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CULTURAL AND WILD PLANTS
Banana. Legends, myths, symbolism, description, cultivation, methods of application
Directory / Cultivated and wild plants Content
Banana, Musa. Photos of the plant, basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism
Basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism Sort by: Banana (Musa) Family: Banana (Musaceae) Origin: The banana comes from the tropical regions of Southeast Asia. It has been bred by many generations of farmers and breeders and is now one of the most popular fruits in the world. Area: Bananas are grown in tropical regions around the world, especially in Central and South America, Asia and Africa. The largest producers are India, China and the Philippines. Chemical composition: Bananas contain many nutrients, including potassium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, riboflavin, folic acid, magnesium, copper, and manganese. They are also high in fiber and contain less fat and protein. Economic value: Bananas are one of the most important fruits in the world and are widely used in cooking, beverages, dyes and medicines. They are also used as feed for livestock and other animals, and the leaves of banana plants are used as packaging material and for cooking. In addition, banana palms have a high ornamental value and are often grown as houseplants. Legends, myths, symbolism: Bananas are mentioned in ancient Hindu texts as a symbol of fertility, abundance and prosperity. Bananas were often used in religious ceremonies and were part of the cultural heritage of India and Southeast Asia. In China, bananas have traditionally been considered a symbol of good luck, well-being and prosperity. In Chinese mythology, the banana was associated with the god of happiness and longevity, Liu Lin. In Japan, bananas are associated with lightness and elegance. In Japanese culture, they symbolize refinement and fragility, and their shape is sometimes associated with the shape of samurai swords. In Western culture, bananas are usually associated with tropical climes and relaxing on the beach. Bananas are also associated with the exotic, some types of bananas are considered rare and expensive. In general, bananas are associated with abundance, good luck, happiness, prosperity, and the exotic.
Banana, Musa. Description, illustrations of the plant Banana, Mysa L. Botanical description, history of origin, nutritional value, cultivation, use in cooking, medicine, industry
Perennial herbaceous plant up to 15 m high. The leaves are thin, long, bright green, tightly covering each other and forming a false trunk. The flowers are a complex inflorescence, in the lower part of which are female, bearing fruits, in the middle - bisexual, not tying fruits, in the uppermost - male, which fall after flowering. The fruit is a large elongated berry with a leathery shell and juicy pulp, in which numerous seeds are immersed. Banana blooms all year round. The ancestors of the cultivated banana come from South India, from the islands of the Malay Archipelago and New Guinea. As a result of the natural hybridization of these species, a cultivated banana was obtained, which is cultivated in the tropics and subtropics of Asia, Africa, Latin America and Australia. The most important crop of tropical agriculture, the banana is the subject of world trade and the basis of the economy of many countries. This is a high-calorie product that replaces bread, vegetables and even meat. Bananas reproduce vegetatively. They grow amazingly fast. Huge seven-eight-meter stems grow in just eight to ten months and already at this age they bloom and bear fruit. The fruits are harvested all year round, but especially a lot - from September to March. After fruiting, the aerial part of the plant dies off. Ripe fruits are very tender, so they are not transportable. Those that are intended for transportation are plucked unripe. Some varieties can produce crops up to 30 years. About 80 species belong to the banana genus. Among them there are dessert varieties and vegetable (planti). Bananas of dessert varieties have a peculiar aroma; the peel is easily separated from the pulp. The fruit pulp contains a lot of sugars (mainly sucrose), vitamins C, B1, B2, PP, E, carotene, enzymes, macronutrients (especially potassium); there are organic acids (predominantly malic), fiber, essential oil, very little starch. Locals use the fruits of dessert varieties as an antiscorbutic. In folk medicine, unripe fruits are used to treat diabetic patients. Thanks to the valuable physiologically active substances catecholamines, bananas help with inflammation of the oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract and bacillary dysentery. Bananas and their decoctions are effective for some diseases of the liver, kidneys, and also as a sedative. The therapeutic effect of bananas in atherosclerosis and hypertension has been noted. Bananas of vegetable varieties are large, the peel does not separate from the pulp. The pulp of the fruit contains a lot of starch, amino acids, fats, sugars. Dessert bananas are mostly consumed raw. In addition, they are used to make wine, beer, vinegar, marmalade, confiture, jam, various pastes, and ice cream. Bananas of vegetable varieties are not consumed raw. They are fried or boiled with the skin, after which it is easily separated from the pulp. The population of a number of countries prepares chips - fruits fried in hot oil. From bananas, after their treatment with sulfur dioxide and drying, flour is obtained, which is used for food. It is mixed with wheat and baked biscuits, cookies. Banana is of great importance as a fodder and technical plant. Green leaves, trunks, roots, peel are fed to livestock. Leaves serve instead of wrapping paper, are used as plates. Authors: Kretsu L.G., Domashenko L.G., Sokolov M.D.
