Persea americana
(avocado)

Pictures

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Identity

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Preferred Scientific Name

• Persea americana Mill.

Preferred Common Name

• avocado

Variety

• Persea americana var. americana
• Persea americana var. drymifolia (Schltdl. & Cham.) S. F. Blake
• Persea americana var. nubigena (L. O. Williams) L. E. Kopp

Other Scientific Names

• Persea drymifolia Schltdl. & Cham.
• Persea floccosa Mez
• Persea gratissima C.F. Gaertn.
• Persea nubigena L.O. Williams

International Common Names

• Spanish: aguacate
• French: avocatier
• Portuguese: abacateiro

Local Common Names

• Brazil: abacate-do-mato; canela-maçaranduba; canela-rosa; canela-ruiva; canela-vermelha; maçaranduba; maçaranduba-falsa; pau-Andrade
• Cambodia: 'avokaa
• Germany: Avocadobirnbaum
• India: Alligator pear; butter fruit
• Indonesia: adpukat; avokad
• Malaysia: apukado; avokado
• Netherlands: avocatoboom
• Papua New Guinea: bata
• Thailand: awokado
• Vietnam: bo'; le dau

EPPO code

• PEBAM (Persea americana)

Taxonomic Tree

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• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Plantae
•         Phylum: Spermatophyta
•             Subphylum: Angiospermae
•                 Class: Dicotyledonae
•                     Order: Laurales
•                         Family: Lauraceae
•                             Genus: Persea
•                                 Species: Persea americana

List of Pests

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Major host of:

Acromyrmex octospinosus (leaf cutting ant); Ageratina adenophora (Croftonweed); Aleurodicus dispersus (whitefly); Aleurodicus dugesii; Aleurodicus neglectus; Amblypelta lutescens (banana spotting bug); Amblypelta nitida (fruitspotting bug); Araecerus fasciculatus (cocoa weevil); Atta (leaf-cutter ant); Atta cephalotes (leaf cutting ant); Attacus atlas (atlas moth); Avocado sunblotch viroid (avocado sun blotch); Bactrocera aquilonis; Bactrocera carambolae (carambola fruit fly); Bactrocera dorsalis (Oriental fruit fly); Bactrocera kandiensis; Bactrocera passiflorae (Fijian fruit fly); Chrysomphalus dictyospermi (dictyospermum scale); Conotrachelus aguacatae (small avocado seed weevil); Conotrachelus perseae (avocado weevil); Copturus aguacatae (avocado stem weevil); Cornu aspersum (common garden snail); Cricula trifenestrata (tea flush worm); Cryptaspasma perseana; Cryptoblabes gnidiella (citrus pyralid); Diabrotica fucata; Dinurothrips hookeri; Dothiorella aromatica; Dysmicoccus brevipes (pineapple mealybug); Epiphyas postvittana (light brown apple moth); Glomerella cingulata (anthracnose); Heilipus lauri (avocado seed weevil); Helicotylenchus dihystera (common spiral nematode); Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis (black tea thrips); Hemiberlesia lataniae (latania scale); Hypomeces squamosus (green weevil); Icerya seychellarum (Seychelles scale); Lagocheirus araneiformis; Lasiodiplodia theobromae (diplodia pod rot of cocoa); Longidorus (longidorids); Maconellicoccus hirsutus (pink hibiscus mealybug); Melanaspis obscura (obscure, scale); Milviscutulus mangiferae; Naupactus xanthographus (South American fruit tree weevil); Neotermes holmgreni (dry wood termite); Nipaecoccus nipae (spiked mealybug); Nipaecoccus viridis (spherical mealybug); Niphonoclea spp.; Paracoccus marginatus (papaya mealybug); Paraleyrodes goyabae; Parasaissetia nigra (pomegranate scale); Parthenolecanium persicae (peach scale); Persea americana endornavirus; Phyllocnistis hyperpersea; Phyllocnistis perseafolia; Phytophthora cactorum (apple collar rot); Phytophthora cinnamomi (Phytophthora dieback); Phytophthora cryptogea (tomato foot rot); Planococcoides njalensis (west African cocoa mealybug); Potato spindle tuber viroid (spindle tuber of potato); Pratylenchus brachyurus (root-lesion nematode); Pratylenchus vulnus (walnut root lesion nematode); Protopulvinaria pyriformis (pyriform scale); Pseudacysta perseae; Pseudaonidia trilobitiformis (trilobite scale); Pseudocaecilius citricola; Pseudocercospora purpurea (spot blotch); Pseudococcus longispinus (long-tailed mealybug); Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae (bacterial canker or blast (stone and pome fruits)); Pythium vexans (damping off); Radopholus similis (burrowing nematode); Raffaelea lauricola (laurel wilt); Rhizobium radiobacter (crown gall); Rhizobium rhizogenes (gall); Saissetia coffeae (hemispherical scale); Saissetia oleae (olive scale); Scirtothrips perseae (avocado thrips); Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (cottony soft rot); Selenaspidus articulatus (West Indian red scale); Selenothrips rubrocinctus (red-banded thrips); Setaria pumila (yellow foxtail); Sphaceloma perseae (avocado scab); Sphaceloma purea (scab); Spodoptera littoralis (cotton leafworm); Stenoma catenifer (avocado moth); Stericta albifasciata (avocado moth); Suana concolor; Thaumatotibia leucotreta (false codling moth); Thrips palmi (melon thrips); Trialeurodes vaporariorum (whitefly, greenhouse); Trichodorus (stubby root nematodes); Trioza aguacate; Xyleborus glabratus (redbay ambrosia beetle); Xyleborus immaturus (bark beetle); Xyleborus neivai; Xyleutes punctifer; Zeuzera coffeae (coffee carpenter)

