If Strawberries Aren'T Berries What Are They

The Strawberry: A Multiple Fruit When we think of fruits and vegetables, we’re pretty sure about which is which. We tend to lump sweet or sour-tasting plants together as fruits, and those plants that are not sugary we consider vegetables. To be more accurate, however, we must consider which part of the plant we are eating.

While vegetables are defined as plants cultivated for their edible parts, the botanical term “fruit” is more specific.
It is a mature, thickened ovary or ovaries of a seed-bearing plant, together with accessory parts such as fleshy layers of tissue or “pulp.” Thus, many of the foods we think of casually as fruits, such as rhubarb (of which we eat the leaf stalks), are not fruits at all, and many of our favorite “vegetables” actually fit the definition of fruit, such as the tomato.

As a subcategory of fruits, berries are yet another story. A berry is an indehiscent (not splitting apart at maturity) fruit derived from a single ovary and having the whole wall fleshy. Berries are not all tiny, and they’re not all sweet. Surprisingly, eggplants, tomatoes and avocados are botanically classified as berries.

And the popular strawberry is not a berry at all.
Botanists call the strawberry a “false fruit,” a pseudocarp.
A strawberry is actually a multiple fruit which consists of many tiny individual fruits embedded in a fleshy receptacle.
The brownish or whitish specks, which are commonly considered seeds, are the true fruits, called achenes, and each of them surrounds a tiny seed.

These achenes also make strawberries relatively high in fiber. According to the Wellness Encyclopedia of Food and Nutrition, one-half cup of strawberries supplies more fiber than a slice of whole wheat bread, and more than 70 percent of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C.

The cultivated strawberry is a hybrid of two different parent species.
Because they are hybrids, cultivated strawberries are often able to adapt to extreme weather conditions and environments.
While California and Florida are the largest producers, strawberries are grown in all 50 states.
Strawberries are a significant crop in Pennsylvania, but they have a relatively short season.

According to Carolyn Beinlich of Triple B Farms, a local pick-your-own berry farm in Monongahela, Pennsylvania’s ideal strawberry season lasts three and one-half weeks. The plants form their fruit buds in the fall, so adequate moisture at that time is vital.

Since October 1996 was a rainy month, Beinlich is looking forward to a bountiful strawberry crop this season. The recipe shown here is among Beinlich’s favorites for celebrating the strawberry season. For more information about Triple B Farms, call 258-3557. Lynn Parrucci is program coordinator, and Amy Eubanks is a research assistant, at the Science Center’s Kitchen Theater.

Botanist Sue Thompson of Carnegie Museum of Natural History, also contributed to this article. *** Visit the Kitchen Theater at Carnegie Science Center to learn more about the science of cooking, and get a taste of what we’re cooking and a recipe to take home.

1 quart strawberries, washed and drained well, stems removed 3_4 cup white sugar 11_2 Tablespoons cornstarch 1 1/2 cups water 1 3-ounce package strawberry gelatin 1 9-inch baked pie shell

Boil sugar, cornstarch and water until clear (about 10 minutes). Mix well with strawberries and spoon into pie shell. Refrigerate three hours. Top with whipped cream if desired, and serve. Carolyn Beinlich of Triple B Farms will present a cooking demonstration on strawberries at the Science Center’s Kitchen Theater Sunday, June 1, at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.

Contents

1 Is A Coconut A berry?
- 1.1 Why is a lemon a berry?
  - 1.1.1 Are tomatoes a berry?
- 1.2 Are peppers a berry?
2 Is A banana a tree?
- - 2.0.1 Why are berries called berries if they aren’t berries?
  - 2.0.2 Why are blueberries not berries?

What is technically a berry?

berry, in botany, a simple fleshy fruit that usually has many seeds, such as the banana, grape, and tomato, As a simple fruit, a berry is derived from a single ovary of an individual flower, The middle and inner layers of the fruit wall often are not distinct from each other.