Banana cultural (banana edible). Botanical description of the plant, areas of growth and ecology, economic importance, applications
A herbaceous perennial plant of the banana family native to Malaysia. The most important food plant of the tropics, often replacing bread for the local population. Only one type of inedible banana has been acclimatized in Adjara. The pulp of the banana fruit (the so-called pulp) in its raw form contains up to 80% water, 15-25% carbohydrates (mainly sucrose), starch (up to 7%), proteins (up to 1,3%), essential oil (0,3 -0,6%), fiber, malic acid, enzymes, pectin, carotene, vitamins C, B2, PP, potassium salts. The peel of the fruit contains a lot of tannins and carotene. The main part of bananas is used fresh (ripe - for dessert, unripe - as a vegetable dish). Flour, powder, jam, jelly, marmalade, syrups, wines, coffee surrogate are made from the pulp of the fruit. Bananas are eaten raw, boiled, baked in ashes, fried in oil; for harvesting for the future, they are dried in the sun and smoked. Sterile tops, flowers, inflorescences and bracts seasoned with palm oil go to the salad. Buds and false trunks are boiled for food. Green trunks, leaves, rhizomes, fruit peel and the fruits themselves, with their excess, are used in the tropics as food for cattle, sheep, pigs and elephants. Fresh and dried leaves can replace plates and wrapping paper. The fiber of the leaves is used to make ropes, mats, coarse paper, and fishing tackle. Fruits are a good dietary product. They are recommended as a mild laxative for gastric diseases, fasting days for patients with atherosclerosis, hypertension, enteritis, ulcerative colitis, liver disease and nephritis. Due to the content in the fruit pulp of such physiologically active substances as serotonin, nerpinefrin, dopamine, catecholamine, they are successfully used for intestinal diseases and stomach ulcers. Juice has a positive therapeutic effect in hemorrhages in the stomach and duodenum, in dysentery and cholera, it is used as a sedative and anticonvulsant in hysteria and epilepsy. Unripe and boiled fruits are eaten in diabetes. Note that with diabetes and a sharply increased acidity of gastric juice, the use of ripe fruits should be limited. In folk medicine, the ashes of the rhizomes and the whole plant were used as an antihelminthic. In China, the rhizomes, chopped trunks and legs of the fruit are fed to pigs during helminthic invasion. Authors: Dudnichenko L.G., Krivenko V.V.
Banana, Musa. Methods of application, origin of the plant, range, botanical description, cultivation
The genus Musa L. belongs to the banana family of the same name (Musaceae). Cultivated bananas and their wild relatives are included in the subgenus Musa, which includes 11-13 species. Banana is one of the most ancient cultivated plants of the tropical zone of the Old World and is one of the most important cultivated plants of the globe. Huge areas in Asia, Africa and Latin America are occupied by bananas. The world harvest of fruits is 65,9 million tons (1988), including banana-fruit - 41,9 million tons and plantain (vegetable banana) - 24 million tons. Thus, the banana ranks second among fruit plants the globe, second only to citrus crops. Banana is one of the most important food for millions of inhabitants of the tropical and partially subtropical zones. In some parts of Africa, such as Uganda and Cameroon, the annual per capita consumption of a banana reaches 300 kg. Banana fruit production is concentrated in Asia and South America, plantain - in Africa and South America (84%). The main banana producing countries are Brazil, India, Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Ecuador, Mexico; plantain - Uganda, Colombia, Rwanda, Zaire, Nigeria, Zambia, Tanzania, Cameroon. At the same time, the banana is one of the leading export crops. Recently, about 7,5 million tons of fruits, i.e. 18% of the world production of banana-fruit, come to the international market mainly from Latin American countries. The main banana exporting countries are: Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Philippines, Panama. Banana imports go mainly to the countries of North America and Europe. In terms of maximum yield per unit area, banana occupies one of the first places among all agricultural crops. The calorie content of a banana (91 kcal per 100 g of product) is significantly higher than that of a potato (83 kcal), an apple (46 kcal), an orange (38 kcal) and grapes (69 kcal), but lower than that of a date. Raw banana pulp contains 74-76% water, 15-20% sugar (mainly sucrose), 1,2-7% starch, 1,5% protein, 0,3-0,6% essential oil, 348 mg/100 g potassium, 10 mg/100 g vitamin C, carotene, vitamins B1: B2, B6, PP, etc. There are various ways to process bananas. The most widespread are thermal methods: canning (sterilization), pickling, drying, freezing. In the USA and other American countries, banana puree is produced (with a limited shelf life at temperatures of 1,7-4,4 ° C) for use in the production of flour confectionery, bakery and other products. The production of acidified banana puree, banana puree for baby food and nectar or "banana drink", chips (sliced or whole fruit) from low-sugar varieties of banana is developed. Banana chips are consumed in the same way as potato chips, previously fried in vegetable oil. Flour is also obtained from the fruits, which is used in mixture with wheat flour in home cooking and in bread baking. In 1862, the Russian botanist P. F. Goryaninov, who worked in Ethiopia, identified the genus Ensete, native to East Africa. The species Ensete edule Horan is characterized by high drought tolerance, reduced heat requirements, disease resistance, and yield. In Ethiopia, this species is cultivated to obtain a crop of rhizomes, which are used as