| Fruit Type | Characteristics | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Dry | ||
| Dehiscent: | ||
| Follicle | Develops from single-carpel ovary; Splits open down one side |
Columbines, milkweeds |
| Legume | Develops from single-carpel ovary; Splits open along both sides |
Pea family (Leguminosae); All peas and beans |
| Silique | Develops from two-carpel ovary; Halves fall away, leaving seeds attached to persistent, central wall |
Mustard family (Crucifereae) |
| Capsule | Develops from compound ovary with two or more carpels; capsules dehisce |
Cotton, poppy, primrose, Pinks |
| Indehiscent: | ||
| Achene | Small, one-seeded fruit; pericarp is easily separable from seed coat |
"Dry" fruit of strawberry, buckwheat, and sunflower family (Compositae) |
| Samara | Winged, one-or two-seeded achene-like fruit; wing(s) form from outgrowth of ovary wall |
Elms, ash, maples |
| Caryopsis | One-seeded, usually small fruit with pericarp completely fused to seed coat |
"Grain" of all grass family (Gramineae); includes wheat, oats, rice, corn, barley, rye, and other important grasses |
| Nut | One seeded fruit with hard pericarp (shell) |
Walnut, hazelnut, chestnut, acorns |
| Fruit Type | Characteristics | Examples |
| Fleshy | ||
| Berry | Two or more carpel ovary, each usually many seeds; inner layer of pericarp (mesocarp and endocarp) is fleshy |
Tomatoes, grapes, dates |
| Hesperidium | Berry with thick, leathery "peel" (exocarp and mesocarp) and juicy pulpy endocarp arranged in sections Juice sac from ovary wall |
Oranges, grapefruit, lemons, limes; all citrus fruit; rind has oil glands |
| Pepo | Berry with outer wall or rind formed from receptacle tissue fused to exocarp; Fleshy interior is mesocarp and endocarp |
Gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), including cucumbers, watermelons, squash, pumpkin |
| Drupe | Usually only one-carpel ovary and with only one seed developing; endocarp is hard and stony, fitting closely around seed; mesocarp is fleshy, and fruit is thin skinned (thin, soft exocarp) |
Many members of rose family (Rosaceae), including cherry, peach, plum, almond, apricot; not in the Rosaceae: olive and coconut are also drupes (Coconut has fibrous outer coat rather than fleshy one) |
| Pome | From compound, inferior ovary (one embedded in surrounding receptacle or perianth tissue); fleshy edible part is ripened tissue surrounding ovary, which matures into "core" and contains seed |
Apples and pears, both members of subfamily of Rosaceae |
| Aggregate and Multiple Fruit | ||
| Aggregate Fruit |
Development of numerous simple carpels from a single flower, some are dry fruit attached to fleshy receptacle, others an aggregation of simple fleshy fruit (drupes) |
Strawberry, blackberry, raspberry |
| Multiple Fruit |
Individual ovaries of many separate flowers clustered together |
Mulberry, pineapple, fig |