Together with drupes and pomes, berries are one of the main types of fleshy fruits. There are two specific types of berries that characterize certain taxonomic groups. The leathery-rinded berry of citrus fruits (genus Citrus ) is called a hesperidium, The elongated tough-skinned fruits of the family Cucurbitaceae, including watermelons, cucumbers, and gourds, are a type of berry referred to as pepos,

Any small fleshy fruit is popularly called a berry, especially if it is edible. Raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries, for example, are not true berries but are aggregate fruits —fruits that consist of a number of smaller fruits. Cranberries and blueberries, however, are true botanical berries.

What berry is not a berry?

Is Raspberry a Berry? – Despite its name, a raspberry is not a true berry. That’s because they grow from a flower with multiple ovaries. (Remember, a true berry grows from one ovary.) These ovaries form many tiny individual fruits, called drupelets, which are those little round bumps in a raspberry. Each drupelet contains a small pit, or seed.

Why isn’t a raspberry a berry?

Bananas Are Berries? ODDBALLS OF THE PRODUCE STAND, tomatoes and avocados are fruits, as most people know. Yet more often than not they’re found alongside vegetables in savory culinary preparations. Working on this issue of the magazine got me wondering what it is, exactly, that makes a fruit a fruit.

It turns out that the plant world is full of strange cases of classification. Botanists define a fruit as the portion of a flowering plant that develops from the ovary. It contains the seeds, protecting them and facilitating dispersal. (The definition of a is a little fuzzier: any edible part of a plant that isn’t a fruit.) Subcategories within the fruit family—citrus, berry, stonefruit or drupe (peaches, apricots), and pome (apples, pears)—are determined by which parts of the flower/ovary give rise to the skin, flesh and seeds.

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Strawberries and raspberries aren’t really berries in the botanical sense. They are derived from a single flower with more than one ovary, making them an aggregate fruit. True berries are simple fruits stemming from one flower with one ovary and typically have several seeds.

Tomatoes fall into this group, as do pomegranates, kiwis and—believe it or not—bananas. (Their seeds are so tiny it’s easy to forget they’re there.) One might think that owing to their superficial similarities to stonefruits, avocados might be classified as drupes. But no, they’re actually considered a berry, too—with one, giant seed.

So, bananas are berries and raspberries aren’t. Who knew? Greta Lorge, ’97, is a freelance writer and editor in San Francisco. : Bananas Are Berries?

Why is an avocado a berry?

What Makes a Berry a Berry? – Nodar Chernishev / EyeEm/Getty Images A berry, which has a fleshy exocarp (rind) and a fleshy mesocarp (pulp), is any soft and fleshy fruit that comes from a flower with a single ovary, This means avocados, tomatoes, bananas, and oranges are all technically berries.

What makes watermelon a berry?

It’s Also Not A Melon, But A Berry! Melons have a central seed cavity, whereas watermelons have seeds dispersed throughout the fruit. Some consider watermelons as berries since they have a single ovary, pulp, seeds, and juicy flesh.

Is A Coconut A berry?

December 5, 2013 One of the most common questions we are asked by patients with tree nut allergy is whether coconut is a fruit or a nut. Unfortunately, the answer is a little complicated. Botanically, the coconut is classified as a fruit-more specifically, it is a drupe.

Drupes are more commonly called stone fruits. Other stone fruits include peaches and nectarines; blackberries and raspberries are drupes comprised of aggregates of drupelets. The United States Food and Drug Administration consider coconuts to be a tree nut. The federal Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) requires that all packaged food products sold in the U.S.

that contain tree nuts as an ingredient must list it on the label. This act does require coconut to be listed specifically. Ultimately, allergic reactions to coconut have been documented, but most patients with a tree nut allergy are able to tolerate it.

Why is a lemon a berry?

Are Lemons Classified as Berries? – You may be surprised to find out that lemons are actually classified as berries! In the botanical sense, a berry has three distinct fleshy layers: the exocarp (outer skin), mesocarp (fleshy middle) and endocarp (innermost part, which holds the seeds).

