Weird facts about fruit that you probably didn’t know

Did you know that bananas are technically a herb?

Many people have no idea that bananas are technically both a herb and a fruit, grown on a banana plant not a tree.

Here are some more weird fruit facts you probably didn’t know.

1. Watermelons are shaped like cubes in Japan

2. Tomatoes are botanically a fruit, but ‘legally’ named a vegetable in the US

In the extreme case of Nix vs. Hedden in 1893, a Supreme Court in the United States had to settle a case between a food importer and tax collector, who contested whether the tomato was a fruit or vegetable. The importer wanted to label the tomato a fruit (which had a lower import tax) but the tax collector demanded that it be recognised as a vegetable.

Verdict: The court ruled that the tomato was most commonly known as a vegetable and should therefore be treated as such when imported.

3. Plums, peaches and pears are actually members of the Rose family

4. Drinking grapefruit juice with some medications can kill you

5. Common vegetables that are actually classed as fruit

There are, in fact, a range of ‘vegetables’ that are actually fruit. So how can you tell?

Fruits and vegetables are defined differently, depending on whether you’re a gardener or a chef.

The Oxford Dictionary defines fruit as being developed from the ovary of a flowering plant, containing the seed of the flower.

The term ‘vegetable’ refers to the edible parts of plants, such as the roots, stems and leaves (think potatoes, celery and lettuce) and which are not strictly the fruit of the plant from which they come.

These common veggies are actually fruit:

• Eggplant
• Olives
• Peapods
• Cucumber
• Pumpkin
• Butternut Pumpkin
• Avocado
• Capsicum
• Zucchini

This article originally appeared on News.com.au.