How much do you know figs?

 

FIGS: NOT FRUIT, Did You Know?
无花果：不是水果，你知道吗？

A fig is not just an ordinary fruit, in fact, it's not even a fruit.
无花果不仅仅是普通的水果，事实上，它甚至不算是水果。

Strictly speaking, figs are inverted flowers.
严格来说，无花果是“倒置的花”。

Figs don’t bloom in the same way as other fruit trees like almonds or cherries.
无花果的开花方式与杏树或樱桃树等果树不同。

Figs have a very curious history.
无花果有着非常奇特的历史。

First of all, they're technically not a fruit, but an infructescence (a set of fruits).
首先，从严格意义上说，它不是单一的水果，而是“复果”（由多个小果组成）。

And secondly, they need a wasp that dies inside the fig to reproduce.
其次，它们需要一种会在无花果内部死亡的小黄蜂来完成繁殖。

In a nutshell, figs are a kind of inverted flowers that bloom inside this large, dark, red-hued bud we know as figs.
简单来说，无花果是一种在我们看到的这种大型、深红色果实内部开放的倒置花朵。

Each flower produces a single nut and a single seed.
每一朵小花都会形成一个小果和一颗种子。

The fig is made up of many tiny florets, which give it this characteristic crunchy texture.
无花果由许多微小的花组成，这也让它具有独特的颗粒口感。

Therefore, when we eat one fig, we are eating hundreds of fruits.
因此，当我们吃一个无花果时，其实是在吃数百个小果。

But the most amazing thing is the special pollination process that fig flowers need to reproduce.
但最神奇的是，无花果花朵繁殖所需要的特殊授粉过程。

They can’t rely on wind or bees like other fruits, so they depend on a species known as fig wasps.
它们不能像其他果树一样依靠风或蜜蜂授粉，而是依赖一种叫做“无花果小蜂”的昆虫。

These insects carry pollen and enable reproduction.
这些昆虫携带花粉，从而帮助其完成繁殖。

For their part, wasps cannot live without figs, as they lay their larvae inside the fruit.
反过来，小蜂也离不开无花果，因为它们会把幼虫产在果实内部。

This relationship is known as symbiosis or mutualism.
这种关系被称为“共生关系”或“互利共生”。

Currently, the vast majority of fig producers no longer rely on wasps.
如今，绝大多数无花果种植者已经不再依赖小蜂。

Most fig varieties for human consumption are parthenocarpic.
大多数供人食用的无花果品种属于“单性结实”。

This means they can produce fruit without pollination.
这意味着它们即使没有授粉也能结果。