Practical
Plants

Musa acuminata

Dwarf Banana

a perennial member of the Musa genus in the family Musaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Family
Musaceae
Genus
Musa
Life cycle
perennial
Height
3 m
Flower type
hermaphrodite

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Fruit - raw or dried for later use[2]. Sweet[5][1]. The fruit is up to 12cm long and 2.5cm wide[3].

Plant part
Fruit

Environment

Range
E. Asia - Southern China, India, Malaysia and the Phillipines.
Habitat
Shaded and moist ravines, marshlands, semi-marshlands and slopes from near sea level to 1200 metres[4].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 9+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow the large seed in individual pots in the spring in a warm greenhouse at about 20°c[3]. Grow the seedlings on in a rich soil, giving occasional liquid feeds. Keep the plants in the greenhouse for at least three years before trying them outdoors. Division of suckers in late spring. Dig up the suckers with care, trying to cause the least disturbance to the main plant. Pot them up and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse until they are well established.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Requires a sunny sheltered position in a well-drained fertile soil with a pH between 6 and 7.5[3]. This species is able to tolerate light frosts, but it requires a very sheltered position[1]. Another report says that it requires a minimum winter temperature of 10°c and no lower than 18°c when the fruit is ripening[3]. Wild plants are diploid (2n = 22) and bear fruits containing numerous seeds making them inedible. Cultivated plants are triploid (2n = 33) and bear seedless, edible fruits; such plants have been called M. acuminata 'Dwarf Cavendish' (M. cavendishii Lambert ex Paxton; M. chinensis Sweet; M. nana Loureiro)[4].

References

  1. Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  2. Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984-00-00 ISBN 3874292169

    ↩

  3. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  4. Flora of China 1994-00-00 http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/

    ↩1↩2

  5. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩

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