Banana Tree. Banana Tree, Musa acuminata Banana Family ( Musaceae ), Banana Tree - Williams Hybrid Banana. We wish to thank Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for some of the information on this page. We share images and information with Wikipedia. Musa acuminata is a species of wild banana native to Southeast Asia. It is the progenitor of modern edible bananas, along with Musa balbisiana. First cultivated by humans around 8000 years ago, it is one of the earliest examples of domesticated plants. Musa acuminata is one of the earliest plants to be domesticated by humans for agriculture. They were first domesticated in Southeast Asia and surrounding areas (possibly New Guinea, eastern Indonesia, and the Philippines) at around 8000 B.C. It has been suggested that M. acuminata may have originally been domesticated for parts other than the fruit. Either for fiber, for construction materials, or for its edible male bud. We are featuring Banana plants on our web page since they are grown by some gardeners in Arizona with much success and we also have decided to try growing bananas. Photos of our "Pup" are below. Nearly all of our photos are of plants in either Mexico or Guatemala, since these are areas which we visited that had large banana plantations. We did notice banana growing in Cairo, Egypt when we visited that area a few years ago. Cairo is very much like Phoenix, Arizona in climate. In fact when we visited a local nursery in North Glendale, we found that they offered the Enanao Gigante cultivar for sale. It is a type that is grown in Mexico and and Central America. It they say it also adapts very well to our growing conditions. Banana is really not a "tree" but a fast growing herbaceous perennial arising from an underground rhizome. Their fleshy stalks or pseudostems are formed by upright concentric layers of leaf sheaths making up the functional trunks. A true stem begins as an underground corm which grows upwards, pushing its way out through the center of the stalk sometime between 10 - 15 months after planting. It then produces a terminal inflorescence which later on bears fruit. Each stalk will produce one large flower cluster and then the stalk will die. New stalks will then grow from the underground rhizome. The main group of edible bananas are derived from Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. By the 1940's and 1950's, it became too difficult to use Linnean binomial names for all of the cultivated bananas and plantains. Therefore an alternate genome-based system for the nomenclature of the section Musa bananas was devised. Today there are many different cultivars with names such as Banana Musa - Williams, hybrid banana, which is one banana upon which the "Chiquita" name brand is used. Others names are such as the Monkey Fingers banana or Cavendish dwarf banana. While there are several cultivars that will grow in the lower elevations of Arizona we have chosen to try the Williams Hybrid Banana Tree. The Williams Hybrid Banana Tree: 'Williams Hybrid' is one of the main bananas of commerce. It grows to about 16 feet in height and produces a very popular sweet fruit. It produces heads that weigh up to 150 pounds in weight. It is also used in landscaping. This banana plant grows from 6 to 8 feet. They produce fruit that are sweet and delicious. This banana is both wind resistant and cold hardy. The Williams Hybrid is the same same cultivar as the Giant Cavendish banana. It originated from a mutation of the Dwarf Cavendish banana which was found in Queensland, Australia. It has a distinctive long, very large bud. The Del Monte banana is a Williams. We are told that the first priority to consider when growing banana is to use the proper soil. It is very important to use a well draining soil mixture with 20% Perlite added to it, assuring that you have a good draining soil. Do not use heavy soils when growing banana such as potting soil, or soil from a yard. Plant the banana rhizome upright and be sure the roots are well covered and the rhizome has about 1/2" of the base covered with soil. It is also very important to plant the banana so that it is higher than the surrounding area where you will place water. This is so that the roots do not become water logged and rot. Note the very top photo above, at the banana plantation, to see how they do it. We are advised to water and fertilize banana at the same time using any type of balanced fertilizer to help grow banana. Bananas are heavy feeders so we are told that you fertilize very lightly each time that you water with the exception being that you do not fertilize if you are not seeing active growth. ( Balanced fertilizer means - a fertilizer that has three fairly equal numbers on the label ). After the initial watering we are told not to water again until the soil is dry to a 1/2" depth. Do not expect this to be a plant that you "water once a week". If you water once a week it is unlikely that you will have success growing this plant. Banana grow best in bright light. At least 12 hours of bright light is ideal for most banana varieties. Constant warmth is also very important - an ideal night temperature should be 67 F. The day temperatures should be in the 80s. Ideally the plants should have fresh circulating air. Some gardeners in Arizona have success with this plant. Quick Notes: Height: Height 10 - 16 feet with less spread. Flowers: A large, long-oval, tapering, purple-clad bud emerges from the banana inflorescence. As the bud opens, slim, nectar-rich, tubular, toothed, white flowers appear in double rows along the the floral stalk, each cluster is covered by a thick, waxy, bract, purple outside and deep red within. The flowers in the first 5 - 15 rows are female. As the rachis of the inflorescence continues to lengthen, sterile flowers with abortive male and female parts appear. They are followed by normal staminate flowers with abortive ovaries. The two latter flower types eventually drop off in most of the edible bananas. Flowering Time: January - June. Leaves: Large oblong or elliptic leaf blades are extensions of the sheaths of the pseudostem and are joined to them by fleshy, deeply grooved, short petioles. The leaves can become as much as 9 feet long and 2 feet wide. They may be entirely green, green with maroon splotches, or green on the upper side and red-purple beneath. Fruit: Clusters of fruits, called hands. The fruit (technically a berry) turns from deep green to yellow or red, and may range from 2-1/2 to 12 inches in length and 3/4 to 2 inches in width. The flesh, ivory-white to yellow or salmon-yellow, may be firm, astringent, even gummy with latex when unripe, turning tender and slippery, or soft and mellow or rather dry and mealy or starchy when ripe. The flavor may be mild and sweet or subacid with a distinct apple tone. The common cultivated types are generally seedless with just vestiges of ovules visible as brown specks. Found: Now, also considered native to the USA (FL). Also native to Baja Norte, & Baja California, in Mexico. Found in most tropical regions of the world. Hardiness: USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 �C (25 �F) USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 �C (30 �F) USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 �C (35 �F) USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 �C (40 �F) Soil pH requirements: 5.6 to 6.0 (acidic) 6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic) 6.6 to 7.5 (neutral) 7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline) 7.9 to 8.5 (alkaline) Sun Exposure: Full Sun Elevation: Can be found from 0 - 3,937 Feet. Usually at low elevations. Habitat: Found rarely in some Maricopa County gardens. Provide good draining soil. Do not use heavy soils, with clay. Miscellaneous: Tree Photos Taken; January 18-19, 2004. State of Veracruz, Mexico.

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