food as root crops, flour is obtained from them and bread is baked, the basal parts of false trunks are used as vegetables, and fibers are extracted from the leaves. The fruits are inedible. The English scientist Chesman divided the genus Musa into 4 sections. Two of them - Callimusa and Rhodochlamys - include species of ornamental value. The section Australisirfia includes Musa textilis L. (abaca), which is important as a spinning crop, as well as Musa fehi, which is grown only on the Pacific islands. This species originated from the wild Musa macklayi, named after the famous Russian traveler N. N. Miklukho-Maklai, and is distinguished by short orange fruits. The remaining forms of the edible banana are included in the Eumusa section, which has about 10 species. Their natural range extends from the south of Hindustan and Samoa to Japan. Two species took part in the emergence of the cultivated banana - Musa balbisiana and Musa acuminata. The range of Musa acuminata covers areas of Malaysia, Myanmar, Indochina, East India (Assam). The species is diploid, the mass of fruits is 30-80 g, they contain 50-100 grains. Modern banana cultivars are triploids. Triploid varieties that originate from Musa acuminata outperform diploid varieties in plant vigor, fruit size and quality. They form seedless fruits, as they are characterized by female and male sterility. However, these varieties have a drawback - sensitivity to drought. With the advancement of Musa acuminata varieties in the western direction, they penetrated into the range of Musa balbisiana. This species is more drought-resistant and adapted to the monsoonal climate. After natural pollination of diploid varieties of Musa acuminata with Musa balbisiana pollen, hybrids arose that have two genomes of the first species and one of the second (AAB, where A is the genome of Musa acuminata, and B is Musa balbisiana). Backcrosses gave ABB triploids. Most varieties originated in India, a few in Indochina. It is believed that in ancient times a person used banana rhizomes, rich in carbohydrates, fibers from leaves, young ovaries. Ripe fruits attracted little man. In ancient times, after the selection of forms with edible (seedless) fruits, their reproduction began. These forms spread during the migration of tribes. Banana quickly became a pantropical cultivated plant. The first settlers from Asia to Africa, along with taro and dagussa, also transferred a banana. Its rhizome, strongly dried, does not lose its reproductive ability. Later, the Arabs, who penetrated deep into Africa, introduced the banana. How banana has spread in tropical Africa can be judged from the book by G. Stanley "In the wilds of Africa." During his campaign from the mouth of the Congo to Lake. Alberta Stanley's caravan lived on bananas for many days, and in the most remote places of the rainforest. from how Stanley described the banana culture among forest dwellers: “As soon as a banana plantation bears fruit, it is abandoned and the same plant is bred elsewhere ... To plant bananas, only the undergrowth is cut down and young shoots are planted in shallow pits, covering them with earth only as much as to keep in a standing position. The forest around the plantation is cut down, leaving the trees to fall at random; after six months, banana shoots grow magnificently in the shade, among protruding and rotting branches and grow to 3 m in height; in a year they already bear fruit" and further: " On almost every banana trunk the fruits hung in huge clusters of 50 to 140 pieces; some specimens of the fruit were 55 cm long, 6 cm across and almost 20 cm in circumference. Some researchers claim that the banana came to South America before Columbus. Here, in South and Central America, is the second homeland of the banana. Banana is a perennial herbaceous plant. The stem is in the soil and is a powerful rhizome (rhizome), the mass of which reaches 10 kg or more. This is where carbohydrate stores accumulate. At the apical growth point of the rhizome, the above-ground system of the plant develops. What is commonly referred to as a stem or trunk is a sheath of leaves wrapped one around the other. This false trunk, or pseudostem, can reach a height of 9 m and a diameter of 60 cm. Young leaves alternately grow through the middle of the pseudostem. The interval between the appearance of subsequent leaves is on average 6-7 days in the wet season, and 16 days in the dry season. Banana forms a powerful leaf apparatus. The leaf area of the Gros Michel variety is on average 3,5 m2, and the leaf area of the whole plant is 92 m2. The duration of the productive life of leaves depends on natural conditions. In leaves older than 6 months, the intensity of photosynthesis decreases, which is why their removal does not affect the yield. Together with the old leaves, pests and pathogens are removed. After the formation of leaves from the apical bud of the rhizome, an inflorescence is formed. It grows through the middle of the pseudostem to its top. Each "stem" individually is monocarpic and dies off after fruiting. An apical bud ("heart") initially appears on the inflorescence of a banana, under the covering scales of which flowers develop. The first flowers in the basal part of the inflorescence are functionally female. They are collected in tiers ("hands"), each of which has up to 28 flowers. The total number of "hands" ranges from 1 to 20. The record brush had 151 "hands" and 3137 fruits. Following the female flowers, bisexual flowers and functionally male flowers are formed. However, only female flowers develop into fruits - without fertilization, that is, parthenocarpic. Usually flowering occurs 6-8 months after the start of pseudostem growth. In the tropics, the duration of fruit ripening ranges from 90 to 120 days.
