A few semesters ago, I took a class called Micro/Botany and this design is inspired by that class. What comes to mind when you hear the word fruit? Probably apples, grapes, and strawberries, right? What is a fruit? A fruit is the edible part of a plant that contains seeds.
Now, what comes to mind when you hear the word vegetable? We think of things like tomatoes, carrots, and potatoes, right? A vegetable is commonly thought of as the other edible parts of plants that are not a particularly sweet fruit or a seed. Vegetables can be leaves, like lettuce, stems, like celery, and roots, like carrots.
What about the tomato? Is it a fruit or a vegetable?
The culinary industry is to blame for the confusion. A chef will use a tomato more like a vegetable instead of like a fruit. A botanical fruit is a fruit according to a scientific definition. A culinary vegetable is a vegetable used for cooking and preparing meals. We get confused about how to classify tomatoes because a tomato is BOTH a culinary vegetable and a botanical fruit.
What about the tomato? Is it a fruit or a vegetable?
The culinary industry is to blame for the confusion. A chef will use a tomato more like a vegetable instead of like a fruit. A botanical fruit is a fruit according to a scientific definition. A culinary vegetable is a vegetable used for cooking and preparing meals. We get confused about how to classify tomatoes because a tomato is BOTH a culinary vegetable and a botanical fruit.
When you hear the word berry, I bet you think of strawberries and blueberries, right? Well, a tomato is also a berry! First let's consider flower anatomy. Flowers have both male and female parts on the same plant. The male parts of the flower are collectively called the stamen, which is a long filament with an anther on the end. The female parts are collectively called the carpel, which is a stigma on the end of a long style, which stems from a round ovary with an ovule inside. The simple scientific definition of a fruit is a mature ovary of a flower. After pollen fertilizes the ovule, the ovary begins to develop into what will become the fruit. The ovule will become the seed.
So, how is a tomato a berry?
In general English, the word berry has come to be known as any small edible fruit. This does not go along with the definition of a true berry. A berry can be botanically defined as a type of simple fruit with seeds within one or more ovary. A true berry has fused carpels.
So here is the design of other foods that may be considered a vegetable, but are actually fruits.
All of these fruits are also berries.
Index finger: Avocado
Middle finger: Bananas
Ring finger: Tomatoes
Pinkie finger: Pumpkin
So, how is a tomato a berry?
In general English, the word berry has come to be known as any small edible fruit. This does not go along with the definition of a true berry. A berry can be botanically defined as a type of simple fruit with seeds within one or more ovary. A true berry has fused carpels.
So here is the design of other foods that may be considered a vegetable, but are actually fruits.
All of these fruits are also berries.
Index finger: Avocado
Middle finger: Bananas
Ring finger: Tomatoes
Pinkie finger: Pumpkin
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