Before eating a fruit that grows on a tree, one recites the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'etz," whereas before eating a food that grows from the ground one recites "Bore Peri Ha'adama." How precisely do we define a "tree" with respect to this Halacha? What properties are required for a fruit to be considered to grow on a tree and thus require the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'etz"?
Rabbi Moshe Halevi (Israel, 1961-2001) addresses this question in the third volume of his work Birkat Hashem (p. 8; listen to audio for precise citation), where he defines "tree fruits" as fruits that grow on a tree with a trunk and branches that remain even after the fruit's removal, and grows new, quality fruits each year. Such fruits require the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'etz"; if a fruit does not meet all these criteria, then it requires the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'adama."
Thus, for example, vegetables that grow underground, such as radishes and garlic, are clearly considered to grow from the ground, and not from a tree, and thus require the Beracha of "Ha'adama." Likewise, vegetables that grow on a stem attached from a ground will require "Ha'adama" if they must be replanted each year. Squash, for example, is replanted every year because the stem dries and withers after the plant's removal, and thus it is not considered a "tree fruit" with respect to Berachot. Furthermore, even if the stem regenerates itself after the fruit's removal, as a new stem emerges and produces fruit the next season, the stem is nevertheless not considered a "tree" in this regard, and the Beracha is "Ha'adama." Bananas, for example, grow on a tree but the tree dries and regenerates itself every year. Hence, as the Shulhan Aruch rules (Orah Haim 203), one who eats a banana recites the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'adama." This applies as well to eggplants and pineapples.
Finally, even if the stem remains intact and replenishes its fruit each year, the fruits will still require "Ha'adama" if their quality declines with every passing season. The quality of strawberries, for example, declines progressively each year of the tree's production, and farmers therefore plant new strawberry trees every year. Therefore, even though strawberries grow on trees, they require the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'adama," rather than "Bore Peri Ha'etz."
It should be noted that peppers – both sweet peppers and sharp peppers – likewise require the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'adama."
Summary: A fruit does not require the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'etz" unless it grows from a tree with a bark and branches that remain intact after the fruits are removed and that replenishes its fruit of the same quality each year. Hence, over foods such as bananas, squash, strawberries, pineapple, peppers and eggplants one recites the Beracha of "Bore Peri Ha'adama," rather than "Bore Peri Ha'etz."
