Watermelon is a vegetable, says Associated Press

6-28-2006 @8:08PM champignon said... Funnily enough I was writing about this today (@ www.barigoule.net). In botanical terms a watermelon is the fruit of the watermelon plant. In the same vein, squashes and pumpkins are also fruits. On the other hand, in culinary terms the distinction is fuzzier. The USDA considers watermelons vegetables because they are of the same family as pumpkins which it also considers vegetables (as do many cooks). Is there a right answer in the kitchen? No, not really. It mostly depends on the use of the item in question.
-c
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6-28-2006 @9:06PM Cliff said... I thought this fell under the same governmental brain fart as the tomato. Congress ordered the USDA to classify that as a vegetable so they could tax its import (more heavily), thus "helping" the American grower. I'd preeeetty much assume the same here.
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6-28-2006 @9:07PM Druchyun said... Why are squash and cucumbers considered vegetables? Just because they aren't sweet? I believe there's a flaw in the way they were originally classified. I remember back in my university days, I happened to say that a tomato was a fruit and people looked at me like I was a complete idiot. I also lost a round in scattergories because I said an olive was a fruit and everyone laughed and brushed me off. Can't scientists just agree that all things with seeds in it are fruit?
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6-28-2006 @11:36PM R. Reid said... Can a person dressed as a watermelon march in the NY St. Patrick's day parade? If so the watermelon must be a vegetable.
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6-28-2006 @11:53PM David T said... "Botanically speaking, a tomato is the ovary, together with its seeds, of a flowering plant, i.e. a fruit. However, from a culinary perspective the tomato is typically served as a meal, or part of a main course of a meal, meaning that it would be considered a vegetable.

This argument has led to actual legal implications in the United States. In 1887, U.S. tariff laws which imposed a duty on vegetables but not on fruits caused the tomato's status to become a matter of legal importance. The U.S. Supreme Court settled this controversy in 1893, declaring that the tomato is a vegetable, using the popular definition which classifies vegetable by use, that they are generally served with dinner and not dessert. The case is known as Nix v. Hedden.

The USDA also considers a tomato a vegetable.

It should be noted that strictly speaking the holding of the case applies only to the interpretation of the Tariff Act of March 3, 1883 and not much else. The court does not purport to reclassify tomato for botanical or for any other purpose other than paying a tax under a tariff act."

The tomato is a fruit. The watermelon is a fruit. Screw the USDA.
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6-29-2006 @8:20AM Randy K said... I have no idea if this is correct, but it was interesting enough to me to stay with me for a few years. I clearly recall an old L. M. Boyd column that stated that a watermelon is, botanically speaking, a berry.

r


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6-29-2006 @11:39AM Candice said... A really, really large berry.
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7-05-2006 @2:12PM fruity said... fruit fruit fruit. it has seeds, so it is a fruit. period.

you can call it whatever you want for whatever purpose you want, but the part of a flowering plant that contains the seeds is the fruit. In Fruit the seeds are covered in or surrounded by sweet stuff [usually] so animals will eat it and the seeds and spread the seeds, which children of all ages do for watermelon by spitting said seeds around at picnics!
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7-05-2006 @2:13PM Candace said... as far as my biology and life science classes have taught me, whether something is a fruit or not is based on the PART of the plant, and not the TYPE. Anyway, it carries seeds, so just call it a fruit, just like tomatoes, peppers, and apples.
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7-05-2006 @2:20PM Ricky Chawla said... Anything with the seeds inside is scientifically considered a fruit. Anything at all despite wether or not it may be edible, poisonous, spiky or glow in the dark, if the seeds are inside, the thing around the seeds is a fruit.
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7-05-2006 @2:34PM Sanford Leffler said... The part of a watermelon plant that is eaten is a fruit. G. H. M. Lawrence, "Taxonomy of Vascular Plants" defined "fruit" as the "ripened ovary (pistil), ... the seed-bearing part." A fruit is the bud, flower, seed containting organ, or the seed. A vegetable is the stem, leaf, or root. Tomatoes, beans, corn, artichoke, peanuts are fruit. Lettuce, celery, and carrots are vegetables. Apples are weird because what is eaten is a swollen part of the stem. The core with the seeds is the fruit.
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7-05-2006 @2:34PM Kelly said... Who CARES if it is a fruit or a vegetable - just pass the salt !
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7-05-2006 @2:35PM Marie said... Does anybody really care?
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7-05-2006 @2:43PM Joey said... Okay, this is just something I heard/saw/read or something, but it said that if the item in question ripens after being picked (bananas, tomatoes, etc) it is a fruit. If it simply rots after being picked, it's a vegetable. I'm not sure if it's right or not, but thought I would throw it out there.
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7-05-2006 @2:45PM Nick said... According to my dictionary: Fruit...The fertile, often spore-bearing structure of a plant that does NOT bear seeds. Makes all that stuff vegetables. Have a nice day.
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7-05-2006 @2:45PM girl_in_ga said... I never even knew cukes, squash, and pupkins were technically fruits until this article...I've never even heard anyone suggest that! As far as watermelons go...does it matter? A watermelon by any other name would taste as sweet. :) But yes, our watermelons are very exceptionally sweet and delicious this year...had some just yesterday.
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7-05-2006 @2:55PM Little Mike said... Here's an interesting one - according to the CDC, it's both! http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/5aday/month/watermelon.htm

They don't really go into detail, needless to say, according to them it is a fruit, but because it's related to the cucumber, it's also a vegetable.
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7-05-2006 @3:04PM John said... Fruit? Vegetable? Personally, I don't care what it's classified as. As long as it tastes good, I am gonna eat it. Just always remember, Chocolate is a vegetable. That's my story and I am sticking to it.
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7-05-2006 @3:06PM Bruce said... A watermelon are an animal.
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