The botanical definition of a
Berry is a fleshy
Fruit produced from a single
Ovary.
Grapes are an example. The
Berry is the most common type of fleshy
fruit in which the entire
Ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors. The
Seeds are usually embedded in the flesh of the
Ovary. A
plant that bears berries is said to be bacciferous. Many
Species of
Plants produce
fruit that are similar to
Berries but not actually
Berries, and these are said to be baccate.
In everyday English, "
Berry" is a term for any small edible
fruit. These "
Berries" are usually juicy, round or semi-oblong, brightly coloured, sweet or sour, and don't have a stone or pit, although many
seeds may be present.
Many
Berries, such as the
Tomato, are edible, but others in the same
Family, such as the
fruits of the deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna) and the
fruits of the
Potato (Solanum tuberosum) are poisonous to humans. Some
Berries such as Capsicum have space rather than pulp around their
seeds.
Botanical berries
In botanical language, a
Berry is a simple
fruit having
seeds and pulp produced from a single
Ovary; the
Ovary can be inferior or superior.
Examples of botanical Berries include:* Bearberry (Arctostaphylos spp.)
* Barberry (Berberis; Berberidaceae)
* Crowberry (Empetrum spp.)
* Currant (Ribes spp.; Grossulariaceae), red, black, and white types
* Elderberry (Sambucus niger; Caprifoliaceae)
* Gooseberry (Ribes spp.; Grossulariaceae)
* Grape, Vitis vinifera
* Honeysuckle: the
Berries of some
Species are edible and are called honeyberries, but others are poisonous (Lonicera spp.; Caprifoliaceae)
* Lingonberry Vaccinium vitis-idaea
* Mayapple (Podophyllum spp.; Berberidaceae)
* Nannyberry or sheepberry (Viburnum spp.; Caprifoliaceae)
* Oregon-grape (Mahonia aquifolium; Berberidaceae)
* Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo), not to be confused with the actual strawberry (Fragaria)
* Tomato and other
Species of the
Family Solanaceae
* Banana
* Cranberry
* Watermelon
* Pumpkin
Modified berries
The
fruit of citrus, such as the orange, kumquat and lemon, is a
Berry with a thick rind and a very juicy interior that is given the special name hesperidium.
Berries which develop from an inferior
Ovary are sometimes termed epigynous
Berries or false
Berries, as opposed to true
Berries which develop from a superior
Ovary. In so-called epigynous
Berries, the
Berry includes tissue derived from parts of the flower besides the
Ovary. The floral tube, formed from the basal part of the sepals, petals and stamens can become fleshy at maturity and is united with the
Ovary to form the
fruit. Common
fruits that are sometimes classified as epigynous
Berries include bananas, members of the
Genus Vaccinium (e.g., cranberries and blueberries), and members of the Cucurbitaceae
Family (e.g., cucumbers, melons and squash).
Another specialized term is also for Cucurbitaceae
fruits, which are modified to have a hard outer rind.
Berries with a hard outer rind are given the special name of pepo. While pepos are most common in the Cucurbitaceae, the
fruits of Passiflora and Carica are sometimes also considered pepos.
Not a botanical berry
Many
fruits commonly referred to as
Berries are not actual
Berries by the scientific definition, but fall into one of these categories:
Drupes
Drupes are fleshy
fruits produced from a (usually) single-seeded
Ovary with a hard stony layer (called the endocarp) surrounding the
Seed.
* Plum
* Peach
* Hackberry (Celtis spp.; Cannabaceae)
Other drupe-like
fruits with a single
seed, that lack the stony endocarp include:
* Avocado (Persea americana)
* Sea-buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides; Elaeagnaceae) A single
seed inside a fleshy
fruitPomes
The pome Pyrinae of
Family Rosaceae, such as apples and pears, have a structure (the core) that clearly separates the
seeds from the
Ovary tissue. However, some of the smaller pomes are sometimes referred to as
Berries. Bright red haws from Crataegus are sometimes called hawberries. Amelanchier pomes become so soft at maturity that they resemble a blueberry and are known as Juneberries or Saskatoon berries.
Compound fruits
Compound
fruits are groups or aggregates of multiple parts, and include:
* Aggregate
fruits, which contain
seeds from different ovaries of a single flower. Examples include blackberry,
Raspberry, and bayberry.
* Multiple
fruits, include the
fruits of multiple flowers, that are merged or packed closely together. The mulberry is a berry-like example of a multiple
fruit; it develops from a cluster of tiny separate flowers that become compressed as they develop into
fruit.
Accessory fruits
In accessory
fruits, the edible part is not generated by the
Ovary. Berry-like examples include:
* Strawberry - the aggregate of seed-like
Achenes is actually the "
fruit", derived from an aggregate of ovaries, and the fleshy part develops from the receptacle.
* Gurbir, Duchesnea indica - structured just like a strawberry
* Sea Grape (Coccoloba uvifera; Polygonaceae) - the
fruit is a dry
Capsule surrounded by fleshy calyx
* Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) - the
fruit is a dry capsule surrounded by fleshy calyx
11:04 PM
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