1^ THE AMERICAN BOTANIST, 
countries is rapidly increasing. Among the most promising 
of such articles is the avocado, (Persea grafissima) still little 
known, but rapidly increasing in favor. The avocado, 
though technically a fruit and usually referred to as such, 
linary standpoint no more a fruit than the 
more accurately described by the 
cucumber. 
''salad fruit," and may be said to stand alone as the only 
trait that when ripe is eaten almost exclusively as a salad. 
The nearest approach to this is perhaps the olive, which is 
eaten more as a relish. This unexpected role no doubt ac- 
counts to a large extent for the dislike or indifference often 
protessed by persons tasting the avocado for the first time. 
As m the case of the olive, where the novice usually descriljes 
the fnut as an insipid pickle, the appearance of the avocado 
leads one to expect a sweet or acid fruit, and the more or 
less unconscious disappointment usually leads the experi- 
menter to pronounce the avocado tasteless and oilv. One 
writer describes it as having a "taste not mnch like that of 
our pears (the avocado is often called 'alligator pear'), and 
in first trying to eat the fruit one mav pronounce it a poor 
pear, but a good kind of pumpkin," and adds the charitable 
suggestion that "cooking or preserv^ing mav bring out the 
hidden virtues." 
Few persons who live for any length of time in coun- 
tries uherc avocados are to be Iiad fail to actpiire a taste for 
this delicious salad fruit. It is the rule, however, that the 
• an entirely ^e^v article of diet has to be cultivated, 
>od which was unknown to our fathers and which 
tor the first time after our tastes have been formed 
n accepted at the first trial. In most cases it is only 
.'r.i attempts, prompted usuallv by the assurances 
that a fondness for the strange article be- 
■ The human taste is. however, fairly uniform, 
and : 
