Banana

Tree facts

Scientific name

Musa spp.

Origin

Southeast Asia and New Guinea

Tree size

6–25 ft depending on cultivar; dwarf types stay under 10 ft

Growth rate

Fast

Sun

Full sun; tolerates light shade

Soil

Rich, moist soil with plenty of organic matter that still drains well. Heavy feeders and heavy drinkers.

Soil pH

5.5–7.0

Pollination

Edible bananas set seedless fruit without pollination; no partner needed

Cold hardiness

Leaves are damaged near 32°F; frost kills the stalk to the ground at about 28°F, but the corm usually resprouts

USDA zones

9–11 (8b with die-back)

Years to first fruit

9–18 months from planting a pup, depending on cultivar and warmth

Season

Year-round

Water

About every 3 days once established, without rain; more in heat, in pots and while young

Feeding

About every 30 days, Mar–Oct

Taste

Sweet and creamy when ripe; some types are tangy, apple-like or vanilla-like, and cooking types are starchy

Nutrition

Good source of potassium, vitamin B6 and fiber

Is banana safe to eat? Edible and toxic parts

What you can eat

• Ripe fruit, raw or cooked
• Green fruit of cooking types, boiled or fried
• Male flower bud (banana heart), cooked in Southeast Asian and Indian dishes
• Leaves for wrapping food while it steams or grills (not eaten)

Toxic parts and cautions

• Take care: The sap stains clothes permanently and can irritate skin. Wear old clothes and gloves when cutting stalks or bunches.
• Good to know: People with a latex allergy may also react to banana (latex-fruit syndrome).
• Good to know: Bananas are high in potassium; people with kidney disease or on a potassium-restricted diet should follow their doctor's limits.
• Good to know: Stalks with heavy bunches can topple in wind. Prop them with a forked pole.

Pets: The plant isn't toxic to dogs, cats or horses. Ripe banana is a fine treat for dogs in small amounts; the peel is hard to digest.

How to eat and enjoy banana

• Fresh, or sliced on cereal and in smoothies
• Banana bread, pancakes and frozen 'nice cream'
• Fried ripe plantain-style bananas (maduros) and green banana chips
• Banana heart salad and curry
• Turon (Philippines) and kluai buat chi, bananas in coconut milk (Thailand)

Banana varieties (12)

• Dwarf Cavendish

  The compact form of the supermarket banana, well suited to pots and small yards.

  Taste: Sweet, classic banana flavor

• Goldfinger · also FHIA-01

  A bred banana that resists Panama disease (race 1) and black leaf streak; eaten ripe or cooked green.

  Origin: Honduras · Taste: Sweet with a slight apple tang

  A good choice where disease has killed other bananas. Fruit stays firm after ripening.

• Grand Nain · also Grande Naine

  The Cavendish banana sold in most stores: medium height with large, heavy bunches.

  Taste: Sweet, classic banana flavor

• Ice Cream (Blue Java) · also Blue Java, Ice Cream

  Named for its silvery-blue young fruit and soft, melting flesh with a vanilla-custard flavor.

  Taste: Sweet, creamy, vanilla-like

  More tolerant of cold and wind than Cavendish types.

• Lady Finger · also Ladyfinger

  A name used for several small, thin-skinned sweet bananas. In the US it usually means the Sucrier type; in Australia, a taller Pome type.

  Taste: Very sweet · Size: Small

• Manzano · also Apple banana, Silk

  A short, chunky banana with a tangy apple-like flavor. Eat it fully ripe, when the skin is flecked with black.

  Taste: Sweet-tart, apple-like · Size: Small

  Very susceptible to Panama disease (Fusarium wilt).

• Mysore

  A tall, vigorous banana with small, thin-skinned fruit and a sweet-tangy flavor.

  Origin: India · Taste: Sweet, slightly tangy · Size: Small

  Resists Panama disease race 1.

• Namwah · also Pisang Awak, Nam Wah

  A vigorous, hardy banana with short, plump fruit, eaten fresh and used in Thai desserts.

  Origin: Thailand · Taste: Sweet, mild

  Handles cold, drought and poor soil better than most.

• Orinoco · also Horse banana

  A tough cooking banana with thick, angular fruit, also eaten ripe.

  Taste: Starchy green; tangy-sweet ripe

  One of the more cold-tolerant bananas.

• Praying Hands

  Named for its fingers, which fuse together on each hand. The flesh has a mild vanilla flavor and is good fresh or cooked.

  Taste: Mild, lightly vanilla

• Raja Puri

  A compact dessert banana that tolerates cold well and fruits fairly quickly.

  Origin: India · Taste: Sweet

• Red · also Red Dacca, Red banana

  A tall banana with reddish-purple skin and cream to pinkish flesh.

  Taste: Sweet, rich

Pests and diseases to watch for

• Anthracnose

  Black, sunken spots on flowers, young leaves and fruit; blossoms turn black and drop. Ripe fruit gets dark spots that spread and rot.

  What to do: Prune out dead twigs and blackened panicles.

• Whiteflies

  Clouds of tiny white flies when a branch is shaken; yellowing leaves and sooty mold.

  What to do: Insecticidal soap or horticultural oil on leaf undersides.

• Fusarium wilt (Panama disease)

  Older leaves yellow from the edges and collapse around the stem; cut stems show reddish-brown streaks.

  What to do: There's no cure; remove the plant and don't replant bananas in that spot.

• Root-knot nematodes

  Stunted, wilting trees in sandy soil; roots have knots and swellings.

  What to do: Thick organic mulch and compost help roots cope.

• Scale insects

  Small bumps, waxy or shell-like, on stems and leaf veins; sticky honeydew and black sooty mold below.

  What to do: Scrub small colonies off with a soft brush.

• Mealybugs

  White cottony clusters in leaf joints, under leaves and on fruit stems; honeydew and sooty mold.

  What to do: Blast off with a strong spray of water.