Avocado Hi-Tech Farming and Health Benefit

Avocado Cultivation

Introduction:

Avocados are evergreen trees. In Perth they usually grow to 3-4m high, although they are capable of reaching heights of up to 7m.

Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable. There are more than 500 avocado varieties. Avocados are native to Central and South America, where they have been cultivated for over 10,000 years. Another name for the avocado is the "alligator pear," so-called because of its alligator skin texture and pear shape. The Aztec word for avocado was ahuacatl, which means "testicle tree".

Spanish explorers could not pronounce ahuacatl, so they called the avocado aguacate. This is the origin of the word guacamole. The origin of guacamole is the Aztec avocado sauce called ahuaca-hulli. Avocados were first introduced to the United States in 1871, when Judge R.B. Ord planted three trees in Santa Barbara, California.

The Hass is the most common avocado in the United States and is the only avocado grown year round. Rudolph Hass, a postman, patented the Hass avocado tree in 1935. The first Hass avocado tree is still alive and producing fruit. Mexico is the world's top producer of avocados, with California coming in second. California boasts 7,000 avocado groves. San Diego County produces 60% of California avocados. Florida is the second main producer in the United States. Aside from the United States and Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, and Colombia are the world's top producing countries.

One tree can produce between 150 and 500 avocados per year. The average avocado contains 300 calories and 30 grams of healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat. Avocados have the highest protein content of any fruit. Avocados contain more potassium than bananas. One avocado contains 81 mcg of lutein, an important nutrient for healthy eyes.

Once an avocado is picked, it takes between 7 and 10 days to ripen. Keeping it in the refrigerator will slow down the ripening process, while putting it in a paper bag with a ripe apple will speed up the process.

On average, 53.5 million pounds of guacamole are eaten every Super Bowl Sunday, enough to cover a football field more than 20 feet thick.

 

Soils and Position:

Avocados prefer a sunny position sheltered from hot drying winds. They prefer soils with high organic matter content, so when planting incorporate ample organic matter such Dawson’s Organic Soil Improver.

Establishing the Young Tree:

Young trees will require staking and some shading provided by shade cloth wrapped some stakes. This will be required for the first summer or two. Provide ample water at all times.

Pruning:

Avocados require little or no pruning. In the early stages the main leader may be tipped back if it becomes too long.

Fertilising:

Avocados enjoy soils with a high organic matter status, so it’s a good idea to mulch around trees with straw and sheep manure or cow manure annually. It is thought that maintaining good organic matter levels, reduces the incidence of root rot (caused by the fugus Phytophthora). Avocados have a shallow feeding root system, so avoid surface cultivation around them. They are best fertilised by scattering a few handfuls of All Purpose fertiliser underneath the tree’s drip-zone once in autumn and 2-3 times during

the period between November to March.

Fruiting and Varieties:

Seed raised trees will begin to bear fruit at 5-7 years old and grafted trees from 3-5 years after planting. In Perth Avocados flower in spring, the fruit forms in November and fruit can be harvested from June until November.

There are two varieties commonly sold by Dawsons, these are Fuerte and Hass.

Both Hass and Fuerte are sufficiently self fertile to produce crops without the cross pollination of another variety. Hass and Fuerte , will also cross pollinate each other, so crops can be increased by planting two trees (ie. one of each variety). Hass has smaller, thick-skinned fruit, while Fuerte has thinner-skinned fruit.

Pests and Diseases:

Avocados are susceptible to root rots including Phytopthora. Providing ample organic mulches will encourage natural soil fungi antagonistic to Phytopthora. Trees can also be sprayed with Yates Anti Rot as a preventative measure. Scales, aphids and thrips can also be pests. Iron deficiency can be a problem in Perth’s limey soils and can be corrected by applying Iron Chelates. It’s not unusual for avocados grown in Perth to have scorched leaves. While it is unsightly, established trees seem relatively untroubled by it. Eco-naturalure is an excellent organic spray, suitable for fruit fly control.

Health Benefits of Avocados

Prostate Cancer Prevention
Avocados have been shown to inhibit the growth of prostate cancer.
Oral Cancer Defense
Research has shown that certain compounds in avocados are able to seek out pre-cancerous and cancerous oral cancer cells and destroy them without harming healthy cells.

Breast Cancer Protection
Avocado, like olive oil, is high in oleic acid, which has been shown to prevent breast cancer in numerous studies.

Eye Health
Avocados have more of the carotenoid lutein than any other commonly consumed fruit. Lutein protects against macular degeneration and cataracts, two disabling age-related eye diseases.)

Lower Cholesterol
Avocados are high in beta-sitosterol, a compound that has been shown to lower cholesterol levels. In one study, 45 volunteers experienced an average drop in cholesterol of 17% after eating avocados for only one week.

Heart Health
One cup of avocado has 23% of the recommended daily value of folate. Studies show that people who eat diets rich in folate have a much lower incidence of heart disease than those who don't. The vitamin E, monounsaturated fats, and glutathione in avocado are also great for your heart.

Stroke Prevention
The high levels of folate in avocado are also protective against strokes. People who eat diets rich in folate have a much lower risk of stroke than those who don't.

Better Nutrient Absorption
Research has found that certain nutrients are absorbed better when eaten with avocado. In one study, when participants ate a salad containing avocados, they absorbed five times the amount of carotenoids (a group of nutrients that includes lycopene and beta carotene) than those who didn't include avocados.

Glutathione Source
Avocados are an excellent source of glutathione, an important antioxidant that researchers say is important in preventing aging, cancer, and heart disease.

Vitamin E Powerhouse
Avocados are the best fruit source of vitamin E, an essential vitamin that protects against many diseases and helps maintains overall health.

Contect:

Mr. Sanjaykumar M. Vasoya

Agriculture - Bioenergy - Biopharma

Skype: sanjuvasoya