Presented by Driscoll’s
PHOTO COURTESY OF DRISCOLL’S
Everybody knows that when you know more about where your food comes from, the more likely you are to make better choices. Plus, berries are just full of fascinating facts. For instance, did you know that one raspberry is actually made up of a bunch of tiny berries? There is no better way to learn about berries than to go to the berry experts – Driscoll’s.
Below is a fun quiz to play with your kids to teach them all about their food.
Questions:
1) What are the little hairs on raspberries and blackberries called?
2) Which of the following is actually considered a true berry: raspberry, blackberry, blueberry, or strawberry?
3) What are those little bumps on the raspberry and blackberry called?
4) How many ways can a strawberry plant reproduce?
5) What are the green leaves on the top of the strawberry called?
6) What determines the number of little bumps on a raspberry or blackberry?
7) How many variety of raspberries are there?
8) Why do blueberries have a silver-dusty color on them?
9) What’s the average number of seeds on a strawberry?
10) How long does it take for a new strawberry variety to make it from breeding to the grocery store?
Answers:
1) The tiny hairs are called ‘styles’. Styles are leftover from the berry blossom, they serve to protect the berry from damage. Styles are completely safe for consumption.
2) A true berry is a fruit which grows from one flower with one ovary. Strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries are considered aggregate fruits since the flowers they grow from have more than one ovary. Blueberries, tomatoes, bananas, and avocados are considered true berries since they grow from flowers containing one ovary.
3) Raspberries and blackberries are aggregate fruits, meaning that the big piece of fruit you enjoy is actually dozens of tiny fruits growing together. These tiny fruits, or bumps, are called drupletes.
4) A strawberry plant can reproduce in two ways. One way the plant can reproduce is through the pollination of the berry flower and the strawberry fruit and seeds. The second way the plant can reproduce is to shoot off runners and clone itself multiple times.
5) The green leaves are called the berry’s ‘calyx’.
6) The number of drupletes that make up the berry is directly connected to the number of times a bee has landed on the berry flower to pollinate it.
7) There are over 200 different raspberry varieties!
8) The silver color is called ‘bloom’. Bloom acts as a natural barrier to seal in moisture within the blueberry.
9) On the outside of each strawberry, there is an average of about 200 tiny seeds.
10) Driscoll’s looks at roughly 100,000 strawberry varieties each year looking for characteristics that consumers have stated they want in a strawberry (ie: flavor, color, size). It takes between 5-7 years for a strawberry to make it from conception through testing to your local grocery store. Driscolls.com/Joy-Makers
This post is presented by Driscoll’s
