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Materials and Methods

In the first phases of this research a review of literature was done, eg Kopp (1966), Griswold (1946), Popenoe (1935), Williams (1977), Schroeder (1948), Allen (1945), Zentmyer (1953), Zentmyer and Schieber (1987), Ruiz (1912), and others. Personal contacts were made as well, such as with the late Prof. Efraim Hernandez Xolocotzi, a well-known botanist. Climatic data from the planned exploration sites were also compiled.

The exploration work was in the States of Veracruz, Yucatan, Tamaulipas, northern Puebla and Chiapas. In many cases we had help from agronomists, botanists and village people to locate the trees of avocado and related species. The collection of vegetative material was based mainly on budwood, but in the case of species related to avocado, seeds or seedlings were taken also. All the collected materials were taken to the nursery in order to graft and establish the seeds or seedlings. Later, when the plants reached a good size, they were planted in one of the three germplasm banks maintained by CICTAMEX, located at Coatepec Harinas and Ixtapan de la Sal both in the State of Mexico and another at Huatusco, Veracruz maintained by Centro Regional Universitario Oriente of the Universidad Autonoma Chapingo.