Botanical Feast » Fruit

Tomato

Peter — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:37:36 +0000

Tomato

Some things you might not know about tomatoes:

There are around 7500 varieties of tomato grown They contain lycopene, one of the most powerful natural antioxidants. Technically a tomato fruit is classified as a berry The leaves of tomato plants are poisonous The heaviest tomato ever grown was one of 3.51 kg

Botanical Information

Family: Solanaceae

Scientific Name: Solanum lycopersicum L. (described here)

Etymology: [...]

Figs

Peter — Wed, 09 May 2007 06:41:33 +0000

Some things you might not know about figs:

There are about 800 species of figs. The ‘fruit’ that we eat is not a fruit, but actually a collection of flowers called an inflorescence. These flowers grow on the inside of the ‘fruit’. Each species of fig is usually pollinated by its own species of wasp in a symbiotic relationship. It is [...]

Lemon

Peter — Fri, 24 Feb 2006 04:51:28 +0000

Some things you might not know about lemons:

Lemons are members of the Rutaceae family (Rutceae). Lemons have been used as contraceptive in historical times and lemon juice has been shown to kill HIV. Lemons are native to south east Asia, Persia and the Himalayas.

Botanical Information

Family: Rutaceae

Scientific Name: Citrus limon

Etymology: The name Citrus comes from the Greek word kedrus [...]

Avocado

Peter — Fri, 24 Feb 2006 05:11:01 +0000

Some things you might not know about avocados: Avocados are members of the Laurel family (Lauraceae). The common name avocado is derived from the Aztec word for testicle. Avocados are about one third fat (although most of this is the monounsaturated kind). Avocados have been cultivated since 8000BC.

Botanical Information

Family: Lauraceae

Scientific Name: Persea americana

Etymology: The name Avocado comes from the Aztec [...]