Fruit

In this episode of the I Can't Sleep Podcast, fall asleep learning about fruit. Yes, in some circles, a tomato is a fruit, but that's not even close to the most boring part about this subject. Good luck getting to the end of this one. Happy sleeping.

Transcript

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep podcast,

Where I read random articles from across the web to bore you to sleep with my soothing voice.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Bostor.

Today's episode is from a Wikipedia article titled Fruit.

In botany,

A fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.

Fruits are the means by which flowering plants,

Also known as angiosperms,

Disseminate their seeds.

Edible fruits in particular have long propagated,

Using the movements of humans and animals in the symbiotic relationship.

That is the means for seed dispersal for the one group and nutrition for the other.

In fact,

Humans and many animals have become dependent on fruits as a source of food.

Consequently,

Fruits account for a substantial fraction of the world's agricultural output,

And some,

Such as the apple and the pomegranate,

Have acquired extensive cultural and symbolic meanings.

In common language usage,

Fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures or produce of plants that typically are sweet or sour and edible in the raw state,

Such as apples,

Bananas,

Grapes,

Lemons,

Oranges,

And strawberries.

In botanical usage,

The term fruit also includes many structures that are not commonly called fruits,

Such as nuts,

Bean pods,

Corn kernels,

Tomatoes,

And wheat grains.

Botanical vs.

Culinary Many common language terms used for fruit and seeds differ from botanical classifications.

For example,

In botany,

A fruit is a ripened ovary or a carpal that contains seeds.

E.

G.

An apple or a pomegranate.

Or a tomato.

A nut is a type of fruit and not a seed,

And a seed is a ripened ovule.

In culinary language,

A fruit,

So called,

Is the sweet or not sweet,

Even sour tasting produce of a specific plant,

E.

G.

A peach,

Pear,

Or lemon.

Plants are hard,

Oily,

Non-sweet plant produce in shells,

Hazelnut,

Acorn.

Vegetables,

So called,

Typically are savory or non-sweet produce,

Zucchini,

Lettuce,

Broccoli,

And tomato.

But some may be sweet tasting,

Sweet potato.

Examples of botanically classified fruit that typically are called vegetables include cucumber,

Pumpkin,

And squash,

All are cucurbits.

Beans,

Peanuts,

And peas,

All legumes.

Corn,

Eggplant,

Bell pepper,

Or sweet pepper,

And tomato.

The spices,

Chili pepper,

And allspice are fruits,

Botanically speaking.

In contrast,

Rhubarb is often called a fruit when used in making pies,

But the edible produce of rhubarb is actually the leaf stock or petiole of the plant.

Edible gymnosperm seeds are often given fruit names,

E.

G.

Gingko nuts and pine nuts.

Botanically,

A cereal grain,

Such as corn,

Rice,

Or wheat,

Is a kind of fruit,

Termed a karyopsis.

However,

The fruit wall is thin infused to the seed coat,

So almost all the edible grain fruit is actually a seed.

Structure The outer layer,

Often edible,

Of most fruits is called the pericarp.

Typically formed from the ovary,

It surrounds the seeds.

In some species,

However,

Other structural tissues contribute to or form the edible portion.

The pericarp may be described in three layers from outer to inner,

I.

E.

The epicarp,

Mesocarp,

And endocarp.

Fruit that bears a prominent pointed terminal projection is said to be beaked.

Fungi A section of a fungus that produces spores is called a fruiting body.

Fungi are members of the fungi kingdom and not of the plant kingdom.

Development A fruit results from the fertilizing and maturing of one or more flowers.

The genetium,

Which contains the stigma-style ovary system,

Is centered in the flower head and it forms all or part of the fruit.

Inside the ovaries are one or more ovules.

Here begins a complex sequence called double fertilization.

A female gametophyte produces an egg cell for the purpose of fertilization.

A female gametophyte is called a megagametophyte and also called the embryosac.

After double fertilization,

The ovules will become seeds.

Ovules are fertilized in a process that starts with pollination,

Which is the movement of pollen from the stamens to the stigma-style ovary system within the flower head.