In order to be a berry, the fruit needs to have some type of protective structure.
This exocarp, or its outside layer, could be a peel, skin or fuzz.
In the instance of a lemon, the outermost peel would be considered the exocarp, while its white rind, or pith, just beneath the peel is considered the mesocarp, and the fleshy insides holding the seeds are considered the endocarp.

Related: Is a Strawberry a Berry? Not only that, but in order to be considered a berry, the fruit should contain two or more seeds and develop from one flower that has one ovary. So yes, everyone’s favorite yellow citrus fruit is considered a berry! In my article that answers the question is a strawberry a vegetable or a fruit, we discuss why strawberries aren’t actually berries at all, yet lemons are! So interesting, right?

Are tomatoes a berry?

While vegetables are defined as plants cultivated for their edible parts, the botanical term “fruit” is more specific.
It is a mature, thickened ovary or ovaries of a seed-bearing plant, together with accessory parts such as fleshy layers of tissue or “pulp.” Thus, many of the foods we think of casually as fruits, such as rhubarb (of which we eat the leaf stalks), are not fruits at all, and many of our favorite “vegetables” actually fit the definition of fruit, such as the tomato.

And the popular strawberry is not a berry at all.
Botanists call the strawberry a “false fruit,” a pseudocarp.
A strawberry is actually a multiple fruit which consists of many tiny individual fruits embedded in a fleshy receptacle.
The brownish or whitish specks, which are commonly considered seeds, are the true fruits, called achenes, and each of them surrounds a tiny seed.

The cultivated strawberry is a hybrid of two different parent species. Because they are hybrids, cultivated strawberries are often able to adapt to extreme weather conditions and environments. While California and Florida are the largest producers, strawberries are grown in all 50 states. Strawberries are a significant crop in Pennsylvania, but they have a relatively short season.

Since October 1996 was a rainy month, Beinlich is looking forward to a bountiful strawberry crop this season. The recipe shown here is among Beinlich’s favorites for celebrating the strawberry season. For more information about Triple B Farms, call 258-3557. Lynn Parrucci is program coordinator, and Amy Eubanks is a research assistant, at the Science Center’s Kitchen Theater.

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1 quart strawberries, washed and drained well, stems removed 3_4 cup white sugar 11_2 Tablespoons cornstarch 1 1/2 cups water 1 3-ounce package strawberry gelatin 1 9-inch baked pie shell

Are peppers a berry?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia “Sweet Pepper” redirects here. For the 1929 German film, see Sweet Pepper (film),

Bell pepper
Green, yellow, and red bell peppers
Species	Capsicum annuum

Heat	None
Scoville scale	0 SHU

The bell pepper (also known as paprika, sweet pepper, pepper, or capsicum ) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species Capsicum annuum, Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange, green, white, chocolate, candy cane striped, and purple.

Bell peppers are sometimes grouped with less pungent chili varieties as “sweet peppers”. While they are fruits — botanically classified as berries —they are commonly used as a vegetable ingredient or side dish, Other varieties of the genus Capsicum are categorized as chili peppers when they are cultivated for their pungency, including some varieties of Capsicum annuum,

Peppers are native to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America, Pepper seeds were imported to Spain in 1493 and then spread through Europe and Asia. The mild bell pepper cultivar was developed in the 1920s, in Szeged, Hungary,

Is A banana a tree?

8 things you didn’t know about bananas One of America’s favorite snacks is facing a crisis. And with no known way to stop the disease — or even contain it — scientists say that over time, this type of banana may be eliminated from commercial production. Not to fear. Scientists in Honduras are working to create a resistant banana before the disease hits Latin America, where the majority of bananas are grown.

You can watch our full report on that effort,
There will be more bananas.
But with the future of the banana industry in flux, here are eight things you didn’t know about them.1.
Bananas aren’t really a fruit.
Well, they are and they aren’t.
Bananas are,
While the banana plant is colloquially called a banana tree, it’s actually an herb distantly related to ginger, since the plant has a succulent tree stem, instead of a wood one.

