, R. W. et al. 2002. Taxonomy and botany. The avocado: botany, production and uses. 2002 19-23.
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. Flora of Guatemala. 1946-1976
Stevens, W. D. et al., eds. Flora de Nicaragua. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(1-3). 2001
Steyermark, J. A. et al., eds. Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana. 1995-
Van Wyk, B.-E. & M. Wink. Medicinal plants of the world. 2004
Verheij, E. W. M. & R. E. Coronel, eds. 1991. Edible fruits and nuts. Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA). 1989- 2:249.
Wagner, W. L. et al. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i. 1990
Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. World economic plants: a standard reference (on-line edition) [medicinal plants only].
Williams, L. O. 1977. The avocados, a synopsis of the genus Persea, subg. Persea. Econ. Bot. 31:315-320.
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. Flora of China (English edition). 1994-

Common names

English
avocado –
French
avocatier –
German
Avocado –
Avocadobaum –
Avocadopalme –
Japanese Rōmaji
abokado –
wani-nashi –
Portuguese (Brazil)
abacate –
Spanish
aguacate –
palto –
Swedish
avokado –
Transcribed Chinese
e li –

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State
1	Native	Northern America		Mexico
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	San Luis Potosi
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sonora
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Tamaulipas
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Quintana Roo
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Belize	Corozal
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Costa Rica
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Costa Rica	Alajuela
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Costa Rica	Puntarenas
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	El Salvador
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	El Salvador	Chalatenango
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	El Salvador	Santa Ana
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Baja Verapaz
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Chimaltenango
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Huehuetenango
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Jalapa
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Quiche
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Solola
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Guatemala	Zacapa
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	Atlantida
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	Copan
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	El Paraiso
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	Francisco Morazan
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	Intibuca
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua	Granada
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua	Madriz
1	Native	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua	Matagalpa
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Amazonas
2	Cultivated
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Nuevo Leon
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Mexico
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Michoacan
2	Cultivated	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Belize
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Costa Rica	Cartago
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Costa Rica	San Jose
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	El Salvador	San Salvador
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Honduras	Olancho
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua	Chontales
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Nicaragua	Jinotega
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Panama
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Panama	Chiriqui
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Mesoamerica	Panama	Panama
2	Cultivated	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela
4	Naturalized	Pacific	North-Central Pacific	United States	Hawaii
4	Naturalized	Pacific	South-Central Pacific	French Polynesia
4	Naturalized	Pacific	South-Central Pacific	Pitcairn
6	Other

Native
Northern America

REGION: Mexico
NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Chiapas, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Quintana Roo, Tabasco]

Southern America

MESOAMERICA: Belize [Corozal], Costa Rica [Alajuela, Puntarenas], Guatemala [Baja Verapaz, Huehuetenango, Jalapa, Zacapa, Chimaltenango, Quiche, Solola], Honduras [Atlantida, Copan, El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan, Intibuca], Nicaragua [Granada, Madriz, Matagalpa], El Salvador [Chalatenango, Santa Ana]
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Venezuela [Amazonas]

Cultivated

REGION:

Northern America

NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Nuevo Leon]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Veracruz]

Southern America

MESOAMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica [Cartago, San Jose], Honduras [Olancho], Nicaragua [Chontales, Jinotega], Panama [Chiriqui, Panama], El Salvador [San Salvador]
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Venezuela

Naturalized
Pacific

NORTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: United States [Hawaii]
SOUTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: Pitcairn, French Polynesia

Other ()

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Reference
Human food	fruit	Scora, R. W. et al. 2002. Taxonomy and botany. The avocado: botany, production and uses. 2002 15-37.
Medicines	folklore	McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2. 2000
Vertebrate poisons	mammals	Kingsbury, J. M. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. 1964

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2025. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://ausgenebank.agriculture.vic.gov.au/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=27393. Accessed 17 December 2025.