Domestication and geographic distribution of Persea americana Mill. during pre-Columbian era

During the domestication of avocado tree, different man-plant-climate interactions have been reflected in its diversity. The different environments in which this crop has evolved and the various ways it has been handled by different cultures, have produced the great diversity of genotypes from which modern cultivars have developed. The different purposes for which the avocado has been selected over time in conjunction with the various environmental conditions of the areas in which the avocado has been introduced and cultivated have spawned a wide range of physiological varieties, which were already known before Spanish arrival. Historical, paleo historical and paleo ecological evidence on the three main avocado tree domestication are presented in this study: a) the Mexican avocado domestication in the central area of Mexico, b) the domestication of Caribbean avocado in the Maya Lowlands (Yucatan and Belize) and c) Guatemalan avocado domestication in the Highlands of Chiapas and Guatemala.