A mature raceme in most commercial varieties consists of several dozen fruits ("fingers") weighing 10-30 kg, sometimes up to 70 kg. After fruiting and death of the pseudostem, fruiting is replaced by new offspring from the buds of the rhizome. By the time the fruit ripens on the main stem, the offspring reach large sizes. Then they bloom, give a harvest and die off, and in the meantime new ones grow from the rhizome. Since the banana is a monocotyledonous plant, it does not have thick skeletal roots, but a large number of adventitious roots of the 1st order are formed, the same in diameter, about 1 cm. Secondary thickening of the roots does not occur. In the first months after planting, the most intensive root formation occurs from the rhizome. The bulk of the roots lie in the upper layers of the soil, up to 10 cm. In an arid climate, the roots are located deeper. The depth of the horizontal roots is 15-75 cm. The vertical roots penetrate the soil up to 1-1,5 m. The high demands of the banana on the moisture regime and soil fertility are associated with the surface placement of the roots. The wide distribution of the banana in the tropics and partly in the subtropics indicates its ability to adapt to various environmental conditions. Throughout the year, the optimum temperature is between 24 and 29 °C. The boundary of the area of industrial banana cultivation is parallel 30° in both hemispheres, although in some areas it deviates significantly in one direction or another. The average monthly temperature below 21 ° C inhibits the growth and fruiting of plants. At 35 °C, banana productivity decreases and the growth of offspring is inhibited. The banana is relatively drought tolerant, but yields high yields only in areas with sufficient moisture throughout the year. In most cases, the water regime is the main limiting factor in commercial banana cultivation. The huge leaf apparatus of the banana evaporates a large amount of water, and the superficial root system makes it completely dependent on precipitation. High air humidity is most favorable for banana, although it contributes to the development of fungal diseases. Low relative humidity leads to rapid aging of the leaves and disrupts fruit formation. Altitude has a great influence on banana culture due to changes in thermal and water regimes. Successful banana cultivation in the equatorial zone is possible up to 1500-1700 m above sea level. seas, for example, in the Nilgiri mountains (South India). Near the northern and southern tropics, this boundary drops to 500-800 m (the state of Assam, India; the southern provinces of China, Cuba). Strong winds, over 18 m/s, cause damage to the crop, turning it out of the soil and breaking the pseudostems. This is a fairly common occurrence in the Caribbean, in some areas of Southeast Asia. The banana is photophilous and produces maximum yields in good light conditions, although direct sunlight can scorch ripening fruit. Young plants thrive best in shade. The best soils for banana plantations are medium in texture, high in humus and well drained, alluvial and some volcanic. Poor drainage contributes to the development of fungal diseases, including Panamanian. Banana grows best at a pH of 5,5-5,7. The causative agent of Panama disease develops intensively on acidic soils, so the soil reaction must be regulated by liming. Prolonged flooding leads to the death of plants. Even slight salinity can adversely affect the taste and aroma of the fruit. The critical salt content is considered to be 0,03% for sandy loams, 0,05% for loams and 0,07% for heavy soils. In total, about 300 varieties of banana are described in the world, but only 70-80 varieties occupy a dominant position in the culture. Moreover, in any region, a maximum of 3-4 varieties are of leading importance. From a production and consumer point of view, all varieties are divided into 2 groups: bananas proper, which produce sweet fruits, and plantains, with starchy fruits. Plantain fruits are eaten after cooking in fried and boiled form. All commercial varieties of sweet banana are divided into vigorous and dwarf. Gros Michel is the