Botanical aspects, classification of fruit types

The term fruit is applied to a critical stage in the reproduction of botanical species throughout the plant kingdom it is the structure that encloses, protects or harbours the seeds until they are ripe, and it often assists in their dispersal. Broadly speaking, fruits can be categorised into two groups according to their physical condition when ripe dry fruits and succulent or fleshy fruits. 

The widest diversity in the manner of seed dispersal is exhibited by the dry fruits. These include the windborne types such as dandelion parachutes or sycamore keys . Mechanical scattering is exhibited by many of the legumes, whose seed pods, when fully ripened and dried out, can split with explosive force to scatter their contents in readiness for a follow-on crop. Another type is made up of those fruits, such as cleavers or dock-buns , that possess small hooks whereby the fruit is caught up in the fur of animals for transportation. 

The process of evolution and natural selection ensured that the more successful fruit forms survived in harmony with their surrounding environment. 

The appearance of humans on the planet and their own evolution to the status of hunter-gatherer brought a new meaning to the term selection , and our ancestors would have taken the first steps in categorising the available fruits according to flavour character. 

Many of the commercial fruit varieties popular in the Western world have been developed from specimens whose origins can be traced back to regions east of the Mediterranean, where stone fruits (such as peach, apricot and cherry) and pome fruits (such as apple and pear) grew in fertile surroundings and became part of the staple diet of the inhabitants. 

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