Page 19 - Lesson Notes-Morphologyof flowering plant

Note:
* Fruits developed from the fertilised ovary is called true fruits. A true fruit has two
parts pericarp and the seeds.
* Fruits developed from any part of the flower along with ovary is called false fruits.
The thalamus grows along with the ovary to form a false fruit i.e. in Pyrus malus
(apple).
* The fruit of mango and coconut are also known as drupe, as it develop from
monocarpellary superior ovaries and have only one seed.
The ovary after these changes is known as the fruit. If a fruit is formed without
fertilisation, it is called parthenocarpic fruit, e.g., Banana, grapes, pineapple, etc. The
parthenocarpic fruits do not have seeds.
The fruit consists of wall or pericarp and seeds. The pericarp may be dry or fleshy.
When pericarp is thick and fleshy, it is differentiated into outer epicarp, the middle
mesocarp and the inner endocarp.

Types of Fruits
Fruits can be broadly classified into following three types
i. Simple Fruits
A simple fruit develops from the single simple or compound ovary of a flower. These
can be dry fruits (pericarp dry) or succulent fruits (pericarp fleshy).
ii. Aggregate (Etaerio) Fruits
An aggregate fruit is a group of fruitlets which develops from a flower having
polycarpellary apocarpous (free) gynoecium. The aggregate fruit is also called
etaerio.
iii. Multiple (Composite) Fruits
A composite (multiple) fruit develops from an entire inflorescence. The multiple fruit
is composed of a number of closely associated fruits (which may or may not get
fused) along with its peduncle. Hence, these fruits are pseudocarps and are also
called inflorescence fruits.
Pomology is the branch of horticulture that deals with the study of fruits and their
cultivation.
Edible Parts of Some Common Fruits