In the name of sportsmanship, let's consider one more way to look at fruits and vegetables. "According to L.H. Bailey, a vegetable is in horticultural usage, an edible herbaceous plant or part thereof that is commonly used for culinary purposes. In common usage, the fruits of the tomato, cucumber, squash, etc., are considered as vegetables, grown with other vegetables in the home garden, although of course each one is a seed bearing organ and hence, under strict usage of the language, might be considered a fruit." It is also as popularaly understodd, any plant cultivated for its edible parts. This loose definition includes roots (beet and carrot), tubers (potato), stems (celery), leaves (lettuce), flower buds and heads (cauliflower), fruits (tomato), and seeds (peas, beans, corn).

Looking back to the list, we can easily slip into familiar habits: artichoke, asparagus, avocado, bean, beet, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumber, eggplant, lettuce, onion, parsnip, pea, pepper, potato, radish, squash, and tomato are vegetables, all the others are fruits.

In other words, if you call it a vegetable, and your neighbour calls it a vegetable, and your local grocer calls it a vegetable, then it must be a vegetable. You like the sound of this? Fine with us. And, deep in our hearts, we suspect that's the best way to play, according to Hoyle.

Stevens, Nov/95.

Gmt