Join us for a talk by Jennifer P. Mathews, Professor of Anthropology, Trinity University, to learn about the development of the Mesoamerican avocado as a commodity, focusing in particular on the 19th and 20th centuries and the role that amateur horticulturists played in establishing the crop in California. The earliest avocados of the Americas were dispersed by extinct megafauna, and later by human populations, including Olmec, Maya, and Aztec peoples. Prized for their flavor and rich caloric content, avocados were portrayed on a Maya king’s tombs, served as the municipal symbol of ancient Mesoamerican cities, and were given as tribute to ancient lords. While the Aztecs touted the plant’s curative and aphrodisiac properties, the Spanish, during the colonial period, used the fruit as food for enslaved people on sugar plantations across their land holdings. In the mid-1900s, seedings were transported from Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico to California. Lecture followed by Q&A and reception with avocado-inspired light bites. 
Fee: $20 ($15 member). Registration closes with lecture is full.