How selective breeding created everyday fruits and vegetables
Fruit and vegetables: we need it, we eat it, we often love it. It's nature's gift to humanity, with the best flavors around the world coming from mother nature herself. However, did you know that many of these nutritious treats are actually man-made? Prepare to have your mind blown and your mouth watered as we explore many such examples in this new gallery.
Orange
Oranges are amongst the most popular fruit in the world. However, they're actually a hybrid fruit.
Banana
Believe it or not, bananas are man-made! This yellow delight has a history stretching back around 10,000 years.
Grapefruit
The grapefruit has a storied history. It can be traced back to 1693, when a man named Captain Shaddock shipped pomelo seeds to the West Indies.
Strawberry
It's beloved around the world by those with a sweet tooth, but the strawberry isn't 100% original.
The strawberry we eat is a man-made hybrid of the wild strawberry. It's thought that the modern strawberry was introduced in France in the 18th century.
Boysenberry
Boysenberries are one of the lesser-known fruits, with a history stretching back to the '20s.
The boysenberry was created by Rudolph Boysen, who blended the blackberry with either the loganberry or the red raspberry.
Tangelo
The tangelo has its origins in the forests of Southeast Asia, where insects cross-pollinated mandarins with a relative of the grapefruit some 3,500 years ago.
Carrot
Did you know carrots weren't always orange? Back in the days of the Roman Empire, it's reported that natural carrots were either white or purple.
Cabbage
Selective vegetable breeding was popular in the 1600s, when wild mustard was blended with bigger leaf buds. The result was the cabbage.
Cauliflower
The vegetable was formed from wild mustard, which becomes kohlrabi.
Brussels sprouts
Brussels sprouts are small-stemmed plants that are a hybrid between wild mustard and kohlrabi.
Broccoli
This vegetable is thought to be a hybridization of kohlrabi. In the '90s, a Japanese company crossbred broccoli with kai-lan (Chinese broccoli) to create broccolini.
Kale
Kale has its origins in the Mediterranean and Anatolia. It's formed from wild mustard that is selectively breeded.
Collard greens
About 2,500 years ago, collard greens were created by blending wild mustard seeds with larger leaves.
Peanuts
That's right, the peanut is a cross between the Arachis ipaensis and the Arachis duranensis. It's thought that bees actually cross-pollinated both breeds.
Almonds
The wild almond is pretty bitter and hardly pleasant to eat. That said, scientists can't quite figure out how humans made the modern almond.
