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Wednesday, February 16, 2011

We're Going Bananas

This is the first year that our little banana tree has produced any fruit. The trees have been in about 2 years, now. Of course, we have been informed that the trees will probably not produce much in the way of edible fruit. The bananas will be very small and little "meat". Still, watching the progress of their growth is very interesting. I have eaten bananas for years, but never actually saw a single one grow.

The tree starts producing a central stalk and a large purple bud is produced. Little by little, each of the "leaves" of the bud is shed and a "hand" (group of bananas) is revealed. A new hand may appear each day. You can see how rapidly the growth occurs.

After several fruitfull "hands", the stalk will produce some infertile groups and the stalk can then be cut off. Whether or not anything is edible, it has been most instructive to watch. I wonder just how many other foods I have eaten, whose source is a mystery. Just goes to show how far most of us are from the actual food chain.....

3 comments:

Alfonso said...

That was very interesting. I didn't know all that stuff about bananas xD And I didn't know that they could grow here, in Uruguay. I thought that it only grew in tropical weathers, like the jungle and stuff. Well, you know what they say: you can learn something everyday, right? xD

Phil said...

This is fascinating. I do so very much enjoy reading your blog! Thanks for all the great and interesting info.

Anonymous said...

Very nice Wally. Please let us know how large the bananas eventually get and most importantly, how they taste!