The yellow thing you peel and eat is, in fact, a fruit because it contains the seeds of the plant. Although since bananas have been commercially grown, the plants are sterile, and the seeds have gradually been reduced to little specs. And to clarify more banana terminology: bananas grow in what are known as “hands,” so-called because of their appearance, which make up the larger stalk, known as a “bunch.” 2. Cluster of bananas hang from a Blue Java banana tree also known as Ice Cream banana. Photo via Getty Images What do Mona Lisa, Ice Cream and Goldfinger all have in common? They’re all varieties of bananas. Grown in more than 150 countries, it is widely believed there are more than 1,000 types of bananas in the world, which are subdivided into 50 groups.

The most common is the Cavendish, the one most frequently produced for export markets. There’s also the Blue Java, aka the Ice Cream banana, so named for its blue skin and creamy, ice cream-like texture; the Macabu, which is black when fully ripe with a sweet pulp; the Niño, which is a mild and finger-sized, and the Burro banana, which has squared sides and a lemon flavor when ripe.3.

Banana peels can help fix a splinter or a skipping DVD. Photo via Getty Images A banana’s wholesomeness often pertains to it’s nutritional value (), but less attention is given to its peel, which, thanks to a blend of acids, oils and enzymes, has some powerful off-label uses. For instance, you can put one on a splinter to help loosen the foreign fragments in the skin and heal the wound.

And, to stop a scratched DVD or CD from skipping, rubbing a banana peel can fill the scratches without damaging the plastic finish. And the list goes on. You can rub a banana peel on your skin to remove ink stains or soothe insect bites. You can also polish shoes, dust plants and even whiten your teeth with the peel.

Banana peels have also been used for water purification, ethanol production and as a fertilizer — and they’re often part of feedstock for cattle, goats, pigs and poultry. So go forth and use the banana peel for just about anything. Just make sure you don’t slip on it.4.

There was once an official international club where banana lovers could unite. The now-defunct, not to be confused with the very much in business in Mecca, California, boasts 17,000 banana-themed artifacts and is listed in Guinness World Records as the “largest collection devoted to any one fruit.” Some highlights include banana lamps, banana bowls, banana jewelry and a decades-old petrified banana that hangs in a frame on the wall.

Since 1972, 38,000 people in 27 countries became dues-paying members by coughing up $15 with the option to choose their own banana-themed nickname. Famous Banana Club-ers include Jay Leno and former U.S. President Ronald Reagan. The museum was sold in 2010 and the new ownership is no longer associated with the Banana Club. Employees of the “Mateo” banana plantation on a normal workday in Chobo, Ecuador, 400 km southwest of Quito, on January 13, 2016. Photo by Rodrigo Buendia/Getty Images While the beloved banana has long been popular, it hasn’t always been good business.

Eli M. Black was the former chairman of United Fruit, which at one time imported about a third of all bananas sold in the U.S. and owned the Chiquita banana brand. After taking helm of the company in the early 1970s, Black discovered the banana carried much less capital than he once believed and the company soon became crippled with debt.

Then came Hurricane Fifi, which destroyed many of the company’s banana plantations in Honduras, and Black eventually sold the company, seemingly putting an end to all of his banana strife. But one a year later, the Securities and Exchange Commission uncovered a $2.5-million bribe that Black offered to Honduran President Oswaldo López Arellano to get reduced taxes on banana exports. Employees of the “Mateo” banana plantation on a normal workday in Chobo, Ecuador, 400 km southwest of Quito, on January 13, 2016. Photo by Rodrigo Buendia/Getty Images Long before became the popular grocery store item Americans know and love, a different type of banana was considered the standard.

The Gros Michel, often known as Big Mike, was the first type of banana to be cultivated on a large scale and started appearing in North American and European cities in the late 1800s. (It’s rise was all thanks to naturalist Nicolas Baudin, who some might call a French Johnny Appleseed, who deposited the plant stems on islands in the Caribbean.) But soon after, the descended upon plantations and devastated the crop, disrupting the international supply by the 1940s.

