How bananas grow for children. Beneficial properties of banana. Useful and healing properties
Dwarf forms of the banana tree plant can be grown at home. True, in this case you will have to allocate a fairly large tub for the culture, because even a short pawpaw can grow up to one and a half meters.
What does a pawpaw banana tree look like: photo and description
Banana tree (pawpaw) is a genus of dicotyledonous flowering plants belonging to the Annonaceae family. A deciduous tree, reaching several meters in favorable conditions (at home, about 12 meters). Easily forms into a dwarf form. This is a very ornamental plant with a wide pyramidal crown and beautiful smooth bark. The leaves of the banana tree are quite large (up to 30 cm in length and 10 cm in width). The large drooping leaves of the pawpaw are damaged in strong winds, which must be taken into account if you grow it on the balcony or in the garden.
Banana is a tree-like perennial shrub that can reach a height of several meters. The pseudo-trunk is formed by leaf vesicles of leaves sometimes meters long. Banana leaves are not feathery, but are often torn by the wind. The banana plant genus is found in both the tropics and temperate zones, where they produce more or less large yellow banana fruits depending on the species.
Banana plants are a genus of the banana plant family within the monocots. There are about 100 species in this genus. The banana is the fruit of the mostly sterile banana plant, which is native or grown in almost all parts of the tropics.
Look at the photo what the flowers of a banana tree look like - they are red-violet, monoecious, large (up to 4 cm in diameter):
The calyx consists of three leaves, the corolla - of six petals. Blooms in spring before the leaves unfurl. Flowering is long (about three weeks). This is a cross-pollinated plant. When growing a banana tree at home, artificial pollination with a soft brush or cotton wool is necessary.
IN last years The banana predominates, especially in Central Europe, as an increasingly common houseplant. There are also varieties with edible fruit, including the dwarf 'Cavendish', which sometimes reaches only one meter. The banana tree grows very quickly and produces about one leaf per week - this should be taken into account when choosing a location. If, for example, it is fruitful in a conservatory, it should have a large enough pot and sufficient space up and to the side - the leaves should not touch ceilings or walls.
Care and planting of free-range bananas
The formation of fruits should be expected in these conditions after 5-6 years. It should be noted that the mother plant dies after the fruiting phase, but produces side shoots earlier. Currently, these are the winteriest types of bananas. In recent years it has become an increasingly popular garden plant in Central Europe. The Musa Bajo "Saporo" variety is also thriving. But they are still frostier than the previous variety. Then you plant a young banana tree. In mild winters, parts of the false trunks can survive and move out again using the telescopic principle.
The plant is native to the southern regions of the United States. Currently common in Spain, France and Italy, it was brought to Russia in the last century. The plant is very frost-resistant and can even tolerate harsh winters with frosts (up to -29°). Flower buds tolerate spring frosts completely freely.
As you can see in the photo, the fruits of the banana tree reach 12 cm in length and 5 cm in diameter, they are collected in fruit clusters of eight or more pieces:
The fruits of the variety are also propagated in Central Europe, but they no longer ripen due to the growing season being too short and are inedible. Enough hardy fruit bananas do not yet exist. Bjorn Pawlak and Felicia Chacon Diaz. Bananas come in many shapes and colors - some of the edible ones are sweet and have soft flesh, while others are so heavy that you need to cook them before eating them. Bananas are valuable energy providers - which is why they are so popular among athletes.
The origin of this fruit is suspected to be South-East Asia, from there they first arrived in Africa and then in America. Many people in Europe believe that bananas are just the sweet and yellow fruit found in every supermarket. There are banana species that are staples in other countries, especially tropical regions, but can only be found in specialty stores.
Under the thin skin of the banana tree fruit there is pulp rich in fructose and sucrose with a very sweet taste and a delicate pineapple-strawberry aroma. The fruits contain all the essential microelements for humans, which are found in tropical and. The flesh of the fruit is whitish-yellow and has a consistency similar to butter. With proper agricultural technology, the yield of this crop is high.
