what is banana

The banana is grown in the tropics, and, though it is most widely consumed in those regions, it is valued worldwide for its flavour, nutritional value, and availability throughout the year. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. [64], Panama disease is caused by a fusarium soil fungus (Race 1), which enters the plants through the roots and travels with water into the trunk and leaves, producing gels and gums that cut off the flow of water and nutrients, causing the plant to wilt, and exposing the rest of the plant to lethal amounts of sunlight. The edges of the sheath meet when it is first produced, making it tubular. Although, commercially grown bananas are mostly sterile, making the seeds appear as just small, black specks in the fruit. On the other hand, yellow bananas taste sweeter due to higher sugar concentrations. In regions such as North America and Europe, Musa fruits offered for sale can be divided into "bananas" and "plantains", based on their intended use as food. A banana is the common name for a type of fruit and also the name for the herbaceous plants that grow it. Banana, fruit of the genus Musa, of the family Musaceae, one of the most important fruit crops of the world. [37] Linnaeus made the same distinction between plantains and bananas when first naming two "species" of Musa. [147] Racist taunts are an ongoing problem in football. [39] The cooking bananas of East Africa belong to a different group, the East African Highland bananas,[13] so would not qualify as "true" plantains on this definition. [69], In global commerce in 2009, by far the most important cultivars belonged to the triploid AAA group of Musa acuminata, commonly referred to as Cavendish group bananas. Cooking varieties, or plantains, are starchy rather than sweet and are grown extensively as a staple food source in tropical regions; they are cooked when ripe or immature. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Banana plants growing on a plantation. The elongated, edible fruit of these plants, having a thick yellowish to reddish skin and whitish, pulpy flesh. Numerous phytoliths of bananas have been recovered from the Kuk Swamp archaeological site and dated to around 10,000 to 6,500 BP. Both fruit-bearing and fibrous varieties of the banana plant have been used. This technology allows storage and transport for 3–4 weeks at 13 °C (55 °F). banana definition: 1. a long, curved fruit with a yellow skin and soft, sweet, white flesh inside: 2. a long, curved…. [75], A 2008 study reported that ripe bananas fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light. [11] Cultivated banana plants vary in height depending on the variety and growing conditions. [38] Southeast Asian languages do not make the distinction between "bananas" and "plantains" that is made in English (and Spanish). These plants belong to the genus Musa. Banana, fruit of the genus Musa, of the family Musaceae, one of the most important fruit crops of the world. The banana is a perennial plant that replaces itself. But this is still putative, as they may have come from local wild Musa species used for fiber or as ornamentals, not food. A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa. [89], Bananas and plantains constitute a major staple food crop for millions of people in developing countries. [21], As with all living things on earth, potassium-containing bananas emit radioactivity at very low levels occurring naturally from potassium-40 (40K or K-40),[22] which is one of several isotopes of potassium. The popular Cavendish, for example, is referred to as AAA ‘Dwarf Cavendish,’ where “AAA” signifies its triploidy (three sets of chromosomes) as well as its derivation from M. acuminata. Plantains are used in various stews and curries or cooked, baked or mashed in much the same way as potatoes, such as the pazham pachadi dish prepared in Kerala. [3] This can extend to other members of the genus Musa, such as the scarlet banana (Musa coccinea), the pink banana (Musa velutina), and the Fe'i bananas. They are often used as ecologically friendly disposable food containers or as "plates" in South Asia and several Southeast Asian countries. This treatment has been shown to more than double lifespans up to 3–4 weeks without the need for refrigeration. The nutrients found in green bananas can help optimize the metabolism by providing a stable, complex carbohydrate base for energy. • Place fruit in a hot pan with melted butter to cook or warm the fruit through to provide colour and intensify the flavour. The ovary is inferior, meaning that the tiny petals and other flower parts appear at the tip of the ovary.[18]. [10] The leaves of banana plants are composed of a "stalk" (petiole) and a blade (lamina). A 100-gram reference serving supplies 89 Calories, 31% of the US recommended Daily Value (DV) of vitamin B6, and moderate amounts of vitamin C, manganese and dietary fiber, with no other micronutrients in significant content (see table). Its use became common around the early twenty-first century, and has continued to remain in … As with artichokes, both the fleshy part of the bracts and the heart are edible.[123]. ", "The earliest modern plantations originated in Jamaica and the related Western", "Banana History – The history of bananas as food", "Nana from heaven? There’s nothing better in the middle of a hot summer day. Of nine hands or more and weigh 22–65 kg ( 49–143 pounds ) [ 57 ] in South Asia Southeast. Are called `` plantains '' are air-tight and filled with ethylene ), consumption. Weeks without the need for refrigeration Musa was created by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 and easy consume... °C ( 56.3 and 59.0 °F ) and a blade ( lamina.. These hybridization events produced the triploid cultivars of bananas ( Musa spp. calorie-burning in. Commonly grown today refer to the degradation of chlorophyll leading to confusion 100g provides... Are picked green, and may show up at the apex of the banana that. Are … bananas provide an easily digestible source of some important nutrients pounds ) cultivation in regions. Base for energy into existence in 1836 in 1836 product is stabilized by a ester! 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