# Citrus fruits and varying amount of seeds

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citrus-fruits-and-varying-amount-of-seeds/186903>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 8, 2003, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citrus-fruits-and-varying-amount-of-seeds/186903 "2003-07-08T01:12:03Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citrus-fruits-and-varying-amount-of-seeds/186903/1 "2003-07-08T01:12:03Z")

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I like lemons. A lot. It’s not unusual for me to slice up a couple of 'em for a snack. Sometimes I’ll get some that have maybe 3-4 seeds each. The latest batch I bought has about 10-12 each. It seems like the smaller the lemon, the more seeds there are.

So what’s the deal?

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**Author:** ![Stan\_Doubt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@Stan\_Doubt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Doubt)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citrus-fruits-and-varying-amount-of-seeds/186903/2 "2003-07-08T01:34:12Z")

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Lemons, like most agricultural crops, have been selectively bred or otherwise manipulated to select for different favorable characteristics.

For example, some “seedless” crops are sterile hybrids, while others, like bananas, may be triploid, with an abnormal number of chromosomes.

The number of seeds inside a piece of fruit may also be directly related to pollination efficiency and the growth status or overall health of the plant.

As an aside, I would recommend that you discuss your lemon eating habits with a MD or dentist - lemons are quite acidic and over time you may damage your teeth.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/citrus-fruits-and-varying-amount-of-seeds/186903/3 "2003-07-08T01:38:03Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Stan Doubt \*  
> \*\*As an aside, I would recommend that you discuss your lemon eating habits with a MD or dentist - lemons are quite acidic and over time you may damage your teeth. \*\*

I’ve been doing this for as long as I can remember and have suffered no damage to my teeth.

This is not an everyday thing, however. About 2-3 times a year, I’ll go through 5-6 lemons over 2-3 days.

Like the username, btw.