Minor host of:

Adoretus versutus (rose beetle); Albonectria rigidiuscula (green point gall); Aleurocanthus woglumi (citrus blackfly); Aleurodicus cocois (coconut whitefly); Aleurodicus pulvinatus (coconut whitefly); Anastrepha fraterculus (South American fruit fly); Anastrepha ludens (Mexican fruit fly); Anastrepha serpentina (sapodilla fruit fly); Anastrepha striata (guava fruit fly); Aonidiella aurantii (red scale); Aonidiella orientalis (oriental yellow scale); Aphis gossypii (cotton aphid); Aphis spiraecola (Spirea aphid); Argyrotaenia citrana (orange tortrix); Aspidiotus destructor (coconut scale); Aulacaspis tubercularis (mango scale); Bactrocera cucurbitae (melon fly); Bactrocera facialis; Bactrocera jarvisi (Jarvis' fruit fly); Bactrocera tryoni (Queensland fruit fly); Batocera rufomaculata (mango tree borer); Botryosphaeria parva; Cacoecimorpha pronubana (carnation tortrix); Calonectria ilicicola (leaf spot: Ilex spp.); Cassytha filiformis (love-vine); Caulophilus oryzae (broad nosed grain weevil); Cephaleuros virescens (algal spot of coffee); Cerataphis lataniae (palm aphid); Ceratitis capitata (Mediterranean fruit fly); Ceratitis cosyra (mango fruit fly); Ceratitis rosa (Natal fruit fly); Ceroplastes ceriferus (Indian wax scale); Ceroplastes destructor (white wax scale); Ceroplastes rubens (red wax scale); Ceroplastes rusci (fig wax scale); Chrysodeixis includens (soybean looper); Coccus hesperidum (brown soft scale); Colletotrichum acutatum (black spot of strawberry); Colletotrichum boninense; Colletotrichum godetiae; Crypticerya multicicatrices (multicicatrices fluted scale); Diaprepes abbreviatus (citrus weevil); Diaprepes spengleri (weevil, golden leaf); Euwallacea fornicatus (tea shot-hole borer); Ferrisia virgata (striped mealybug); Ganoderma lucidum (basal stem rot: Hevea spp.); Gibberella avenacea (Fusarium blight); Grovesinia pyramidalis (zonate leaf spot of Indian jujube); Haematonectria haematococca (dry rot of potato); Helicotylenchus multicinctus (banana spiral nematode); Helicotylenchus pseudorobustus (spiral nematode); Helopeltis antonii (tea bug); Hemicriconemoides mangiferae; Icerya aegyptiaca (breadfruit mealybug); Leptoglossus zonatus; Marasmiellus scandens (white thread blight); Myzus persicae (green peach aphid); Nectria pseudotrichia; Neofusicoccum australe; Neofusicoccum nonquaesitum; Neonectria macrodidyma; Neonectria radicicola (black root of strawberry); Nezara viridula (green stink bug); Oligonychus peruvianus; Oncobasidium theobromae (vascular-streak dieback of cocoa); Pantomorus cervinus (Fuller's rose beetle); Parabemisia myricae (bayberry whitefly); Paratrichodorus porosus; Pennisetum clandestinum (Kikuyu grass); Peridroma saucia (pearly underwing moth); Pestalotiopsis clavispora; Phytophthora cambivora (root rot of forest trees); Phytophthora citricola (black hop root rot); Phytophthora heveae (brazil nut leaf blight); Phytophthora nicotianae (black shank); Pinnaspis strachani (lesser snow scale); Planococcus citri (citrus mealybug); Platynota stultana (omnivorous leaf roller); Podosphaera perseae-americanae; Polyphagotarsonemus latus (broad mite); Pratylenchus penetrans (nematode, northern root lesion); Pseudococcus jackbeardsleyi (Jack Beardsley mealybug); Pseudotheraptus devastans (coreid bug); Pseudotheraptus wayi (coconut bug); Pulvinaria psidii (green shield scale); Raffaelea canadensis; Rhynchophorus palmarum (South American palm weevil); Rosellinia bunodes (black root rot); Rosellinia necatrix (dematophora root rot); Rosellinia pepo (black root rot); Rotylenchulus reniformis (reniform nematode); Schizoneuraphis himalayensis; Sinoxylon conigerum (conifer auger beetle); Sophonia orientalis (two-spotted leafhopper); Spodoptera eridania (southern armyworm); Trachysphaera fructigena (cigar end rot of banana); Tridax procumbens (coat buttons); Verticillium dahliae (verticillium wilt); Xiphinema (dagger nematode); Xyleborinus saxesenii (fruit-tree pinhole borer); Xyleborus perforans (island pinhole borer); Xyleborus volvulus; Xylella fastidiosa (Pierce's disease of grapevines); Xylosandrus compactus (shot-hole borer); Xylosandrus crassiusculus (Asian ambrosia beetle); Xylosandrus morigerus (brown twig beetle); Zonocerus elegans (elegant grasshopper); Zonocerus variegatus (variegated grasshopper)