After pollination,

A pollen tube grows from the deposited pollen through the stigma down the style into the ovary to the ovule.

Two sperm are transferred from the pollen to a megagametophyte.

Within the megagametophyte,

One sperm unites with the egg forming a zygote,

While the second sperm enters the central cell forming the endosperm mother cell,

Which completes the double fertilization process.

Later,

The zygote will give rise to the embryo of the seed and the endosperm mother cell will give rise to endosperm,

A nutritive tissue used by the embryo.

As the ovules develop into seeds,

The ovary begins to ripen and the ovary wall,

The pericarp,

May become fleshy as in berries or droops,

Or may form a hard outer covering as in nuts.

In some multi-seeded fruits,

The extent to which a fleshy structure develops is proportional to the number of fertilized ovules.

The pericarp typically is differentiated into two or three distinct layers.

These are called the exocarp,

Outer layer,

Also called epicarp,

Mesocarp,

Middle layer,

And endocarp,

Inner layer.

In some fruits,

The sepals,

Petals,

Stamens,

And or the style of the flower fall away as a fleshy fruit ripens.

However,

For simple fruits derived from an inferior ovary,

I.

E.

One that lies below the attachment of other floral parts,

There are parts,

Including petals,

Sepals,

And stamens,

That fuse with the ovary and ripen with it.

For such a case,

When floral parts other than the ovary form a significant part of the fruit that develops,

It is called an accessory fruit.

Examples of accessory fruits include apple,

Rosehip,

Strawberry,

And pineapple.

Because several parts of the flower besides the ovary may contribute to the structure of a fruit,

It is important to study flower structure to understand how a particular fruit forms.

There are three general modes of fruit development.

Apocarpus fruits develop from a single flower while having one or more separate,

Unfused carples.

They are the simple fruits.

Syncarpus fruits develop from a single genetium having two or more carples fused together.

Simple fruits form from many flowers,

I.

E.

An end fluorescence of flowers.

Classification of fruits.

Consistent with the three modes of fruit development,

Plant scientists have classified fruits into three main groups,

Simple fruits,

Aggregate fruits,

And multiple or composite fruits.

The groupings reflect how the ovary and other flower organs are arranged and how the fruits develop,

But they are not evolutionarily relevant as diverse plant taxa may be in the same group.

Simple fruits.

Simple fruits are the result of the ripening to fruit of a simple or compound ovary in a single flower with a single pistil.

In contrast,

A single flower with numerous pistils typically produces an aggregate fruit,

And the merging of several flowers or a multiple of flowers results in a multiple fruit.

A simple fruit is further classified as to whether it is dry or fleshy.

To distribute their seeds,

Dry fruits may split open and discharge their seeds to the winds,

Which is called dehiscence,

Or the distribution process may rely upon the decay and degradation of the fruit to expose the seeds,

Or it may rely upon the eating of fruit and excreting of seeds by frugivores.

Both are called endehiscence.

Fleshy fruits do not split open,

But they also are endehiscent and they may also rely on frugivores for distribution of their seeds.

Probably the entire outer layer of the ovary wall ripens into a potentially edible pericarp.

Berries Berries are a type of simple fleshy fruit that issues from a single ovary.

The ovary itself may be compound with several carpels.

The botanical term true berry includes grapes,

Currants,

Cucumbers,

Eggplants,

Tomatoes,

Chili peppers,

And bananas,

But excludes certain fruits that are called berry by culinary custom or by common usage of the term,

Such as strawberries and raspberries.

Berries may be formed from one or more carpels,

I.

E.

From the simple or compound ovary,

From the same single flower.

Seeds typically are embedded in the fleshy interior of the ovary.

Fleshy fruits are tomato.

In culinary terms,

A tomato is regarded as a vegetable,

But it is botanically classified as a fruit and a berry.

Banana The fruit has been described as a leathery berry.

In cultivated varieties,

The seeds are diminished nearly to nonexistence.

Pepo Berries with skin that is hardened.