In principle, a distinction is made between the popular sweet bananas from “seedlings”, which are not suitable for consumption in their raw state. Plantain bananas, which have potency and bite resistance similar to potato starch, can be consumed at ripeness as well as at the immature stage after proper preparation. Bastans have a significantly lower water content compared to sweet bananas.
Both types of bananas have been proven to be used as food by people as early as the seventh century BC. According to ancient legend from what is now Myanmar, birds deceived people - one of the first known names for banana meant "the birds said it."
The fruit is covered with a thin green peel, which later turns yellowish. Inside the fruit there is a sweet light pulp, which has a peculiar strawberry-pineapple aroma. The taste is reminiscent of both banana and mango. The fruits of the plant are collected in inflorescences, each of which can contain up to 9 pieces at a time.
The original banana looked a little different than most common types today—the large black seeds surrounded by pulp have disappeared from most currently cultivated banana plants, likely as a result of cross-species crossover. Banana fruits do not grow on trees, but on so-called "perennials" - they are continuous leaves that are so close together that they look like a chest. A banana tree bears fruit only once, then it dies. Depending on the variety, it grows up to six meters.
How are bananas planted?
Although the perennials of both banana species look like palms, the term "palm" is a misnomer. The banana plant is green all year round and thrives only in tropical climates - plenty of sunshine, an average temperature of at least 27 degrees Celsius and sufficient rainfall. The soil should not be too strong to allow rainwater to drain away. Also, it needs enough shade otherwise the fruit will be damaged.
Pay attention to the photo - pawpaw fruits are somewhat similar in shape to bananas:
Similarities can also be found in the composition of these plants, the main riches of which are pectin, ascorbic acid and microelements such as potassium, calcium, magnesium and iron. Each of the fruits is high in nutrients. The fruits are consumed freshly picked; they are also used to make jam, marmalade, and marmalade.
It takes about two years for a banana plant to grow, after which the plant dies. New plants do not emerge from the seed, but from the “seedlings” of the mother plant separately, and then shoot their roots into the ground. At about eight months of age, a single “inflorescence” grows at the top of the plant, from which emerge red colored female flowers. Later, bananas and one male flower grow between the flowers, protected by brownish leaves - the weight of the fruit gradually turns the inflorescence down. Each of about 20 bananas grows a finger, side by side, one speaks of the "fingers" of a "banana hand."
In mid-autumn, the leaves turn yellow and fall off, and new leaves grow in late spring, after flowering. Single flowers appear in the leaf axils of previous years, in March-May. Each flower contains several pistils, which explains the ability of one flower to form about 9 fruits. The flowers are bisexual, but not self-pollinating, so cross-pollination is necessary for fruiting (for this you need to have two trees). Pollination is complete when its pollen is brownish and loose and the tips of its pistils are glossy green and sticky. The fruits ripen within 4 weeks - they contain 10-14 large brown-black seeds, arranged in two rows.
It may have been more than two years before the fruits themselves, which botanically belong to the berry family, grew to full size. One banana tree contains ten to 20 banana arms, so on average there are about 300 fruits combined weighing between 35 and 50 kilograms. Typically, the color of the predominantly crooked fruit is green, which turns to yellow with increasing ripeness, but there are also red and blue colored fruits. When the fruits ripen, the mother plant dies - without human intervention, the seedling that roots next to the mother plant survives in its place.
Fruits are the most valuable food product. In addition to its nutritional and medicinal properties, fruits contribute to the production of endorphin - the “hormone of joy”.
Different parts of the plant have specific medicinal properties. The seeds contain the alkaloid aziminine, which is used for poisoning as an effective emetic that helps remove toxins from the body. A decoction of young leaves is a good substitute for diuretics, and freshly squeezed juice has a noticeable anthelmintic effect. Fruit extract strengthens the immune system.
What does historiography know about the banana?