Wild host of:

Megathyrsus maximus (Guinea grass)

Associated with (not a host):

Aspergillus candidus; Atherigona orientalis (pepper fruit fly); Bacillus licheniformis; Bacillus subtilis; Candidatus Phytoplasma solani (Stolbur phytoplasma); Cladis nitidula; Frankliniella schultzei (cotton thrips); Khuskia oryzae (cob rot of maize); Mycosphaerella tassiana (antagonist of Botrytis cinerea); Paecilomyces lilacinus (biocontrol: nematodes); Phytophthora megakarya (black pod of cocoa); Solenopsis geminata (tropical fire ant); Trichoderma harzianum (hyperparasite of Rhizoctonia solani); Trichothecium roseum (fruit rot of tomato)

Host of (source - data mining):

Alternaria alternata (alternaria leaf spot); Amorbia cuneana (avocado leafroller); Ascotis selenaria (cotton geometrid); Cochliobolus setariae (millet blight); Colletotrichum fructicola; Dysmicoccus grassii; Fusarium oxysporum (basal rot); Homona spargotis; Megaplatypus mutatus; Monolepta australis (leaf beetle, redshouldered); Oligonychus mangiferus (mango red spider mite); Oligonychus punicae (avocado brown mite); Oribius destructor (grey weevil); Oribius inimicus (grey weevil); Oxycarenus hyalinipennis (cotton, seed bug); Pestalotiopsis versicolor (Pestalotiopsis leaf spot); Pithomyces graminicola; Protaetia fusca (mango flower beetle); Pseudomonas syringae (bacterial blast); Puto barberi; Retithrips syriacus (black vine thrips); Sabulodes aegrotata (omnivorous looper); Sphaeropsis tumefaciens (citrus branch knot); Tuckerella pavoniformis; Xanthomonas campestris (black rot of crucifers); Xyleborus ferrugineus (black twig borer)

Uses List

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Animal feed, fodder, forage

• Fodder/animal feed

Environmental

• Agroforestry
• Boundary, barrier or support
• Erosion control or dune stabilization
• Soil improvement

Fuels

• Fuelwood

Human food and beverage

• Fruits
• Vegetable

Materials

• Essential oils
• Wood/timber

Medicinal, pharmaceutical

• Source of medicine/pharmaceutical
• Traditional/folklore

Wood Products

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Sawn or hewn building timbers

• Fences