Cucurbits including gourds,

Squash,

Melons.

Hesperidium Berries with a rind and a juicy interior,

Most citrus fruit.

Cranberry Gooseberry Red currant Grape The strawberry,

Regardless of its appearance,

Is classified as a dry,

Not a fleshy fruit.

Botanically,

It is not a berry.

It is an aggregate accessory fruit.

The latter term meaning the fleshy part is derived not from the plant's ovaries,

But from the receptacle that holds the ovaries.

Numerous dry akeens are attached to the outside of the fruit flesh.

They appear to be seeds,

But each is actually an ovary of a flower,

With a seed inside.

Schizocarpes are dry fruits,

Though some appear to be fleshy.

They originate from syncharpous ovaries,

But do not actually dehisse.

Rather,

They split into segments with one or more seeds.

They include a number of different forms from a wide range of families,

Including carrot,

Parsnip,

Parsley,

Cumin.

Aggregate Fruits An aggregate fruit is also called an aggregation,

Or aterio.

It develops from a single flower that presents numerous simple pistils.

Each pistil contains one carpal.

Together,

They form a fruitlet.

The ultimate fruiting development of the aggregation of pistils is called an aggregate fruit,

Aterio fruit,

Or simply an aterio.

Different types of aggregate fruits can produce different aterios,

Such as akeens,

Druplets,

Follicles,

And berries.

For example,

The Ranunculae species,

Including Clamatis and Ranunculus,

Produces an aterio of akeens.

Rubus species,

Including raspberry,

An aterio of druplets.

Kylotropos species,

An aterio of follicles fruit.

Anona species,

An aterio of berries.

Some other broadly recognized species and their aterios,

Or aggregations,

Are Tysel,

Fruit is an aggregation of Cypselus.

Tulip tree,

Fruit is an aggregation of Samaras.

Magnolia and Peony,

Fruit is an aggregation of follicles.

American sweetgum,

Fruit is an aggregation of Capsulus.

Sycamore,

Fruit is an aggregation of akeens.

The raspberry,

Its pistols are called druplets because each pistol is like a small droop attached to the receptacle.

And some bramble fruit,

Such as blackberry,

The receptacle and accessory part,

Elongates and then develops as part of the fruit,

Making the blackberry a fruit.

The strawberry is also an aggregate accessory fruit of which the seeds are contained in the akeens.

Notably in all these examples,

The fruit develops from a single flower with numerous pistols.

Multiple fruits.

A multiple fruit is formed from a cluster of flowers,

A multiple of flowers,

Also called an inflorescence.

Each smallish flower produces a single fruitlet,

Which as all develop,

All emerge into one mass of fruit.

Examples include pineapple,

Fig,

Mulberry,

Osage orange,

Breadfruit.

An inflorescence,

A cluster of white flowers,

Called a head,

Is produced first.

After fertilization,

Each flower in the cluster develops into a droop.

As the droops expand,

They develop as a cognate organ,

Merging into a multiple fleshy fruit called a syncarp.

Progressive stages of multiple flowering and fruit development can be observed on a single branch of the Indian mulberry,

Or noni.

During the sequence of development,

A progression of second,

Third,

And more inflorescences are initiated in turn at the head of the branch or stem.

Accessory fruit forms.

For some fruits,

Some or all of the edible parts do not issue from the ovary.

Some fruit development can comprise all the pistils and other parts produced from one flower,

As well as all those produced from many flowers.

This form of development is called accessory fruiting,

And it occurs among all three classes of fruit development,

Simple,

Aggregate,

And multiple.

Accessory fruits are frequently designated by the hyphenated term showing both characters,

E.

G.

Pineapple is a multiple accessory fruit.

Seedless fruits.

Seedlessness is an important feature of some fruits of commerce.

Commercial cultivars of bananas and pineapples are examples of seedless fruits.

Some cultivars of citrus fruits,

Especially grapefruit,

Mandarin oranges,

Naval oranges,

Setsemus,

Table grapes,

And of watermelons are valued for their seedlessness.

