Pome
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (April 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
In botany, a pome (after the Latin name for an apple: pomum) is a type of fruit produced by flowering plants in the Subfamily Maloideae of the Family Rosaceae.
A pome is an accessory fruit composed of five or more carpels in which the exocarp forms an inconspicuous layer. The mesocarp is usually fleshy, and the endocarp forms a leathery case around the seed. Outside of the endocarp is the most edible part of this fruit, derived from the floral tube (torus) and other parts, which corresponds to what is commonly called the core. The shriveled remains of the sepals, style and stamens can be seen at the end of a pome opposite the stem, demonstrating that the ovary is inferior in these flowers.
The best-known example of a pome is the apple. Other examples of plants that produce fruit classified as a pome are cotoneaster, hawthorn, loquat, medlar, pear, Pyracantha, quince, rowan, and whitebeam.
|
|||||
