Common Name: LAUREL FAMILY Habit: [Shrub], tree, [parasitic vine], generally evergreen, aromatic; [dioecious or +- so]. Leaf: generally alternate, simple, unlobed [(lobed)], entire, generally thick; stipules 0. Inflorescence: [(flowers 1, head), raceme, panicle], umbel-like, enclosed by bracts [or not]. Flower: generally bisexual, generally +- yellow to +- green; hypanthium often calyx-tube-like, perianth parts in 2(3) whorls of 3, +- sepal-like; stamens [(3)]9[(12)], in whorls of 3, inner often with 2 stalked orange glands at base, 1 [or more] whorls often staminodes [or not], anthers [2] 4-celled, opening by uplifting valves; pistil 1, simple, ovary generally superior, chamber 1, ovule 1, style 1, very short. Fruit: +- berry, often with swollen hypanthium, sepals. Genera In Family: +- 54 genera, +- 3500 species: widespread in tropics, less so in temperate; some cultivated (Laurus, laurel, bay; Persea, avocado; Cinnamomum, cinnamon, camphor). eFlora Treatment Author: Henk van der Werff Scientific Editor: Thomas J. Rosatti.
Common Name: RED BAY Inflorescence: terminal or in leaf axils, panicle-like cyme. Flower: perianth parts 6; stamens 9, anthers 4-celled. Etymology: (Name used by Theophrastus for an Egyptian tree)
Persea americana Mill.
WAIF Stem: < 30 m. Leaf: 6--25 cm, 3--11 cm wide, narrow- to wide-elliptic, hairs 0 to sparse abaxially, 0 adaxially; basal pair of lateral veins as strong as distal, without axillary pit; petiole < blade. Inflorescence: in distal leaf axils, 5--15 cm. Flower: perianth parts 4--6 mm, ovate, hairy; staminodes small; pistil hairy. Fruit: pear-shaped or round, 5--15 cm, yellow-green to dark purple. Chromosomes: 2n=24. Ecology: Disturbed areas, abandoned gardens; Elevation: < 580 m. Bioregional Distribution: SCo; Distribution Outside California: native to mountains of Central America, widely cultivated for fruits. Flowering Time: Mar--May Note: Unlikely to escape cultivation areas due to large, heavy seeds. Jepson eFlora Author: Henk van der Werff Index of California Plant Names (ICPN; linked via the Jepson Online Interchange) Previous taxon: Persea Next taxon: Umbellularia
Citation for this treatment: Henk van der Werff 2012, Persea americana, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=37263, accessed on April 24, 2024.
Citation for the whole project: Jepson Flora Project (eds.) 2024, Jepson eFlora, https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/, accessed on April 24, 2024.
No expert verified images found for Persea americana.
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Duplicates counted once; synonyms included.
Species do not include records of infraspecific taxa, if there are more than 1 infraspecific taxon in CA.
Blue line denotes eFlora flowering time (fruiting time in some monocot genera).