Cucumber: a vegetable or fruit?

[ski]

ONLY POST your answer if you have a credible, linked source. I think it's a vegetable, but I need something to show the opposing argument.

I googled for "cucumber vegetable fruit site:.edu" but nothing concrete.

Any help?

[Markel]

According to here (http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/economicbotany/Cucurbita/) cucumbers are part of the gourd family. Everything on that page refers to them as fruits.

[Kevster]

Ski, you didn't spend much time looking for an answer did you?

It's actually a fruit of the cucmber vine, as part of the melon (Cucurbitaceae) family that includes watermelons, cataloupes, pumpkins, gerkins, gourds, muskmelons, etc.

Here's the USDA classification:

http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/topics.cgi?earl=plant_profile.cgi&symbol=CUSA4

here's a research paper from the University of Wisconsin that refers to it as a fruit in the first sentance of the abstract:

http://cucurbitsvr.hort.ncsu.edu/cgc/cgc03/cgc3-10.html

For other links, try searching under it's latin name: Cucumis sativus

[ski]

Wikipedia says vegetable (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomato) by law

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nix_v._Hedden

Yeah, it's wikipedia... interesting though it may be legally a vegetable.

[Kevster]

So in other words, scientifically it's classified as a fruit, but legally because of tariff laws it's a vegetable (based on the ways in which it is used).

[DarkFury]

Heh... you are a fruit if you don't think a cucumber is a vegetable. :heh:

[ShawnLee]

This is like the tomato issue. Really a fruit, but legally (and effectively) a vegetable. Though, the tomato is being used more often as a fruit by some.

[Burzhui]

watermelons are actually berries

[cruelpupet]

simple rule i follow

seeds on inside = fruit

[nimj2323ck]

simple rule i follow

seeds on inside = fruit

What about strawberries?

[molecularfire]

or snow peas?

[nickel]

i like pickles.

[cruelpupet]

What about strawberries?

There are exceptions where seeds are on the outside, what i meant was if there is ever a seed on the inside its a fruit.




or snow peas?

hmmm maybe that seed on the inside thing doesnt work...cause theres also stringbeans

[nickel]

There are exceptions where seeds are on the outside, what i meant was if there is ever a seed on the inside its a fruit.

so, in effect, men are fruits :D

[Merlin]

i like pickles.
Yes, we know that. :naughty:

[ialsohaveadream]

so, in effect, men are fruits :D
....and when they put out, so are women. ;)

[ooBaKeep]

This is like the tomato issue. Really a fruit, but legally (and effectively) a vegetable. Though, the tomato is being used more often as a fruit by some.


We had this debate at work several years ago. We ended up calling the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and yes it's a friut. This is a quote from the USDA.

"... Though botanically a fruit, in 1893 the US Supreme Court ruled the tomato was a vegetable."

I wonder how they would classify Michael Jackson? HE HE HE.

Either way, fruit or vegetable, I love tomatos.