mesocarpn.
/ˈmɛsə(ʊ)kɑːp/, U.S. /ˈmɛzəˌkɑrp/; see also meso- comb. form. Botany.
The typically fleshy middle layer of the pericarp of a fruit, between the endocarp and the exocarp.
ΚΠ
1829 P. Clinton tr. A. Richard New Elem. Bot. (ed. 4) 360 Between these two membranes there is a fleshy, parenchymatous part, which is called sarcocarp or mesocarp.
1861 R. Bentley Man. Bot. i. iv. 300 The pericarp exhibits three layers..the epicarp..the mesocarp..and..the endocarp.
1909 A. F. M. Johnson Textbk. Bot. for Students iv. 67 Cocoanuts are generally sold in shops with some of the fibres of the mesocarp forming a shaggy investment to the endocarp.
1949 J. B. S. Braverman Citrus Products iii. 77 Penetrating further into the peel of citrus fruit, one comes to the white, spongy, parenchymatous layer (mesocarp), generally known as the albedo.
1993 M. J. Plotkin Tales Shaman's Apprentice vi. 168 Kamainja found a ripe eperu, a koi palm fruit... Kamainja showed me how to get at the mesocarp—the edible pulp—by sawing off the scales with my machete.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2001; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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