The apple has three cousins, all of whom are very much alike. These cousins are the cherry, the plum, and the peach (Figs. [22], [23], [24]). All three belong to the Rose family.
Have you ever noticed the great family likeness between these three fruits?
Look at them in the pictures. To be sure, they are of different sizes, but they are almost alike in shape.
And if you should cut them open lengthwise, right through the stony center, all three would look much like the next picture, which is taken from a peach (Fig. [25]). All these fruits have the soft outer part which you find so pleasant to the taste.
Fig. 23
Fig. 24
Within this, in all of them, is a hard object, which we call the stone or pit; and inside this stone or pit, in each case, lies the seed.
These next pictures show you two views of the flower of the cherry (Figs. [26], [27]).