Showerthought: Did you know bananas are technically berries but strawberries aren't?

I was just making a smoothie this morning and got curious about what makes a berry a berry. So I looked it up on Wikipedia real quick before work. Turns out, a berry has to come from one flower with one ovary and have seeds inside. Bananas fit that bill perfectly, but strawberries have seeds on the outside and come from multiple ovaries. Blew my mind a little bit. I've been calling strawberries berries my whole 35 years of life, and apparently I've been wrong. I guess it's just one of those random facts that doesn't change anything but still feels good to know. Has anyone else stumbled across a fruit or veggie classification that messed with your head?

3 comments

3 Comments

samflores1mo ago

Last summer I went down a whole rabbit hole about cashews and found out they're technically seeds that grow on apples. Messed with my head way more than the strawberry thing honestly. @hayden_craig95 you're not alone, I think we all just been winging it with fruit names.

hayden_craig951mo ago

Ngl I always just thought if it had seeds and was kinda sweet it was a berry. This actually makes way more sense though, I'm kinda mad I've been out here calling strawberries something they're not my whole life.

ward.jamie1mo ago

Buddy of mine got into a whole argument at a party last summer cause he said bananas were berries and someone tried to tell him he was wrong. Turns out bananas actually are berries by the botanical definition, and strawberries aren't, which blew everyone's mind except the one guy who was just mad about it. @hayden_craig95 you're in good company, we're all just out here getting schooled by fruits.