And by the 1960s, most commercial operations in the Americas and Caribbean had halted production of Gros Michel. If you’d like to try the Gros Michel — which has a sweeter taste and creamier consistency than the Cavendish — you can still find it in parts of Southeast Asia, Africa and islands in the Pacific.7. The fall of man at Sistine chapel by Michelangelo, Vatican Museum, Rome, Italy. Photo via Getty Images Many believe the Forbidden Fruit consumed by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden was an apple. Others think it may have been a fig or a pomegranate. And then there’s the speculation that the fruit may have been a banana.

, an 18th century Swedish botanist who was the first person to successfully grow a fully flowered banana tree in the Netherlands, theorized that bananas grow at the right height for someone to longingly reach out and grab it. Also backing up his argument? Banana leaves, larger than fig leaves, might work better to cover nakedness.

Linnaeus took his penchant for bananas further by speculating other uses for the versatile banana. For example, the botanist recommended boiling bananas with sugar to cure anger, mashing bananas with honey to soothe eye inflammation and crushing banana root soaked in milk to alleviate dizziness.8. A volunteer hands out bananas to runners participating in the TCS New York City Marathon on November 2, 2014. Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images

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Despite their popularity, there is debate among nutritionists about the actual health value of the banana.While it’s true bananas are generally low in calories (one medium banana has about 100), and they have little to no fat, sodium or cholesterol and are a good source of vitamin C, potassium, fiber and vitamin B6, they also contain about 27 grams of carbohydrates and 14 grams of sugar.Many nutritionists argue the problem with carbs is that they turn to sugar once they reach the blood stream, spiking your blood sugar levels, leaving you vulnerable to cravings and eventual weight gain, which is why some nutritionists would recommend snacking on other fruits.Still, medical research (which is oft disproved; ) has shown that eating bananas may lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes, as well as decrease the risk of getting some cancers.Also, in face of a common belief, bananas are relatively low in potassium compared to other foods, such as beans, milk, apricots, carrots, bell peppers and sweet potatoes.

Why are berries called berries if they aren’t berries?

Where does the word berry come from? – The word berry comes from the Old English berie, which originally meant “grape.” As the English language spread to the Americas with colonization, many native grape-shaped fruits that grew in bunches took on the berry suffix: blueberry, cranberry, elderberry, etc.

Though the many small, delicious fruits known as berries were grouped together in a linguistic accident, they are in fact many biologically distinct plants and fruits.
A botanist would probably tell you that grouping berries together is about as accurate as calling dolphins, tadpoles and squid “water creatures.” True berries are simply fruits in which each fruit comes from one flower, like blueberries.

Even cucumbers and tomatoes are technically berries! Botanically speaking, blueberries (Latin family: Ericaceae ) are more closely related to rhododendrons than they are to raspberries.

Why are blueberries not berries?

“Berries” Are Surprising, Too – Recipe pictured above: Cucumber & Avocado Salad So, what are berries? “Berries” include blueberries, bananas, avocados ( avocados are not stone fruits, but they’re close) and kiwi, as these are fleshy fruits that come from one flower with one ovary, says Kelly Jones, M.S., RD, CSSD, LDN,

Cucumbers are another type of berry, even though they seem more like a veggie! “Cucumbers are ‘pepos.’ Interestingly, pumpkins, zucchini, oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes, cantaloupes and watermelons are also pepos,” says Hultin. And they are berries, as they have one single ovary. She says, “This type of berry has a hard rind for an outer layer and a fleshy middle.

The outer rind helps protect the ovary, which holds all the seeds within.” Many gourds are pepos. Stone fruits are not berries, though. “A berry is technically a fleshy fruit, but it has to be without a stone—like apricots, plums or peaches—and produced from a single flower with just one ovary,” Hultin adds.

If Strawberries Aren’T Berries What Are They