Wannabe berries

Many trees and shrubs are now putting out flowers that will turn into berries in due course, like this Rowan.

And these Holly buds.

There's young Elder on display too - soon to be flowers and then berries.

And the Arum lilies/Lords and Ladies will be swapping out their hooded flowers for clumps of bright orange berries in a few months time.

Of course, this will immediately upset some purists out there who will point out that some of these things aren't berries. In fact, the subject of what is a berry gave us a lot of fun when I worked on QI as it always gave us questions with which to make David Mitchell cross.

In scientific terms, a true berry is a single fleshy fruit containing seeds that develops from the ovary of a flower. So berries include cranberries, blueberries, blackcurrants, bananas, elderberries, grapes, melons, aubergines, cucumbers, pumpkins, tomatoes and citrus fruits.

Meanwhile, many of the things we call 'berries' - like blackberries and raspberries - are actually Aggregate Fruits consisting of a bunch of smaller fruits or drupelets, each containing a single seed. And strawberries are different again and have seeds on the outside. These are called Accessory Fruits.

Then there are Pomes and Drupes.

Pomes form like berries but the seeds are contained in a 'core' of tougher tissue. This group contains the apples and pears. Drupes, meanwhile, usually contain a single large seed or 'stone' and includes dates, apricots, peaches, plums, avocados, cherries, coconuts and olives.

So now you know.

But that still won't change David Mitchell's opinion that 'if it doesn't go in a fruit salad it's not a fruit!'