leader in the group of vigorous varieties. This variety obviously comes from Malaysia. It is considered the standard of export varieties, and 30-35 years ago it accounted for more than 60% of all world exports. The usual plant height is 4,0-5,5 m, but on rich soils they reach 8 m. Productivity is high, large brushes (up to 30-35 kg), fruits weighing from 100 to 200 g. They have a good aroma and excellent taste. The advantage of the variety is the high transportability of fruits. Unfortunately, Gros Michel has two significant drawbacks: it is completely resistant to Panama disease, its fungus infects the conductive tissues of plants and causes their death; plantations of this variety are severely damaged by wind. The appearance of this disease in the 30s on the plantations of Central and South America was equal to a natural disaster: within a few years, thousands of hectares of plantations died. The expansion of the area of Panama disease continues at the present time both in America (Ecuador, Guatemala, Colombia) and in Africa (Cameroon, Congo basin). In Southeast Asia, Panama disease has been around for a very long time. And everywhere the appearance of this disease entails the replacement of Gros Michel with other varieties. A group of low-growing varieties appeared as a result of vegetative propagation of mutants of high-growing varieties. All of them are united by a small plant height (from 1,5 to 4,0 m) and resistance to Panama disease. Disadvantages of dwarf varieties: smaller fruit size, less compact and durable brushes, worse transportability than Gros Michel, as well as sensitivity to sigatoka (causative agent Cercospora musicola), in the fight against which repeated (up to 24 times a year) treatment of plantations with fungicides quite effective, although expensive. The most widespread varieties are: Dwarf Cavendish, Giant Cavendish, Poyo and Lakatan. These varieties are likely genetically related. Dwarf Cavendish (syn.: Dwarf Cavendish, Pygmeo, Petit Nen, Basrai, Tahiti, Governor, Binkekhel, etc.) was brought to England from South China in 1826 and grown in the greenhouses of the Duke of Cavendish, in connection with which he received the English name. The pseudostem is 1,5-2,3 m high, the raceme is large: it has 6-12 "arms" of 12-20 fruits. Fruits up to 18 cm long, with a thin skin, have good taste and aroma. Among all varieties, Dwarf Cavendish occupies a leading position in the area of cultivation. Due to its outstanding cold resistance, it has no competitors in the subtropics and, at the same time, occupies large areas in the tropics. Plantains also have a large varietal variety. In most countries, the Horn variety is grown. Its brushes consist of 1-2 "arms" of large fruits (weighing up to 500 g and up to 40 cm long). Small-fruited varieties of plantains have 6-8 "arms" in the brush with 120-150 fruits. Plantains are comparatively resistant to Panama disease and sigatoka. Banana cultivars are propagated vegetatively, mainly by offspring and parts of the rhizome. The best offspring are in the fruiting phase of the mother plant, as at this time they contain more reserve nutrients. When planting, the best results are given by pieces of rhizome weighing no more than 1,5-2,0 kg or whole rhizomes obtained by digging up old plantations. In most tropical areas, the best planting time is at the beginning of the rainy season. The planting density of dwarf varieties is usually from 1700 to 3000 plants per 1 ha, of vigorous varieties - from 400 to 1200. In banana plantations, the following soil management systems are most common: black fallow, mulching, cover crops, natural grassing. Moreover, mulching is the most desirable soil maintenance system for intensive banana cultivation. Pruning occupies an important place in banana farming - the removal of excess offspring that compete with the mother plant and adversely affect the quality of the fruit. Irrigation with intensive banana cultivation in most countries is becoming an indispensable element of agricultural technology. This is due to the presence of a dry season, as well as uneven precipitation throughout the year.
