Fruits

Describe the exocarp (epicarp), endocarp, and mesocarp of a drupe.

the exocarp is a thin skin, the mesocarp is thick and fleshy, and the endocarp hard and stony. The endocarp ("stone" or "pit") encloses one, rarely two or three seeds.

Compare the structure of a seed with the structure of an ovule.

A fertilized ovule develops into a seed. Seed has the embryo within it which contains a plumule and radicle. Embryo is formed from the zygote which is formed when the egg is fertilized by the male gamete.

What is the primary purpose of a fruit?

to promote seed dispersal

Compare and contrast dry dehiscent fruits and dry indehiscent fruits.

A dehiscent fruit is one that opens upon maturity. An indehiscent fruit is one that does not open upon maturity. A weak line is present on one or both sides, where the fruit splits open. No weak line is present.

How does the cotyledon of corn compare with those of a garden bean?

Cotyledons are smaller and thinner in corn than in garden beans. Corn has a monocot and a garden bean is a dicot.

Why are cotyledons important in a eudicot seed?

Cotyledons help supply the nutrition a plant embryo needs to germinate and become established as a photosynthetic organism and may themselves be a source of nutritional reserves or may aid the embryo in metabolizing nutrition stored elsewhere in the seed.

How are berries different from drupes?

In drupes, the inner part of the ovary, called the endocarp, is thick and hard, forming a strong, stony pit around the seed. In berries, on the other hand, the endocarp forms a thin, flexible envelope around the seed.

The ovule develops into the seed. What structure(s) forms the fruit?

In flowering plants after fertilisation, the zygote develops into the embryo, the ovules develop into the seed and the ovary develops into the fruit.

Is an apple a monocot or a eudicot? How can you determine this based on fruit alone?

No, apple trees are not monocots. All angiosperm trees and shrubs are dicots, including apple trees. This is because only dicots are woody plants, though some may be herbaceous.

What is the function of endosperm?

Supplies nutrients for the embryo