Information About Drupes and a Drupe Fruit List
The botanical definition of a drupe fruit is that which has an outer fleshy part (skin “exocarp” or flesh “mesocarp”), that surrounds a hardened shell (a pit or stone) which contains a seed. Drupes are also referred to as stone fruits because each one develops from a single carpel on a flowering plant that has one pistil. The hard stone or pit is derived from the ovary wall of the flower. Some fleshy fruits have what appears to be a stony enclosure, but it’s actually a seed with a seed coat and not a hardened shell that contains a seed. Those fruits are not considered to be drupe fruits. A drupelet is like a small drupe. Drupelets develop from flowers that have not one, but several pistils. In the culinary classification, fruits such as strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries are classified as berries. In botany however, those fruits are classified as drupelets because they develop from a single flower with numerous pistils. Each pistil on the flower is called a drupelet and develops into a drupelet fruit. The main physical characteristic that distinguishes a drupe from a drupelet is the absense of a stone or pit. The space for a small stone or pit is there, but instead of having one hardened seed, drupelets contain several seeds that are dispersed within the flesh of the fruit.
Several types of drupes and drupelet fruits are cultivated all over the world and many of them can be found growing in the wild. Since there are several varieties of drupes and drupelets, the nutrient composition is unique to each type of fruit. Like most fruits, drupes and drupelets are a good source of antioxidants. The specific types of antioxidants and the antioxidant levels vary with each type of drupe fruit and drupelet.
Drupes & Drupelets Fruit List (Botany, A – Z)
Apricot
Avocado
Bayberry
Blackberry
Cherry
Coconut
Coffee
Damson
Date
Hackberry
Jujube
Mango
Nectarine
Olive
Peach
Plum
Raspberry
- List of Fruit (Culinary, A-Z)
- List of All Fruits
- Tropical Fruit
- Pome Fruit
- Citrus Fruit
- Berries
- Drupes
- Melons
- Fruit Superfoods
- Fruit Recipes
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