For a long time, almost no fertilizer was used on banana plantations, since they used areas of highly fertile soil from under natural vegetation. The more or less systematic application of mineral fertilizers and the study of their effectiveness began only in the 30s. Nitrogen and potassium deficiency is most often the limiting factor in tropical soil fertility. This deficiency is especially pronounced in the banana, which is characterized by high growth vigor. Getting good yields is impossible without the use of nitrogen and potash fertilizers. The life span of a banana plantation ranges from a year to 30-50 years or more. Bananas are often cultivated in crop rotation along with rice and sugarcane. Depending on local conditions, commercial banana plantations can last from 3 to 10 years. During the transportation period, it is important to observe the optimal temperature and humidity conditions in order to delay the premature ripening of fruits, as well as to avoid their freezing. The temperature during transportation of bananas should be at least 11,7 ° C for the Gros Michel variety, 11,8 ° C for Poyo and Sinensis, 11,9 ° C for Lady Figner, 12-13 ° C for Lacatan and Cavendish. At the same time, air humidity of 85-90% is maintained. When storing green bananas in the chamber, maintain a temperature of 12-14 ° C and a relative humidity of 85-90%. The room is ventilated at least twice a day for 30-40 minutes. In this mode, green bananas can be stored for 5-7 days. With slow ripening in the chamber, it is recommended to maintain a temperature of 16-17 ° C, moderate air circulation and a relative humidity of 85-90%. On the fifth day, the fruits begin to acquire a golden yellow color, from this moment, as needed, you can force or slow down ripening by raising or lowering the temperature and humidity, respectively. In this mode, bananas ripen within 7-8 days. First of all, bananas with signs of coldness are placed in the chambers for accelerated ripening, then green ones, which are to be quickly sold (in 3-4 days) in the distribution network, as well as green ones that are underdeveloped (ribbed). Accelerated ripening of bananas can be done in 2 ways: thermal and with ethylene gas. With the thermal method in the ripening chamber, the air temperature is gradually increased to 22 ° C so that the temperature of the banana pulp rises by no more than 2 ° C per hour. The chamber is poorly ventilated and air humidity is maintained up to 90%. At this level, the temperature is maintained for 24 hours, then it is reduced to 19-20 °C. In this mode, the fruits are left until the green color of the peel turns into golden yellow. With the appearance of a transitional color of the peel of the fruit, the ventilation of the chamber is increased, the relative humidity is reduced to 85%. This prevents the fruit from over-softening. When ripening bananas with ethylene and supplying gas to the chamber, fire safety rules must be strictly observed. In those concentrations in which ethylene is used to ripen bananas (1 volume of gas per 1 thousand volumes of air), it is completely harmless to humans. The temperature in the chamber is brought to 22 °C, and the relative humidity of the air is up to 95%. Green bananas in such conditions ripen evenly within 3-4 days. The freezing of bananas is the appearance of spots due to a violation of the regime during transportation, ripening and storage. It is a consequence of metabolic disorders in fruits under the influence of low temperatures and is one of the physiological diseases. The risk of fruit freezing occurs at temperatures below 11-13 °C. With a decrease in temperature, underdeveloped fruits are damaged first of all. Normally developed fruits are more resistant to low temperatures. In fruits that are very cold during ripening, the processes of converting starch into sugars are very slow. The content of tannins and acids changes little, and therefore the chilled fruits have a tart taste and a weak aroma. Green bananas with a strong chill do not ripen at all. With a weak cold, they ripen very slowly and after ripening have low taste. Green, unripe fruits can be eaten in the same way as a vegetable banana, after cooking (boiling or frying). In this case, their taste and nutritional value are close to potatoes. When the fruits ripen under conditions of sharp upward temperature changes, "tiger" spotting is formed on the peel of bananas - small, like freckles, brown spots. This is a physiological disease of the skin. With an increase in the number of spots, which is associated with overripening of the fruit, the pulp softens, the taste and presentation deteriorate. Such fruits are non-standard, and with a strong softening of the pulp, they go to waste. Authors: Baranov V.D., Ustimenko G.V.
Banana. The history of growing a plant, economic importance, cultivation, use in cooking
What do you know about banana? When this question was asked to Japanese schoolchildren, one of them wrote the following: "The banana is an extraordinary fruit! It is designed in the same architectural style as the respected sausages. The only difference is in the skin. We eat it with sausages, but it is not recommended to do this with bananas. Perhaps the following is of interest. During the meal, we hold the banana with the end up, and eat the sausage from the plate. The banana is first green, then turns yellow, and the sausage, as it was of an indefinite color, like a terrier, remains so. And finally, both ends of the sausage are connected to the neighboring ones, while the venerable banana is only attached to the stem at one end, while the other is free. But they are similar to each other in that there are no seeds or seeds inside. Well, the young Japanese cannot be denied humor, but he did not have too much information about the banana. A. Krasnov (the future professor of botany), who, in his youth, ended up on the island of Java, had even fewer of them. At first, he could not even figure out how to