If you read my article from March 14th “Unhinged Science: You Think You Know Your Berries,” you were probably eager to know your score from the berry game, so here are the answers! Check them out below to see how many you got right.
ANSWERS
No.1 Watermelon — A berry. It is derived from the plant ovary, making it fall into the berry category. (Weird, right?)
No.2 Strawberry — Not a berry. They are part of the accessory fruits, which are not derived from the ovary of the plant, but from another developing part of the plant.
No.3 Pumpkin — A berry! Now you can tell everyone you’ve carved berries for halloween. Pumpkins surprisingly fit into the botanical berry category, proven by their many seeds.
No.4 Banana — Believe it or not, they are berries. Even though you can’t technically eat the peel, don’t forget that not all berries have an edible exocarp, or skin.
No.5 Cranberry — A berry. Don’t worry, unlike strawberries, cranberries don’t lie with their name. They’re a real botanical berry, and a great one at that!