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Definition

noun, plural: simple fruits

A type of fruit that develops from a single or compound ovary with only one pistil (of a single flower).

Supplement

Simple fruits are either fleshy or dry:

• Fleshy fruits are those fruits in which part or all of the pericarp is fleshy at maturity. Examples are:
  • berries (i.e. fruits in which the entire pericarp is soft and pulpy, e.g. Grapes, tomatoes, bananas, pepo, hesperidium, blueberry, etc.)
  • drupes (i.e. fruits with pulpy, fibrous, or leathery outer layers while the endocarp hardens into a pit or stone enclosing one or more seeds, e.g. Peach, cherry, olive, coconut, walnut, etc.)

• Dry fruits may either be dehiscent (i.e. the hard or papery shells split open to release the mature seed, e.g. pods of the pea and bean), or indehiscent (i.e. fruits that do not split open, e.g. milkweed, achenes, etc). \

Types of dry simple fruits are:

• • achene (e.g. buttercup)
  • capsule (e.g. Brazil nut)
  • caryopsis (e.g. wheat)
  • fibrous drupe (e.g. Coconut)
  • follicle (e.g. Milkweed)
  • legume (e.g. peanut)
  • loment, nut (e.g. hazelnut)
  • samara (e.g. elm)
  • schizocarp (e.g. carrot)
  • silique (e.g. radish)
  • silicle (e.g. Shepherds purse)
  • utricle (e.g. beet)

Compare:

• aggregate fruit
• multiple fruit
• accessory fruit