HERE - Tropical Fruit Society of Sarasota

Bananas Bananas 101 •  Banana plant is an herb not a tree •  Bananas do not need any pollina3on •  Bananas are easy to grow – sun, water, food •  Around 1000 varie3es of edible bananas Growing Bananas in Florida Bananas a>er a freeze Recovery 6 Months Later Bananas in Ecuador •  The Maqueno Mul3-­‐Use Plant Flowers/nectar source Flowers Landscaping Diamond Landscaping – Palm Beach, FL Fiber and Leaves •  Fibers are used to make furniture and baskets. •  Leaves were used in Ecuador as plates and for wrapping up food for cooking. Fruit Using Fruit Best Cultural Prac3ces •  Sun – full or at least ½ day sun. Min. 50% Variegated varie3es prefer more shade. •  Soil – rich, well drained with lots of organic maUer. Thick layer of mulch spread as far as possible. Banana roots tend to stay near the surface and can travel 10s of feet. •  Water –more water in warm months, but never standing water Nutrients •  Fer-lizer – Lots of organic material. Can add small amounts of ash or biochar. If not growing organically, use high potassium fer3lizer 4-­‐6 3mes during growing season. Nutri3onal sprays •  Bananas remove 10 3mes more potassium from the soil at harvest compared to mangos. •  Even without care, you should s3ll have fruit. Greater care when the plant is young, will lead to increased fruit yield. Grove Maintenance •  If leaf is brown or diseased, cut it off. •  Cut down plants a>er they fruit Removing Rot Fungus •  Remove leaves at first sign of fungus and throw away – do not use as mulch Other pests/diseases • 
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Corm borers/weevils Nematodes Panama Disease Moko Disease Viruses (Banana Leaf Streak Virus:mealy bugs, Cucumber Mosaic Virus: aphids) When will it fruit? •  Pseudostem width •  Plant Height •  Flag Leaf Flower Structure/Fruit Female flower with ovaries Maturing hands of female ovaries with remnants of perianth at 3ps Hermaphrodi3c flowers Sterile Male Flowers Terminal male bud Composed of bracts Bunch or raceme Removing male flower Male Flowers Props Prop or leave on ground? Harves3ng Fruit Propaga3on •  Removal of Pups •  Tissue Culture Sword shoots vs Water shoots Propaga3ng by removal of pups •  Leave one sword shoot every 3-­‐6 months for con3nued produc3on of the banana mat •  Remove sword shoots by cueng as close to the mother plant as possible, then dig down on one side of the shoot and pop the new plant out. •  Pups with few or no roots will rot if poUed up and over watered. Watch for signs of rot and remove and adjust watering as needed. Tools Don’t Spread Pests or Disease! •  Do not import bananas from Hawaii or from other countries •  Clean corms •  Grow new pups in pots •  Sterilize tools!! Tissue Culture Taxonomy/Grouping Musa acuminata Sweet (wild, diploid, seeded, fer3le) AA Musa acuminata Edible diploid AA Musa balbisiana Starchy (wild, diploid seeded, fer3le) BB Musa acuminata x balbisiana (edible, diploid AB) (edible triploids AAB and ABB) Musa acuminata Edible triploid AAA Tetraploids – mostly developed by breeders AAAA, AAAB, AABB, ABBB Taxonomic Scorecard for Banana Characteris3cs (great for knowing iden3fying characteris3cs to help ID unknown banana cul3vars) hUp://www.promusa.org/Nomenclature+of+cul3vated+bananas FHIA1 – Goldfinger AAAB/hybrid • Some newer 3ssue cultured plants being sold as Goldfinger in our area do not have the same characteris3cs. • Fruits around 11’ high • Has large, heart shaped terminal male bud • Reported not to turn brown when cut USDA-­‐ARS -­‐ TARS FHIA2 – Mona Lisa AAAA/hybrid • Dessert Banana • Manageable frui3ng height • Resistant to fungus • Can be slower to fruit USDA-­‐ARS -­‐ TARS FHIA3 – Sweetheart AAAB/hybrid • Perfect all around banana for ea3ng out of hand or cooking • Manageable frui3ng height • Great disease resistance • Quick to fruit and thrives in our area Raja Puri ABB/Pome • Short, wind resistant, prolific, nice landscaping • Poor resistance to fungus • Some 3ssue cultured plants being sold as Raja Puri in our area are not Raja Puri • Very tasty and produc3ve banana Mysore AAB/Mysore • Fruits around 12’ • Many carry the banana leaf streak virus which is carried in the DNA and can be present even in 3ssue cultured plants Ice Cream – Blue Java ABB/Ney Mannan • Blue/Grey fruit before ripe • Best when eaten just as they turn yellow • Fruits around 12’ • White, fluffy texture Namwa ABB/Pisang Awak • O>en sold as Ice Cream • Great tas3ng, small banana • Plants can be tall, even from plants purchased as dwarf namwa • Very prolific Pitogo ABB •  Round, bite size •  Needs more nutrients •  Slow to fruit •  Fruits around 10’ Dwarf Red AAA/Red • Can take 24 months to fruit • Fruits around 7-­‐8’ • Great dessert banana • Pups and 3ssue cultures can sport with green fruit Red Kru • Beau3ful red psuedostem • Can be challenging to grow • Can be cold sensi3ve • Well drained soil to start pups • Fruits around 12’ Ele Ele AAB/Maoli • Hawaiian Banana • Pseudostem black color increases with shade • Fruits around 12’ • Delicious bananas cooked or eaten out of hand when very ripe Hua Moa AAB/Maoli-­‐Popoulu • Needs more nutrients • Delicious cooked • Suscep3ble to borers and fungus • Fruits around 12’ Praying Hands ABB/Saba • Fruits around 12’ • Great tas3ng – some report hints of vanilla flavor Saba ABB/Saba •  The Sequoia of bananas •  Great tas3ng plantain •  Can be eaten out of hand when ripe •  Fruits around 15-­‐20’ Chris Knight Dwarf Orinoco ABB/Bluggoe • 
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Very produc3ve Bananas can be cooked green or yellow Bananas can be eaten out of hand when ripe Large, dark green leaves Dwarf plant Variegated Bananas •  Ae’Ae (Manini) •  Variegated Namwa •  Require more shade and added acidity •  Pups can some3mes be all green or all white True Plantains AAB – French, French Horn, False Horn, & Horn Plantains •  For Cooking •  Very Disease Resistant French Red Plantain (USDA-­‐ARS -­‐ TARS) Rhino Horn Plantain (USDA-­‐ARS -­‐TARS) ProMusa Honduran Founda3on for Agricultural Research Haifa – Nutri3onal Deficiency Info Banana Forum Catalog of Musa Accessions