The first bananas grew in the area where today's countries are Malaysia and Thailand, therefore in Southeast Asia. Later the fruits arrived in India, evidence of which can be found in the so-called “Pali books”. "Pali" itself, meaning "text", was an Indian written language - Buddhist original texts dealing with religious and philosophical matters were written in Pali. Buddhism consists of many traditions, ideas and practices that go back to the religion's founder, Siddhartha Gautama, who was the "Buddha" in the first century BC.
Thanks to the beautiful large leaves and flowers, the plant is very decorative. In a container it grows well below its natural height.
The scientific name of the genus comes from "assimin", the Indian name for this plant. Also, according to the description, the pawpaw fruits are similar to papaya, which is why it is often called “American papaw”.
When the Macedonian king Alexander the Great campaigned across Asia with his Greek army, he and his associates probably tasted banana for the first time in 327 BC. In subsequent years, the fruit also gained some fame in Europe - mentioned, for example, in the texts of the ancient Greek writer Megasthenes and Theophrastus and in the works of the Roman writer Pliny the Elder.
Traders take banana from east to west
The banana then found a wider distribution in the Mediterranean several centuries later in the context of the spread of Islam in the seventh century AD. Arab traders also brought the plant to African island Madagascar, where, as on the African mainland, there were excellent climatic conditions for targeted cultivation.
It was introduced into cultivation a little over 100 years ago, and therefore there are few varieties of it. In total, about 60 of them are known, the fruits of which differ in terms of ripening, fruit size, and seed size. Selection is carried out not only in its homeland in the USA, but also in our country. At home, banana trees are grown only in dwarf form.
Growing and caring for a pawpaw banana tree in open ground
Grafted plants begin to bear fruit much earlier than seedlings—in the second or third year. Grafting is practically the only way to propagate varietal plants.
The banana spread throughout the African continent. This led to gene mutations that made the banana increasingly similar to the species we know today. The Asian urbanan had black kernels in bright flesh, which slowly disappeared in the African variety.
To further spread bananas, Portuguese traders contributed to banana production in Canary Islands off the coast of West Africa. The Portuguese and Spanish also took the banana to the "New World" of America within a century, and here on the equatorial continent and Caribbean Islands, were almost ideal conditions for growing fruits.
When growing pawpaw in open ground, do not forget that this plant is light-loving, but in the first two years of life it requires light shading from direct sun. Mature plants prefer full sunlight.
Economic importance of banana today
In North America, fruit was cheap for a century and became a popular food. Large banana plantations have become a profitable business, but the local population has little benefit from it. 
Africa, Central America and the Caribbean are the largest consumers and largest producers of bananas today. Although sweet "dessert bananas" are so popular in Europe, a significant amount of cooking bananas are produced worldwide - the ratio is around 80-20 percent.
It develops slowly, but with increasing daylight hours (up to 16 hours), the growth rate increases: in three months a young tree can grow up to 1.5 meters in height.
You need to water regularly from spring to autumn, constantly keeping the soil moist; however, stagnation of water should be avoided.
Some countries such as Brazil, China, India and Thailand mainly produce bananas for their own needs. Half of bananas grow on African soil, but even here most of fruit produced meets the needs of the local population. Other major banana exporters are Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica and Panama, as well as the Philippines and Taiwan. The largest banana exporter is Ecuador, where a quarter of all workers are directly or indirectly involved in growing and exporting bananas - conditions for plantation workers, as elsewhere, are largely disastrous.
The plant has fleshy, brittle roots, so it is not replanted, but rather transshipped. This is done in the spring, when the plant begins to grow. A deep pot is required for good growth as the tree develops a large root system.
The soil should be light, fertile and slightly acidic (pH 5-7).
During active growth when caring for a banana tree, the plants are fed according to the following scheme (let’s take June as an example, but this must be done every month): June 1 and 15 - manure; June 8 - water-soluble fertilizer "Kemira-lux"; June 20 - ash from straw or potato tops (spread 1 tsp of ash over the surface of the soil and water); June 25 - pond sludge (150-200 g per liter of water).
