The perianth has six tepals, the three outer tepals smaller than the inner. The 12 stamens are in four whorls. The receptacle of the fertilised fruit gradually envelops the ovary, becoming the fleshy part of the ripe fruit, which often retains the dried remnants of the perianth at its tip. In effect, the resulting fruit structure is a tiny drupe. The endocarp is bony and plays an important part in the reproductive process, both in protecting the seed while the fruit is eaten and in inhibiting germination until the endocarp decays, thereby permitting long-lived soil seed banks to accumulate.