Banana

Various species in the banana family are cultivated as agricultural crops, with a world production of about 66 million tons (60 million tonnes). The best-known species is the banana (Musa paradisiaca; sometimes known as M. sapientum). The cultivated banana is a sterile triploid, and does not produce viable seeds. This banana is believed to be derived from crosses of Musa acuminata and M. balbisiana, likely occurring in India or Southeast Asia at some prehistoric time. The banana is an ancient fruit, thought to have been cultivated for at least 3,000 years in southern Asia.

Bunches of banana fruits can be quite large, weighing as much as 110 lb (50 kg). Each bunch consists of clusters of fruits, known as hands; each hand contains 10-20 individual fruits, or fingers. After the fruits of a banana plant are harvested, the plant dies back, or is cut down, and a new stalk regenerates from the same, perennating rhizome or corm.

Bananas intended for export to temperate countries are generally harvested while the fruits are still green. As they ripen, the skin turns yellowish or reddish, depending on the variety. When dark blotches begin to appear on the skin, the fruits are especially tasty and ready for eating. Bananas are a highly nutritious food.

The cultivated banana occurs in hundreds of varieties, or cultivars, which vary greatly in the size, color, and taste of their fruits. The variety most familiar to people living in temperate regions has a rather large, long, yellow fruit. This variety is most commonly exported to temperate countries because it ripens slowly, and travels well without spoiling. However, this variety of banana has proven to be susceptible to a recently emerged, lethal fungal disease. The long, yellow banana will soon be largely replaced in the temperate marketplace by another variety, which has a smaller, reddish, apple-tasting fruit.

Most varieties of the cultivated banana occur in tropical countries, especially in southern Asia, where many may be grown in any particular locality. These varieties range greatly in their size, taste, and other characteristics, some being preferred for eating as a fresh fruit, and others for cooking by frying or baking. Plantains or platanos are a group of about 75 varieties of cultivated bananas that are only eaten after they are cooked or processed into chips or flour. Like bananas, plantains are a highly nutritious food.

Another important economic product is manila hemp or abaca, manufactured from the fibers of the large, sheathing leaf-stalks of the species Musa textilis, as well as from some other species of bananas and plantains. Musa textilis is native to the Philippines and the Moluccas of Southeast Asia, and most manila hemp comes from that general region, although it has also been introduced elsewhere, for example, to Central America. The fibers of manila hemp are tough, flexible, and elastic, and are mostly woven into rope. Because it is resistant to salt water, this cordage is especially useful on boats and ships, although its use has now been largely supplanted by synthetic materials, such as polypropylene. The fibers of manila hemp can also been woven into a cloth, used to make bags, hats, twine, and other goods.

Bananas are also sometimes cultivated as ornamental plants, in gardens and parks in warm climates, and in greenhouses in cooler climates. Some taxonomic treatments include the genus Strelitzia in the banana family. The best-known species in this group is the bird-of-paradise plant (Strelitzia reginae), a beautiful and well-known ornamental plant that is cultivated in tropical and sub-tropical climates, and in greenhouses in more temperate places.