eat these fruits. The mealy pulp stuck to the throat. New food quickly set the teeth on edge and bothered. Experience told him that it was necessary to drink water, and subsequently he warmly recommended this method to others. Bananas then seemed to him a biscuit or ice cream. True, he did not specify what varieties he ate. Of the 300 varieties, not all are sweet. There are completely unsweetened ones, and when ripe, they are hard, like raw potatoes. They are cooked like potatoes: they bake, boil and even make flour. But fried in oil are considered especially tasty. Then they puff up like pancakes, and very much resemble them with their crispy crust. The locals are more fond of just this, unsweetened, "kitchen" banana. However, to bring the fruit of paradise to the condition (paradise - species name) is not always a simple matter. They tell of a European who, once in the tropics, started a small plantation, having learned that it was easy and cheap to grow bananas. He stuck the cuttings into the ground and after a year or two he was already admiring the huge clusters of fruits. On each trunk, as expected, flaunted one bunch in the height of a man. He harvested unripe crops when the buyers arrived, and left a little for himself to ripen on a tree (if you can call six-meter grass a tree). That will be the flavor! Well, if those imported from distant lands smell, then what kind of smell should ripe fruits have on the spot! Finally the bunch is ripe. The fruits are habitually yellowed. However, the owner did not feel the increased aroma. Then he grabbed one of the fruits and opened it. There was no aroma. Annoyed, he bit off the tip of the fruit and immediately spat it out. Instead of a melting, slightly sour pulp, an insipid mass filled the mouth, similar to mashed toothpowder. The poor fellow did not even imagine that bananas acquire aroma and taste at home when they lie down. On the tree, they quickly overripe, lose their taste and aroma. And there's nothing you can do to fix it. However, everyone has different tastes. Wild animals also use overripe ones, especially monkeys. Scientist L. Rodin once ended up in a monkey nursery in Brazil near Rio de Janeiro. The nursery was located on a small island. Previously, before the monkeys, there were banana plantations. When they brought the monkeys, they first of all ate the fruits, and then finished off the trunks. Instead, Rodin saw other shrubs and trees, inedible for monkeys. With birds it was the other way around. Ornithologists, bird specialists, have a special family of banana-eating birds. It belongs to the order of cuckoos. And that's what's great. Banana eaters eat all kinds of fruits, except ... bananas! Unless when you are very hungry ... And who and why called the cuckoos that way is not clear. Benefits greatly from bananas and livestock. For example, the tribes living on the dry and hot slopes of Kilimanjaro keep cows, but there are no good pastures there. Therefore, horned cows stand in stalls and wait for food to be brought to them. For two days the women feed them with grass that is mowed in the neighborhood. Feed fed, but not watered. It is believed for some reason that the local water for cows is unhealthy. And this is where bananas come to the rescue. The fruits, of course, the Africans eat themselves, but the log-like trunks are chopped thinly, as we chop cabbage for pickling, and give to our wards. Cows are happy to gobble up a juicy dish: after all, there is as much water in the trunks as in cucumbers - up to 95 percent. After such a meal, they do not ask to drink for two days and chew grass. And then again the third banana day. This is how a cow's life goes. They say that milk from such a diet does not spoil. Of course, not only gastronomic benefits have brought bananas to mankind. There are those that give fiber. In the Balbissian banana, the leaves replace the wrapping paper. You go to work, tear off a piece of paper and wrap your breakfast. In India, the bird's banana, two meters high, with pale purple leaves of bracts, is especially loved.
Velyutina's banana is also very beautiful in the garden. He is tiny, up to half a meter tall. The flowers are pink and the same pink fruits. They are fluffy with hairs and, when ripe, open with the same crackling sound as the beans of our yellow locust. Botanists have always wondered why bananas, known to mankind for many centuries, have become popular only since the beginning of this century? The transportation technique is to blame. To carry a precious cargo far away, you need to observe the temperature very accurately, constantly plus 12 degrees. A little lower, just one degree, and the most delicate creatures get cold. One degree above quickly overripe. Previously, there were no precision instruments on ships, so it was not possible to transport them. And further. Bananas are difficult to cook for the future. Everything is canned: apples, pears, pineapples, oranges. Everything but bananas. True, recently they have found a way to make canned food from them. At one time, bananas helped out travelers a lot. What would happen to A. Stanley's detachment in the wilds of Africa, if not for these jungle biscuits? Making their way from the mouth of the Congo River to Lake Alberta through the entire African continent, travelers lived on bananas alone. They met them in the most remote and inaccessible places. Residents bred plantations in clearings without even clearing them. Forest trash - trunks and branches only helped the cause. They shaded young seedlings from the sun. Unfortunately, north of the 36th parallel, the king of tropical fruits does not grow. Near Batumi, only a Japanese banana was approved. It even gives fruits, but they are inedible. And serves decorative purposes. Gives the area a tropical look. For this purpose, he was brought. But it turned out that it is also useful to others. This Japanese banana fixes local ravines, settling there quite independently. Author: Smirnov A.