In some species,

Seedlessness is a result of parthenocarpy,

Where fruits set without fertilization.

Parthenocarpic fruit set may or may not require pollination,

But most seedless citrus fruits require a stimulus from pollination to produce fruit.

Seedless bananas and grapes are triploids,

And seedlessness results from the abortion of the embryonic plant that is produced by fertilization,

A phenomenon known as stenospermacarpy,

Which requires normal pollination and fertilization.

Seed dissemination.

Dyspersal is achieved by wind or water,

By explosive dehiscence,

And by interactions with animals.

Some fruits present their outer skins or shells coated with spikes or hooked purrs.

These evolved either to deter would-be foragers from feeding on them,

Or to serve to attach themselves to the hair,

Feathers,

Legs,

Or clothing of animals,

Thereby using them as dispersal agents.

These plants are termed zoochorus.

Common examples include cocklebur,

Unicorn plant,

And beggarticks or Spanish needle.

By developments of mutual evolution,

The fleshy produce of fruits typically appeals to hungry animals such that the seeds contained within are taken in,

Carried away,

And later deposited at a distance from the parent plant.

Likewise,

The nutritious,

Oily kernels of nuts typically motivate birds and squirrels to hoard them,

Burying them in soil to retrieve later during the winter of scarcity.

Thereby,

Uneaten seeds are sown effectively under natural conditions to germinate and grow a new plant to some distance away from the parent.

Other fruits have evolved flattened and elongated wings or helicopter-like blades,

E.

G.

Elm,

Maple,

And tulip tree.

This mechanism increases dispersal distance away from the parent via wind.

Other wind-dispersed fruit have tiny parachutes,

E.

G.

Dandelion,

Milkweed,

Salsify.

Banana fruits can float thousands of miles in the ocean,

Thereby spreading their seeds.

Other fruits that can disperse via water are nipa palm and screw pine.

Some fruits have evolved propulsive mechanisms that fling seeds substantial distances via explosive dehiscence or other such mechanisms.

Food Uses Fleshy,

Simple fruits from apples to berries to watermelon.

Dry,

Simple fruits including beans and rice,

Coconuts and carrots.

Aggregate fruits including strawberries,

Raspberries,

Blackberries,

Pawpaw.

Multiple fruits such as pineapple,

Fig,

Mulberries,

Are commercially valuable as human food.

They are eaten both fresh and as jams,

Marmalade,

And other fruit preserves.

They are used extensively in manufactured and processed foods,

Cakes,

Cookies,

Baked goods,

Flavorings,

Ice cream,

Yogurt,

Canned vegetables,

Frozen vegetables and meals,

And beverages such as fruit juices and alcoholic beverages,

Brandy,

Fruit beer,

Wine.

Spices like vanilla,

Black pepper,

Paprika,

And allspice are derived from berries.

Olive fruit is pressed for olive oil and similar processing is applied to other oil-bearing fruits and vegetables.

Fruits are also used for socializing and gift-giving in the form of fruit baskets and fruit bouquets.

Typically many botanical fruits,

Vegetables,

And culinary parlance including tomato,

Green beans,

Leaf greens,

Bell pepper,

Cucumber,

Eggplant,

Okra,

Pumpkin,

Squash,

Zucchini,

Are bought and sold daily in fresh produce markets and green groceries and carried back to kitchens at home or restaurant for preparation of meals.

Storage.

While fruits benefit from proper post-harvest care and in many fruits,

The plant hormone ethylene causes ripening.

Therefore,

Maintaining most fruits in an efficient cold chain is optimal for post-harvest storage with the aim of extending and ensuring shelf life.

Nutritional value.

Most culinary fruits provide significant amounts of fiber and water and many are generally high in vitamin C.

An overview of numerous studies showed that fruits,

E.

G.

Whole apples or whole oranges,

Are satisfying filling by simply eating and chewing them.

The dietary fiber consumed in eating fruit promotes satiety and may help to control body weight and aid reduction of blood cholesterol,

A risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

Fruit consumption is under preliminary research for the potential to improve nutrition and affect chronic diseases.

