Pericarp

Pericarp

With the term pericarp which is a synonym of fruit, in botany, we mean the wall of the fruit that derives from the wall of the ovary following the fertilization of the eggs.
In the pericarp three layers are distinguished: epicarp, commonly defined as the peel of the fruit, a mesocarp of normally fleshy consistency, and an endocarp, which often takes on a woody consistency (hazel), to protect the seed.

Each layer can have different consistency depending on whether the fruits are dry or meaty.
Improperly the same terms are used also for fruits derived from the inferior ovary, as in the Pomacee, where the epicarp and the mesocarp do not derive from the wall of the ovary, but from the floral axis and the receptacle.