The flower of this plant is opening and contains several tiny bananas which will grow to become fruit. See the little stalks at the center? They are bananas. This plant is found in a local garden.
WHERE IS IT?
The “Where Is It?” game for this week is a picture of a mystery plant.
Do you recognize this plant and its flower and do you know what is being produced? Need a hint?
Well, the product of this plant is the subject of several songs and will also show up in grocery stores. It’s not often seen in Cass County, however.
But here it is as a surprise find in a local garden.
What is it? See answer that follows:
ANSWER
“Yes, We Have No Bananas” is not a song Carolyn and Frank Lance of Queen City sing. They have bananas. The banana plants have shown up in their garden. The plant has flowered and will likely produce larger bananas inside the folded leaves. The leaves will open and the bananas will be inside as part of a banana stalk.
Carolyn Lance tells how she obtained the plant.
“Midge Farmer gave me a plant about five years ago. This is the first time to it to bloom,” Carolyn said.
The plant she likes to photograph will need a lot of water and will grow to be a foot in diameter and some 8 to 10 feet tall. Quite amazingly it will produce yellow bananas. It may take four months for them to mature enough to be eaten. The bananas will come out from the center with perhaps 20 bananas on each limb.
The plant will only produce fruit once in its lifetime. Afterward, it can be cut down.
One will prune the stalk with a knife, cutting off the old leaves as they turn brown and then cut down the plant at base.
The banana plant is a pleasure to have in one’s garden. It is fun to watch grow. Its lush, tropical foliage adds a touch of exotic beauty to any landscape, while the promise of homegrown bananas to eat brings a satisfying element to gardening.
One problem, however. The plant cannot not take any freeze whatsoever. Arrangements must be made to help them winter over. One freeze and they won’t survive.