YBK: The Berry In Yellow

Do not be fooled by its gentle curve or its easy peel. The banana, in its quiet yellow wisdom, reminds us that the world is layered. What we call a thing is often just a story; the truth is rooted deeper, in the hidden architecture of its being. It is a berry that dares not to look like one, teaching us that the most profound truths often wear a disguise. — BIGGOD 

🍌

Yes, a banana is botanically a berry.

This surprises most people because our everyday use of the word "berry" is very different from the botanical definition.

Here’s a breakdown of why:

The Botanical Definition of a Berry

For a botanist (a plant scientist), a berry is a specific type of fruit that must meet three criteria:

1. It develops from a single flower with one ovary. A banana flower has one ovary.

2. It has a soft, fleshy pericarp (the fruit wall). A banana is certainly soft and fleshy.

3. It contains one or more seeds embedded in the flesh. This is the tricky part! The small, black dots you see in the center of a commercial banana are the vestigial seeds. Wild bananas have much larger, harder seeds.

Because a banana meets all these criteria, it is classified as a berry.

The Culinary Definition (Why It's Confusing)

In the kitchen and the grocery store, we use a much simpler definition:

· Berries are small, juicy, round-ish fruits like strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.

· Bananas are long, soft, and need to be peeled, so we don't think of them as berries.

This is where the confusion comes from. The culinary world and the botanical world are using the same word to mean different things.

The Real Mind-Blowers

To really drive the point home, here are some other fruits that are and aren't berries according to botany:

Fruits that ARE Berries:

· Grapes

· Kiwis

· Tomatoes (yes, a tomato is a berry!)

· Eggplants

· Chili Peppers

· Oranges (a specific type of berry called a "hesperidium")

· Watermelons (a modified berry called a "pepo")

Fruits that are NOT Berries:

· Strawberries: Their seeds are on the outside (each one is a tiny fruit). The fleshy part we eat is actually the swollen base of the flower. This makes them an "aggregate accessory fruit."

· Raspberries & Blackberries: These are "aggregate fruits," made of many tiny drupelets (stone fruits) clustered together.

· Blueberries: Wait for it... Blueberries are true berries! They actually meet the botanical definition perfectly.

Summary

Fruit Botanical Classification Why?

Banana Berry Develops from a single ovary, is fleshy, and contains seeds.

Strawberry Not a Berry The fleshy part is the flower's base; the seeds are on the outside.

Raspberry Not a Berry An aggregate of many tiny drupelets (stone fruits).

Tomato Berry Meets all three botanical criteria for a berry.

Blueberry Berry Meets all three botanical criteria for a berry.

So, the next time you eat a banana, you can confidently say you're enjoying a berry.

Kendrick Lamar - The Blacker The Berry

The Divine Source of All Existence and the Sovereign Ruler of the Entire Planet Earth Realm  

🫀...👑YIH