Regular consumption of fruit is generally associated with reduced risk of several diseases and functional declines associated with aging.

Food safety.

For food safety,

The CDC recommends proper fruit handling and preparation to reduce the risk of food contamination and foodborne illness.

Fresh fruits and vegetables should be carefully selected.

At a store,

They should not be damaged or bruised and pre-cut pieces should be refrigerated or surrounded by ice.

All fruits and vegetables should be rinsed before eating.

This recommendation also applies to produce with rinds or skins that are not eaten.

It should be done just before preparing or eating to avoid premature spoilage.

Fruits and vegetables should be kept separate from raw foods like meat,

Poultry,

And seafood,

As well as from utensils that have come in contact with raw foods.

Fruits and vegetables that are not going to be cooked should be thrown away if they have touched raw meat,

Poultry,

Seafood,

Or eggs.

All cut,

Peeled,

Or cooked fruits and vegetables should be refrigerated within two hours.

After a certain time,

Harmful bacteria may grow on them and increase the risk of foodborne illness.

Allergies.

Fruit allergies make up about 10% of all food-related allergies.

Non-food uses.

Because fruits have been such a major part of the human diet,

Various cultures have developed many different uses for fruits they do not depend on for food.

For example,

Berry-berry fruits provide a wax often used to make candles.

Many dry fruits are used as decorations or in dried flower arrangements,

E.

G.

Annual honesty,

Cotton Easter,

Lotus,

Milkweed,

Unicorn plant,

And wheat.

Ornamental trees and shrubs are often cultivated for their colorful fruits,

Including beauty berry,

Cotton Easter,

Holly,

Pyrecantha,

Skimia,

And viburnum.

Fruits of opium poppy are the source of opium,

Which contains the drugs codeine and morphine,

As well as the biologically inactive chemical theobaine from which the drug oxycodone is synthesized.

Osage orange fruits are used to repel cockroaches.

Many fruits provide natural dyes,

E.

G.

Cherry,

Mulberry,

Sumac,

And walnut.

Red gourds are used as birdhouses,

Cups,

Decorations,

Dishes,

Musical instruments,

And water jugs.

Pumpkins are carved into jack-o-lanterns for Halloween.

The spiny fruit of burdock or cocklebur inspired the invention of Velcro.

Coir fiber from coconut shells is used for brushes,

Doormats,

Floor tiles,

Insulation,

Mattresses,

Sacking,

And as a growing medium for container plants.

The shell of the coconut fruit is used to make birdhouses,

Bowls,

Cups,

Musical instruments,

And souvenir heads.

Fruit is often a subject of still life paintings.

Fruit flies.

Fruit flies are species of flies that lay eggs in the flesh of fruit.

The pupae then consume the fruit before maturing into adult flies.

Some species lay their eggs in fruit that is rotten or is done maturing.

Others however attack the host fruit before it is ripe,

Causing significant losses of fruit crops.

The Queensland fruit fly causes more than $28 million in damage to Australian fruit crops a year.

Combating this pest without using harmful pesticides is an active area of research.

That concludes this episode.

Thank you for listening to the I Can't Sleep podcast.

Reviews

I first learned about druplets reading Kurt Vonnegut's Welcome to the Monkey House as he described the world's over-populated reality as being akin to the druplets of a blackberry covering the earth.
He's a funny guy.

Enjoyed this as it was quite interesting. Too interesting to fall asleep to. Will do another round of listening now that I know the juicy bits ☺️

I love this series! Thank you so much for these. While I'm still awake it keeps my monkey mind occupied learning something, but it's boring enough and read in a way to put me to sleep.

Board my to bits but didn’t end up falling asleep. Grrrr

Your soothing voice sent me straight to sleep, 😊 thank you

Surprisingly effective. Who knew? Thank you. Was out after only 5 min.

Brilliantly boring your voice is soothing to the senses! 🙏

Can you please do one of horses? 🥺🥺🥺

Boring yet interesting. Thank you!