... for the next time some smart vegan from Richmond tells you that peanuts are not really botanical nuts.
Botanists are the hippies among scientists, but like all scientists they've created their own little world of code language and lunacy.
Botanically a nut is a type of fruit. The seed of the fruit is covered by a layer, and that layer is called pericarp. It is divided into three layers: endocarp, mesocarp, and exocarp. In nuts all three layers have morphed together into one hard, dry, woody layer. Most nuts "commonly referred to as" nuts, aren't nuts. Of course, it's controversial which nut is really a nut as many nuts cannot be clearly categorized.
Real information here.
I've added the German names of the "nuts", as well as the type of fruit (like "drupe" or "nut" or "capsule") in German, so you can also mock the Germans in Mayfair and beyond.
I've added the German names of the "nuts", as well as the type of fruit (like "drupe" or "nut" or "capsule") in German, so you can also mock the Germans in Mayfair and beyond.
walnut
 German: Walnuss |
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Juglans regia
|
is a drupe (stone fruit) - only the endocarp is hard.
German: Steinfrucht |
pecan
 German: Pekannuss |
 |
Carya illinoinensis
|
is a drupe.
German: Steinfrucht |
peanut
 German: Erdnuss |
|
Arachis hypogaea
|
is a legume.
German: Hülsenfrucht |
Brazil nut
 German: Paranuss (after the Brazilian city of Para) |
| Bertholletia excelsa |
is a capsule ("capsule fruit").
German: Kapselfrucht |
hemp seeds
 German: Hanfsamen |
 |
Cannabis sativa
|
is an achene, which is a special kind of nut.
German: Achaene |
soy nuts
 German: "Sojanüsse" (geröstete Sojabohnen) |
|
Glycine max
|
are soya beans. Soya is a legume.
German: Hülsenfrucht |
hazel nut
 German: Haselnuss |
|
Corylus avellana
|
is a true nut. It's the nut of nuts.
German: Nussfrucht |
almond
 German: Mandel |
|
Prunus amygdalus
|
is a drupe.
German: Steinfrucht |
coconut
 German: Kokosnuss |
|
Cocos nucifera
|
is a drupe. The coconut is the king of drupes.
German: Steinfrucht |
cashew nut
 German: Cashewnuss |
|
Anacardium occidentale
|
is a drupe. The "cashew nut" is the fruit. The cashew apple is not a fruit, it's an accessory fruit, it's a thickened stem.
German: Steinfrucht |
pistachio
 German: Pistazie |
|
Pistacia vera
|
is a drupe.
German: Steinfrucht |
sunflower seed
 German: Sonnenblumenkern |
|
Helianthus annuus
|
is a type of achene, so it's a nut.
German: Achaene |
wheat
 German: Weizen |
|
Triticum
|
is a grain. Grains are the fruits of grasses. Grains are caryopses. A caryopsis is another special case of a nut.
German: Karyopse |
macadamia
 German: Macadamianuss |
|
Macadamia
|
is a follicle fruit.
German: Balgfrucht |
pine nuts
 German: Pinienkern |
|
Pinus
|
are the seeds of pine trees, and they come from pine cones. They are not even fruits. Pines have "naked seeds" without a fruit covering the seeds.
German: Samen (= seed) |
chestnut
 German: Esskastanie |
|
Castanea sativa
|
is a true nut. But nutritionally it's not a nut.
German: Nussfrucht |
acorn
 German: Eichel (be aware that in German "Eichel" also refers to the glans of the penis, and "glans" is also what some botanists call this particular type of nut in English.) |
 |
Quercus
|
is a true nut. The acorn itself, not the little "hat" is the nut. Nutritionally it's not a nut.
German: Nussfrucht |
kola nut
 German: Kolanuss |
|
Cola
|
is a true nut.
German: Nussfrucht |
Chilean hazelnut
 German: chilenische Haselnuss |
 |
Gevuina avellana
|
is a drupe.
German: Steinfrucht |
buckwheat
 German: Buchweizen |
|
Fagopyrum esculentum
|
is an achene, which is a special kind of nut.
German: Achaene |
strawberry seeds German: Erdbeersamen ("Erdbeere" is strawberry. Also be aware that the German "Samen" which means "seed", when it stands alone unlike here also means "semen". |
|
Fragaria
|
The small seeds on strawberries are achenes, so they are the nuts, i.e. they are the fruits. The red strawberry itself is not a fruit. It's an accessory fruit ( a "fake fruit"), it's "extra tissue".
German: Sammelnussfrucht |
corn (maize)
 German: Mais |
|
Zea mays
|
is a grain, so it's a caryopsis, so it's a nut.
German: Karyopse |
rice German: Reis |
|
Oryza sativa
|
is a caryopsis, so it's a nut.
German: Karyopse |
beechnut
 German: Buchecker |
|
Fagus sylvatica
|
is a true nut, but not nutritionally.
German: Nussfrucht |
tigernut (chufa nut)
 German: Erdmandel |
|
Cyperus esculentus
|
is a tuber, not a fruit. They grow underground.
German: Knolle |
rosehip
 German: Hagebutte |
|
Rosa canina
|
The rosehip seeds are achenes. So they are nuts.
German: Achaene |
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