What Is an Apple Pip?
An apple pip is another term for appleseed, thus the two can be used interchangeably. The word "pip" comes from the Middle English word "pippin," which is a crisp, tart apple used especially in cooking. Many apple varieties use the word pippin in their names, especially if they were originally cultivated from seeds.
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Function
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Like other types of seeds, apple pips are the reproductive part of the fruit. When apple pips are planted in the soil by humans or through natural decaying processes, new apple saplings may sprout from the pips. However, the new apple trees will have genetic differences from the parent tree and from each other, much as human children are different from their siblings and parents. For this reason, apple trees do not come "true" from seed. Although the new apple trees will eventually grow and produce apples, the new apples may have a different color, size, shape and taste than the apples the pips came from.
Types
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There are over 7,500 different cultivars, or varieties, of apples worldwide. This is mainly because each apple pip can produce a slightly different type of apple than its parent tree, and growers may also produce new apple varieties intentionally to get the qualities they want. Since apples do not come true from seed, apple trees are normally propagated through taking cuttings from a parent tree and grafting them onto rootstock. This ensures that the new apple tree will produce the same variety of apples as the parent tree.
Identification
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An apple consists of several parts. The stalk connects the apple to the tree while it is growing. The skin, or exocarp, protects the fruit inside, and may be green, yellow, red or pink. The endocarp is the center of the apple, also known as the core. The core of the apple contains the apple pips, or seeds. The mesocarp, or pulp, is the edible part of the apple between the core and the skin. The stamen and calyx at the bottom of the center of the apple are leftover from the apple blossom during the formation of the fruit.
Size
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Appleseeds typically measure between 1/8 and 1/4 inch long. Each apple core has five carpels, which develop from the female flower ovaries. When an apple is cut in half from side to side, rather than from top to bottom, the carpels form a star shape with five points. Since each carpel contains between one and three apple pips, a typical apple has between five and 10 seeds. In general, the more pips an apple has, the larger the fruit.
Misconceptions
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It is true that apple pips contain a small amount of amygdalin, which can turn into cyanide when digested. Although cyanide is a deadly poison in large doses, only a huge number of apple pips would provide sufficient cyanide to be harmful. In addition, apple pips have a hard shell, making them difficult to bite open or digest and more likely to be swallowed whole and passed harmlessly through the digestive system. Therefore, while apple pips are technically poisonous, they are highly unlikely to poison anyone.
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