Which banana plants are good for
Today the market leaders are called "Dole", "Chiquita" and "Del Monte". Living conditions local residents made it possible to recruit masses of cheap labor for the plantations. The protests among the population did not stop. 
Only rice and cereals are even more important than bananas in meeting the world's nutritional needs - especially in the poorer countries of the so-called "third world", seedlings are the main source of vitamins, fiber, sugar and minerals due to their reasonably affordable price.
In winter, the plant enters a period of deep dormancy, during which it requires at least two weeks of cold and 160 days of cool maintenance.
Flowers and fruits are formed on last year's shoots, so adult plants are pruned annually for replacement. Also, before growth begins, the tree is sanitary pruned.
Absolutely resistant to a wide variety of damage from diseases or pests. It is useful to water the plant with a weak solution of potassium permanganate 2-3 times per season as a preventive measure.
Growing pawpaw banana tree from seeds
Propagated by seeds and grafting. For good germination, seeds must undergo stratification at a temperature of 0°-4° C for 90-120 days. Seeds germinate within 7 weeks; when planted in the ground in late autumn, you can expect shoots in July next year. Young shoots have a sensitive root system, so it is not recommended to replant them.
When growing pawpaws from seeds, plants usually begin to bloom and bear fruit after 4-8 years, which depends on the quality of the seeds, variety and growing conditions. A grafted tree can begin to bloom in 2-3 years. It is easily grafted by any methods, like other deciduous shrub and tree crops.
Since the plant is tropical, it is better to stratify the seeds in a temperature range from +5 to +7 degrees. Stratification is the process of keeping the seeds of a particular plant at a certain temperature so that they germinate faster; in addition, such manipulation allows you to increase germination.
Before planting, the seeds should be soaked in water for five days. At the same time, the water is changed daily. After five days, the seeds are planted in the ground to a depth of about three centimeters. The first shoots should appear a month after planting. Seedlings grown in this way should not be disturbed or replanted, since the plant has a very delicate root system that is easily injured. Thus, it is better for a tropical tree to immediately determine its “permanent residence” on the site.
Care is not difficult. The main thing is sufficient watering, since the plant is moisture-loving. As for feeding, it is not needed at all in the first year of life. Then nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizers should be applied to the soil. In addition, you need to loosen the root zone, but under no circumstances dig it up, so as not to damage the root system.
Varieties of pawpaw banana tree: three-lobed, triloba and others
Today there are about six dozen varieties of pawpaw. Almost all of them were bred in countries such as Canada and the USA, which, however, is not at all surprising, because it was North America is the historical homeland of this exotic plant for us. Almost all varieties that are currently grown in Russia are of North American origin.
Davis– the fruits of this variety are quite High Quality; They have a pleasant yellow flesh and a sweet taste.
Martin– a distinctive feature of this variety is its high cold resistance.
Pawpaw three-lobed- deciduous tree. This is the most winter-hardy species from the Annonaceae family. The pawpaw banana tree is the only fruit plant in the temperate zone, distributed to the Great Lakes, and therefore is of greatest interest for cultivation in our country.
Overlease– this variety has characteristics similar to the Davis variety.
Dessert pawpaw– the plant is medium-sized, its fruits are mid-ripening, weighing up to 270 grams. The pulp of the fruit is up to 95% yellow in color and has a very pleasant mild taste.
Domestic variety "Sochinskaya 11"– the plant is vigorous, the fruits are early ripening. The fruits of this variety are large in size; their weight can reach 350 grams. The pulp of the fruit is yellow-orange. Its taste is extremely pleasant.
Pawpaw triloba from the anon family - rare plant. The pawpaw banana tree is native to the southern and East Coast U.S.A. This deciduous tree with an unusually beautiful bark and a pyramidal, rather wide crown, with large leaves up to 30 cm long, can withstand severe frosts of 30 degrees. Flower buds are covered with a thin protective shell, which protects them from the harmful effects of spring frosts. The tree blooms with large, hanging bells, up to 3–4 cm in diameter. The flowers are colored reddish or purple. Flowering begins even before the leaves bloom and lasts about three weeks.
