Multiple fruit

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Compound fruit. (Discuss)

Mulberry is a kind of multiple fruit.

Multiple fruits are fruits that are formed from a cluster of flowers (called an inflorescence) growing on a catkin. Each flower on the catkin produces a fruit (drupelet), but these mature into a single mass.^[1] Examples are the pineapple, edible fig, mulberry, osage-orange, and breadfruit.

In some plants, such as this noni, flowers are produced regularly along the stem and it is possible to see together examples of flowering, fruit development, and fruit ripening

In the photograph on the left, stages of flowering and fruit development in the noni or Indian mulberry (Morinda citrifolia) can be observed on a single branch. First an inflorescence of white flowers called a head is produced. After fertilization, each flower develops into a drupe, and as the drupes expand, they become connate (merge) into a multiple fleshy fruit called a syncarpet.^[2]

There are also many dry multiple fruits, e.g.

• Tuliptree, multiple of samaras.
• Sweet gum, multiple of capsules.
• Sycamore and teasel, multiple of achenes.
• Magnolia, multiple of follicles.
• Common Fig

[edit] See also

• Fruits
• Compound fruit - aggregate fruit

[edit] References

1. ^ Schlegel. Encyclopedic Dictionary, p. 282. 
2. ^ Parker, Philip M. (December 1, 2004). Morinda Citrifolia - A Medical Dictionary, Bibliography, and Annotated Research Guide to Internet References. ICON Group. ISBN 0-497-00758-4.