Banana. Featured Article
Shouldn't we go, pointing at the geographical map, to the island of Jamaica, located in the Caribbean Sea, not far from the coast of Central America? It was discovered by Columbus in 1494. There are many transparent springs on the island; in the language of the locals, "Jamaica" means "island of springs" ... And if for some reason you don't like Jamaica, move your finger towards Australia and New Zealand: there, in the Pacific Ocean, you will find the Fiji Islands. On the coats of arms of both these states, you can see images of a banana. This is a wonderful plant. Especially the taste - you know. And the banana looks amazing. True, deceptive. A wonderful banana plant, reminiscent of a palm tree in its deceptive appearance, reaches 10 meters in height. Real tree! But a banana is not a palm tree and not a tree at all. Although the trunk of a five-year-old plant is more than two meters in girth. But it's not a stem. What appears to be a thick trunk has a precise scientific name: a false trunk. Leaves extending from the banana rhizome tightly fit each other, making up what seems to be a green trunk. Then, rising higher and higher in an embrace, they end at the top with a lush crown. There are leaves in this magnificent decoration four meters long and almost a meter wide. At first glance, they seem cut, feathery - consisting of narrow long light green stripes. This impression is also misleading. Whole banana leaves. Just the wind and torrential tropical rains tear them apart. Why did nature treat the banana so cruelly, giving its poor leaves to be torn to pieces by the elements; why not make the leaves stronger? However, nature, as always, acted extremely wisely. If banana leaves were stronger, they would act as sails, and gusts of wind would uproot the wonderful plant from the ground. And if they had not been torn out - so strong tropical showers would have broken off all the banana leaves, accumulating a huge amount of water on it. And from the torn patchwork leaves, moisture flows freely through the cracks, and the banana grows beautifully. After the period of tropical rains comes the time of tropical heat. And here the torn leaves again bring benefits to the banana: the plant suffers less from the heat, the foliage, as it were, is ventilated. It is in the middle latitudes that most plants reach for the sun, and in the tropics, in a hot climate, they, on the contrary, look for coolness. So nature has taken good care of the banana, which from a botanical point of view is just a herb. But wonderful grass: the tallest in the world! Huge bunches of fruits hang from the lush crown of this grass in a beautiful arc. In some bunches there are up to 180 bananas, and then the weight of the brush reaches 45 kilograms! In general, a banana is one of the most fruitful plants in the world. If you plant potatoes, wheat and bananas on the same area, it turns out that a banana is three and a half times more productive than potatoes and fifteen times more profitable than wheat. True, after fruiting, the banana plant dies, but very quickly new side shoots grow from the root, and the banana lives again. Due to this fertility and ease of cultivation, bananas are still a staple food in many parts of Africa and Asia. They are not only eaten fresh, picked from a tree, but they are also made into flour, and a kind of bread is baked from this flour. Banana leaves - young, not so huge and not yet torn - are used by the natives as plates. A person from the outside can not immediately appreciate the taste of a banana. The troops of Alexander the Great met with bananas in 327 BC, during the Indian campaign. But the great commander considered bananas harmful and forbade his soldiers to eat them. Not far from Alexander the Great, the great Russian writer Ivan Alexandrovich Goncharov also left. In 1852-1855, he, who was the secretary of Rear Admiral Evfimy Vasilyevich Putyatin, made a round-the-world expedition with him on the military frigate Pallada. Goncharov described his impressions of this journey in essays that were very popular with readers. Recalling the landing on the island of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean, 550 kilometers from the coast of Africa, the writer cited an episode that happened to him at the entrance to a small shop. “On the doors hung a bunch of some unfamiliar fruits, which looked like medium-sized cucumbers. The skin, like on beans, is green on others, yellow on others. - What it is? I asked. Bananas, they say. - Bananas! Tropical fruit! Come on, come on here to me! They gave me the whole bunch. I tore off one and peeled it off - the skin peels off almost at the touch; I tried it - I didn’t like it: insipid, somewhat sweet, but sluggish and sugary, the taste is powdery, it looks a bit like potatoes and melon, but not as sweet as melon. It is more of a vegetable than a fruit, and between fruits it is parvenu." Parvenu, parvenu - in French "upstart". The great writer was not very flattering about the banana. But his impression, like many things related to the banana, turned out to be deceptive. We already know what a delicious banana is. We are banana eaters. By the way, small brightly and beautifully colored birds with that name live in the forests of tropical Africa. "The name, - says the encyclopedia, - is not true: banana-eaters do not eat bananas." Oh, that deceptive banana! Author: Gol N.
Banana, Musa. Recipes for use in traditional medicine and cosmetology
Ethnoscience:
Cosmetology:
Attention! Before use, consult with a specialist!
Banana, Musa. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing
Growing bananas can be challenging, but if the right conditions are created, it can lead to a bountiful harvest. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing a banana: Cultivation:
Preparation and storage:
It is important to remember that growing bananas can be difficult and requires constant care and maintenance of the right conditions. However, if you follow all the necessary steps, the result will be very tasty and nutritious.
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