The answer to this question always makes your eyes widen. Strawberries are not fruits, but nuts. Find out why this is the case and what Mother Nature's brilliant plan is behind it here.
Are strawberries nuts or fruits?
From a botanical point of view, strawberries are not fruits, but collective nuts, because their small yellow seeds (nutlets) sit on the outside of the juicy red flower base and are surrounded by a hard shell, which is typical for nuts.
That's why strawberries are nuts
The botanists like to plunge amateur gardeners into deep confusion and give rise to heated discussions. When it comes to assigning strawberries, the scientists are particularly successful at this maneuver. Would you not only like to be experienced in planting strawberries, but would also like to be familiar with the exciting aspects of the botanical classification of nuts? The development process of a strawberry provides information:
- before the visible shoots, the plant produces the first flower inside for the largest A-fruit
- This is followed by the formation of flowers for the later B and C fruits
- As the flower grows, a nut develops on each ovary
- parts of this nut are pushed apart by the growing red flower base
- a strawberry is therefore a false fruit
Botanists call an apparent fruit a collective nut fruit. The actual fruits are the small yellow nuts that gather on the juicy red flower base. In contrast to real berries, there are no seeds inside strawberries. These are located on the outside and are surrounded by a hard shell, as befits nuts.
Strawberries as pseudofruits – Mother Nature’s brilliant plan
The deeper meaning of juicy red strawberries is not to pamper those with a sweet tooth under a topping of whipped cream. Here evolution created a sophisticated survival strategy. Relying on a single dispersal mechanism, the seed transporters are supposed to be attracted and rewarded by the tempting flower base.
Birds and small mammals snack on strawberries, with the seeds ending up in the digestive tract. They migrate through this undamaged and germinate far away from the mother plant. Mice, hedgehogs, badgers, blackbirds, robins as well as ants and beetles target strawberries. They move the beds in the garden and the planters on the balcony, so hobby gardeners have to take specific protective measures here.
This is how hobby gardeners benefit from collected nuts
So you are now equipped with the knowledge that strawberries are nuts. This knowledge also has a practical use for enthusiastic hobby gardeners. Due to their botanical nature, strawberry seeds are easy to harvest yourself. Although propagation usually takes place via cuttings, sowing is now an alternative. How to harvest the strawberry seeds:
- halve ripe strawberries
- place on newspaper with the cut side down
- let dry at room temperature
After a few days, collect the fallen nuts and carefully scrape off the rest from the base of the flowers.
Tips & Tricks
Figure-conscious strawberry fans shouldn't be confused by the association with nuts. With a meager 32 calories per 100 grams, strawberries are still a slimming pleasure to eat. Peanuts, on the other hand, come with a whopping 567 calories per 100 grams, coconuts with an impressive 660 calories and macadamia nuts with a record-breaking 718 calories.