The tree should be planted in a place protected from strong winds. The tree trunk circle is sown with lawn grass. During the spring months, feed with a handful of urea. In summer, do not forget to apply any combined fertilizer several times. Wrapping the trunk with a sugar bag or a piece of polypropylene will help to avoid overheating of the root collar in the spring. For the winter, the tree is covered with spunbond and agrofibre.
How to grow a banana tree at home: caring for a dwarf pawpaw at home
Dwarf pawpaw– very short, 20-30 cm. Distributed from central Florida to southeastern Georgia. It blooms from April to June with burgundy flowers 2 cm in diameter and fruits 3-4 cm long.
Dwarf varieties are intended for growing at home - they are less demanding on conditions and resistant to disease. The domestic banana tree reaches a small height of up to 1.5 m.
For planting, choose small pots, about 10 cm in diameter. You can use long flower boxes for several seeds, keeping a distance of about 15 cm between them. Before growing a banana tree at home, prepare a 4:1 mixture of river sand and peat, no need to use any fertilizing, ensure good drainage. Distribute the seeds on the surface of the moistened substrate and press them down a lot, without pouring them on top, leaving access for light.
Cover the pots with seeds with film and place them in a bright place, but without direct sunlight. Every few days, ventilate the pots, and if they dry out, spray the substrate with a spray bottle. When caring for a banana tree at home, do not allow the soil to become waterlogged or rot. When mold appears, the affected area of the substrate must be removed and the entire surface treated with a solution of potassium permanganate.
When grown at home, seedlings will appear in about 2-3 months. After the sprouts appear, rapid growth of the plant will begin; after about a week, the seedlings must be transplanted into the ground.
In comfortable conditions and with careful care it grows quickly. When 15-18 leaves are formed at home, it usually begins to bloom and bear fruit.
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People who believe that bananas growing on a tree, in fact this is far from the case.
In reality, the banana tree does not exist. It turns out that bananas actually grow on a banana plant and therefore this plant is a huge herb. And bananas are her berries.
However, this definition is not always correct: for example, sage, thyme and rosemary have a stem of the woody type (although not shrouded in real bark).
According to the definition, a grass is “a plant with a fleshy but not woody stem, which, after the plant flowers and produces seeds, dies down to the ground.”
It turns out that after flowering, the part of the grass located above the ground dies. In relation to the banana, we are faced with a very extraordinary effect. After one stem dies, another begins to grow a little behind the root. Therefore, after a few years the plant seems to “walk” about a meter.
Malaysia is considered the birthplace of the banana, where it has been grown for about 10,000 years. Wild bananas, which are native to Southeast Asia, bear large, hard seeds and very little pulp. Wild bananas are pollinated by bats.
The bananas from your store are a cultivated variety that were chosen by planters for their fleshy flesh. They also lack seeds. The cultivation of the banana produced a sweet, tasty plant, but a sterile one: such a banana cannot reproduce without human help.
The vast majority of banana plants have not had “sexual intercourse” for 10 thousand years. Almost every banana that we eat with great appetite is propagated by hand: from the shoot of an already existing plant, whose genetic pool has not been updated for 100 centuries. As a result, the banana has become extremely susceptible to various types of diseases. Many banana species have already fallen victim to fungal infections such as black sigatoka and Panama disease, which are very resistant to fungicides. There is a danger that if a genetically transformed variety is not developed soon, we may forget about bananas forever.
This problem is very serious. Bananas are the world's highest-grossing export crop.. The industry's turnover is $12 billion a year and employs 400 million people, the vast majority of whom live below the poverty line.
Almost all bananas come from hot countries, however, contrary to the misconception that bananas do not grow in Europe, Iceland is the largest European banana producer. Icelanders grow bananas in spacious greenhouses heated by geothermal waters, just two degrees south of the Arctic Circle.
Fyffe's, an international importing company that purchases Belize's entire banana harvest each year, is Irish-based.