This web page contains fruit facts for kids and is an excellent resource for anyone of any age looking to learn about these seed-bearing structures. Our goal is to provide you with accurate, up to date facts about fruit. In addition to facts about fruit, we provide pictures of fruit and additional resources containing information about fruit.
The fruit facts below will help you learn what a fruit is, what are some of the different types of fruits, what fruits you can eat, why plants and trees create fruits and other fruit facts. We hope these fruit facts are interesting and help you learn more about this edible food created by plants and trees.
If any of the below fruit facts are inaccurate, please contact us and let us know.
17 Fruit Facts for Kids
- Fruit is created by angiosperms (flowering plants) and is a vessel for their seeds.
- A fruit develops from a flower’s gynoecium after it has matured.
- Don’t let the term flowering plant fool you. Around 80% of all the plants on our planet are flowering plants.
- Humans have enjoyed eating fruit for thousands of years.
- There are several hundred different fruits eaten by humans today.
- A few popular fruits eaten by humans are apples, bananas, kiwis, pears and oranges.
- The definition of a fruit is different in botany and culinary.
- In botany, a fruit is classified as a ripened ovary or carpel of a flowering plant that contains seeds.
- In culinary, a fruit is classified as any plant that has a sweet taste.
- For example, in culinary terms corn is considered a vegetable, but in botany terms it’s a fruit.
- A few other vegetables that are botanically fruits are cucumbers, eggplants, pumpkins and squash.
- Fruits are a way for a flowering plant to disperse their seeds.
- Flowering plants use several different methods to disperse their seeds via fruits.
- The ram’s horn (Proboscidea louisianica) flowering plant is one of many that uses hooks to separate. The hooked shaped fruit will get stuck to an animal’s fur coat and detach hours or days later in a new location.
- The toxic berries of the common yew tree (Taxus baccata) are eaten by an animal and the seeds are dispersed through the defecation (poop). Many flowering plants produce sweet fruits to utilize this method.
- The sugar maple tree (Acer saccharum) creates fruit that is winged and allows the seeds to disperse via the wind. Many trees use this method to disperse their seeds via fruit.
- Have you ever wondered why islands in the middle of nowhere always seem to have coconut trees? That’s because the fruit of the coconut tree can float and travel thousands of miles across the ocean. This gives it the opportunity to wash up on an island and spread its seeds.
Pictures of Fruit Flowering Plants
Find More Facts About Fruit
- The Types of Fruit – Learn about the different types and classifications of fruit on the Valencia College website.
- A to Z List of Fruits – The Gardening Channel provides a comprehensive list of all the fruits in ABC order.
- Fruit vs. Vegetable – Do you know the difference between a fruit or vegetable? If not, learn about the differences on the Live Science website.
- Fruit – Wikipedia – Discover more amazing facts about fruit on the Wikipedia website.