1955 
"During the investigations carried out in tropical America by the 
Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, with a view to securing 
new and promising varieties of the avocado for trial in the United 
States, a secondary object was constantly borne in mind,- the discov- 
ery of wild avocados. 
"It has long been known that the small-fruited Mexican avocado, 
botanically classified as variety drymifolia of the common avocado, Persea 
americana, occurs abundantly as a wild tree upon the lower slopes of the 
Volcano Orizaba in Mexico. In all probability it is indigenous in that 
region. This form is not, however, of much value horticulturally , and 
it does not seem to represent the wild prototype of the cultivated West 
Indian and Guatemalan varieties. 
"In 1920, Oton Jimenez and I discovered, upon the slopes of the 
Volcano Irazu in central Costa Rica, a wild avocado which bears much 
greater resemblance to the large-fruited forms of horticulture. It 
may be that this is the true prototype or wild ancestor of some of 
these forms . 
"This avocado, known locally as 'aguacate de anis, 1 occurs on hill- 
sides and along ravines at elevations between 4,500 and 5,000 feet. 
While we have seen it only in the vicinity of La Palma, it doubtless 
occurs in other parts of central Costa Rica. The fruiting habit of the 
tree suggests the Guatemalan race of horticulture, as also the hard, 
granular shell of the fruit itself. In the posession of a strong anise- 
like odor in the leaves, bark, and fruit, however, this wild form dif- 
fers from all cultivated varieties of the Guatemalan race, as well as 
the West Indian. 
"The tree grows to about 40 feet in height, and is erect, almost 
slender in habit. The leaves are thicker and stiff er than is common 
in cultivated avocados, glabrous on the upper surface and sparsely 
puberulent below. The fruits, so far as has been observed, are borne 
singly on stout fruitstalks 4 inches or more in length. They are 
roundish oblate in form, and 2 to 3 inches in diameter. The surface 
is moss-green, pebbled or slightly rough; the skin or shell is about one- 
tenth of an inch thick, very coarsely granular in texture, hard and woody. 
The flesh is pale yellow changing to greenish toward the shell. There are 
no fibers through the flesh, but there are numerous small, hard bodies 
like the stone cells of Chinese pears. These give the flesh a gritty 
feeling in the mouth. The flavor is strong, suggesting anise, at the 
same time rich and nutty, as in the cultivated avocados. The seed is 
very large, oblate in form, with both seed coats adhering closely to the 
cotyledons . 
"The flowering season in the Costa Rican highlands is in March and 
April, and the fruits ripen a year from the following May or June, after 
having been on the tree 12 to 15 months. 
"At the time this species was discovered in 1920, it was possible 
