Huntington Library --- Conservatory/Plant Lab/Fruits

Fruits

	Dry fruits have dry pericarps when mature. They can be either indehiscent (disperse the whole fruit intact) or dehiscent (need to crack open to release their seeds). The illustration on the left shows the structure of an achene, an indehiscent dry fruit.
Here are some examples of dry fruits:

Indehiscent Usually single seed	Achene of Pachypodium lamerei	Achene Fruit from one simple pistil. A single seed in a single locule attached to pericarp only by its funiculus (stalk of the ovule); pericarp can be smooth or textured. Examples: buckwheat, dandelion.
	Samara of a maple (Acer) tree	Samara Achene with wings. Pericarp forms wing structure either on one side or surrounding the seed. Examples: ash, elm, maple.
		Caryopsis (grain) Fruit from the grass family (Poaceae or Gramineae). Similar to an achene except no locule space: seed coat is completely fused with pericarp. Examples: rice, maize, wheat, barley.
	An acorn of an oak tree	Nut Fruit from a compound pistil. A single seed free in the locule, attached to a woody pericarp only through its funiculus. Examples: acorn, hazelnut.
Dehiscent Usually many seeds	A bursting milkweed (Asclepias) follicle	Follicle Fruit from a simple pistil with many seeds. Pericarp forms a single split to release seeds. Examples: milkweed, columbine, magnolia.
	Hairy lupine (Lupinus) peapods	Legume Fruit from the legume family (Fabaceae). Similar to a follicle except pericarp forms two splits to release seeds. Examples: bean, pea.
	Capsules of a daylily (Hemerocallis)	Capsule Fruit from compound pistil with two or more locules. Pericarp forms pores or multiple splits to release seeds. Examples: poppy, lily.