Content is from Kirkbride et al. 2006Kirkbride et al. 2006:
Kirkbride JH, Jr, Gunn CR, and Dallwitz MJ. 2006. Family guide for fruits and seeds, vers. 1.0. Accessed September 2020-January 2022. URL: https://nt.ars-grin.gov/seedsfruits/keys/frsdfam/index.cfm ., without modification.
Updates are forthcoming.
Fruits: Fruit pericarpium; multiplemultiple:
fruit formed from several flowers clustered in one mass
; baccetum; without persistent central column; more than 1 but less than 10-seeded; 4–6-seeded; with 6–9-carpellate (4–14); with carpels united; with carpels separating at maturity; without sterilesterile:
lacking male and/or female reproductive parts; also, not producing fruit or seed
carpels; in transection tereteterete:
approximately circular in cross section; width and thickness approximately equal
; apexapex:
the point farthest from the point of attachment, or the "tip" of an organ not beaked; wall leatheryleathery:
texture—moderately thick, tough, and very pliable
; indehiscentindehiscent:
not opening on its own, as in a fruit
. Epicarpepicarp:
outer layer of fruit wall or pericarp, if divided into layers; note here used synonymously with exocarp bright orange and yellow; durable; without armature; without wing(s); without apicalapical:
at or pertaining to the end of the seed or fruit distal from its point of attachment (i.e., base)
respiratory hole. Mesocarpmesocarp:
the middle layer of the pericarp, if divided into layers present, or absent; fleshy; composed of 1 unified layer; without lactiform cavity system. Endocarpendocarp:
the inner layer of the pericarp, if divided into layers absent. Funiculusfuniculus:
(alt. funicle) stalk connecting the ovule (later seed) to the ovary (later fruit) placenta short; short without seed bearing hookswith hooks:
bristles or spines with curved or backwards pointing tips, or with secondary bristles along their length (retinacula); not persisting in fruit after seed shed.
Seeds: Arilaril:
(broad sense) appendicular structure that wholly or partly envelops a seed and is produced from or a modification of the funicle, raphe, or outer integument; usually fleshy or pulpy, sometimes spongy or tufted-capillate, often brightly colored absent. Seed larger than minute; not bowl shaped; not nutlike; without winglike beakbeak:
a usually firm, terminal appendage, sometimes tapered; without caudatecaudate:
tapering to a long, tail-like appendage appendage(s); at maturity with food reserves; with endosperm; without canavanine. Sarcotestasarcotesta:
pulpy or fleshy outer layer of the seed coat, simulates aril present; leatheryleathery:
texture—moderately thick, tough, and very pliable
. Testatesta:
seed coat
present; with fleshy or leatheryleathery:
texture—moderately thick, tough, and very pliable
layer over hard layer; tight; shinyshiny:
uniformly reflecting a high proportion of incident light at all angles; surface unsmooth; surface with merged raised features; surface reticulatereticulate:
surface relief—netted, raised walls or concave grooves forming a net-like surface pattern with flat, concave, or convex interspaces; without crease or line separating cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle; without notch along margin where cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle tip approach each other; without glands; without bristles; glabrousglabrous:
without hairs
; without wings; without collar; without operculumoperculum:
a dehiscent cap (or lid) of a seed or fruit that opens during germination or dehiscence; colored; monochrome; yellow (ish); not becoming mucilaginousmucilaginous:
resembling mucilage; moist and sticky
when wetted; surrounding food reserve. Endosperm copious; ruminateruminate:
testa or seed coat folded into the endosperm; with starch; without fatty acid containing cyclopropene; without apicalapical:
at or pertaining to the end of the seed or fruit distal from its point of attachment (i.e., base)
lobes; without chlorophyll; without isodiametric faceted surface; without odor. Embryo differentiated from food reserve; well developed, or rudimentaryrudimentary:
(of embryo) embryo is small and fills less than a quarter of the seed and can be variable in shapes, such as linear, spatulate, or oval; 1 per seed; partially filling testatesta:
seed coat
(with food reserve); 0.1 times the length of food reserve; at one end of seed not extending into a depression or cup; axileaxile:
on or of the axis
and centric; foliatefoliate:
appearing leaf-like
; straight; without coleorhiza; without simmondsin; without stomata; not green; with 2 or more cotyledons. Cotyledons 2; tiny; 0.4 times length of embryo; as wide as hypocotyl-radicle; smooth; equal in size; not punctatepunctate:
surface relief—dotted with pits or with translucent, sunken glands or with colored dots, similar to pitted dotted. Hypocotyl-radicle moderately developed; straight; not thickened.
General references: Cronquist, A. 1981. An integrated system of classification of flowering plants, 1,262 p. Columbia University Press, New York, Goldberg, A. 1986 (dicots) & 1989 (monocots). Classification, evolution, and phylogeny of the familes of Dicotyledons. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 58 for dicots (314 pp.) & 71 for monocots (74 pp.). [Goldberg's illustrations are reproduced from older publications and these should be consulted], Gunn, C.R., J.H. Wiersema, C.A. Ritchie, & J.H. Kirkbride, Jr. 1992 & amendments. Families and genera of Spermatophytes recognized by the Agricultural Research Service. Techn. Bull. U.S.D.A. 1796:1–500, and Spjut, R.W. 1994. A systematic treatment of fruit types. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 70:1–182.