Why are broccoli considered to be flowers?

Morpholigically speaking (as in, what structures cause them to be a part of the flower family)

Why are broccoli considered to be flowers?
the little green bits at the top of the stalk ie: the fuzzy bits are actually the plants reproductive structure of the plant (which is what flowers are), if you look at a head of broccoli using a magnifying glass you can see them... they even look like flowers.
Reply:in the broccoli flower the dark green bushes are the sexual reproductive organs and the petals. very weird plant
Reply:because the heads(bluish green) that are harvested and eaten are just premature clusters of the reproductive organ(i.e. florets) of the plants. I am pretty sure that over the years we humans have cultivated the plants in such way that they produce much bigger and tender florets than their wild ancestors.
Reply:i don't know
Reply:miwtsmlw basically got it right. Broccoli has been bred to have hundreds of flowers in the complexly branched group that we know so well. When we eat them they are at the bud stage so you can't really see the reproductive structures. If you have seen the vegetable sold as broccolini (see link) you can more easily tell that the tips are flower buds. If you have seen the asian vegetable called Choy Sum (see 2nd link) you can see what the flowers would have become (Choy Sum is fairly closely related to Broccoli)
Reply:Because the part we eat (or won't!) turns into big flowers when it's not picked!


Most veggies do.


Have you ever seen an asperigus plant? It's really interesting!
Reply:They are flowers. Flowers are not a family. Brassicas are a family.