No one will remember, why suddenly there was doubt that the melon is a fruit or a vegetable? Moreover, some believe that she and her close relative, watermelon, are berries at all. Is this really so, let's try to figure it out right now.
Cucumber sister
To answer such an interesting question, you need to mentally go to the garden or melon and remember how the melon grows, what its leaves look like, to which family it belongs.
Some, seeing the first time to whip melons and cucumbers, will be surprised, because they are so similar. A kind of liana, depending on the variety, spreads several meters. In addition to this common feature, the leaves of both cultures are also almost identical. They are small, fan-shaped. Of course, for example, in Uzbekistan the melon leaves will be large, but in the Moscow greenhouses they are very modest. And this will help answer the question: “Is melon a fruit or a vegetable?” After all, it is precisely the small size of the leaf of the fragrant beauty that allows you to visually see her relationship with the cucumber. He has them exactly the same in form, but slightly darker in color and less pubescent.
Is melon a fruit or a vegetable?
Those who have never grown or never seen a melon grow may think that they have cucumber in front of them. After yellow flowers appear on it, it will also be difficult to say whether it is cantaloupe or cucumber. After all, the latter flowers are almost the same size and color. No wonder this factor confuses even bees. They pollinate both those and other plants, transferring pollen from flower to flower on their legs. Therefore, sometimes the fruits of the melon, grown next to the cucumber, resemble the taste of the latter.
The root system of both cultures is also identical - it is not deep, but grows in breadth. Both vegetables do not like transplantation, since the roots are injured.
All of the above helps dispel doubts. Thinking melon is a fruit or a vegetable, we can say with confidence that it is a vegetable. After all, the cucumber is just that, and his own fragrant sister cannot belong to other botanical classes of plants.
We dispel the myth that melon is a berry
So what is a melon - a fruit, a vegetable or a berry? Honey fruit is often equated not only with fruits, but also with berries. Where did this opinion come from? The reason for reflection was a watermelon. For some reason, some began to call it a huge berry. They say that watermelon is very sweet, therefore it is not a vegetable, but it can be a berry. After all, they also grow on the ground, and not on trees. Yes, strawberries, cranberries and some others live at soil level. However, myth writers have forgotten that cherries, cherries, which are berries, grow on trees. Therefore, the fact that watermelon lives on the earth is not at all proof of its “berry” origin.
Melon, like him, is also a gourd. Myth writers argue that since watermelon is a berry, its cousin, melon, is also her. But, as was shown above, a fruit with juicy scarlet pulp is not a berry at all; therefore, melon cannot be considered a botanical class of plants.
If you look at the leaves of pumpkin, zucchini, cucumber, melon, you can clearly see their similarity with the leaves of melon. Therefore, melon is a vegetable, as are these crops. By the way, zucchini zucchini leaves are almost the same as watermelons - they are openwork and carved. Therefore, watermelon, though sweet, is also a vegetable. And not a berry at all. Now everyone, thinking about whether a melon is a fruit or a vegetable, can say that it is a vegetable.