AVOCADO (Persea Americana)
The avocado belongs to the plant family Lauraceae and is native to Central and South America, ranging from eastern Mexico through Central America to northern Andes. It is a semi-deciduous fruiting tree that can grow up to 16 meters tall. Its leaves are simple, elliptic, glabrous and slightly aromatic. The flowers are fragrant, fairly showy, greenish white and held in yellow branched clusters. The fruits are ovoid, leathery skinned and considered one of the most nutritious in the world. It has an oily buttery pulp, rich in Vitamins A, B & E as well as Pottasium. In Philippines, the ripe fruit is eaten mashed with milk and sugar, and at times made into ice-cream.