Yes, botanically speaking, guava fruit is a berry.
While the term "berry" is often used loosely in everyday language, in botany, it has a specific definition. A berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary, with seeds embedded within the flesh. Guava fits this description. It develops from a single flower with one ovary, has a fleshy interior, and contains multiple seeds. It also has remnants of the flower (sepals) at the apex.
Here's a breakdown of why guava qualifies as a berry:
- Origin: It develops from a single ovary of a flower.
- Fleshy Pericarp: It possesses a fleshy fruit wall (pericarp).
- Seeds: It contains multiple seeds embedded within the fleshy pulp.
- No Stone: It doesn't have a hard pit or stone in the center like a peach or plum (which are drupes).
- Outer Skin: Guava has a thin outer skin, also typical of berries.
Therefore, despite not fitting the popular image of a "berry" like a strawberry or blueberry, guava scientifically falls under the berry classification.
