Bananas Raras

Banana Species and Cultivars

Our banana collection is under construction and will be one of the largest of Brazil beside of the from Colecionando Frutas in the long term. Currently it’s planned, to plant bananas in groups on approx. 1,000 square meters with approx. 250 banana plants of different species and cultivars distributed in our garden. During the investigation and review of the garden in August and September 2008 were several cultivars and species of banana Musa 'Prata', Musa 'Nanica' and Musa ornata discovered, they were partially atrophied, now is the care provided by Antonio has improved, some have even flowered in February 2009. There are 6 disease resistant cultivars ordered, unfortunately the plants were very small (only 5 cm tall) and also had to care by Antonio, unfortunately only 3 plants have survived. Antonio has bought 25 new plants of Musa 'Nanica' syn 'Nanição' and planted them in several groups in our garden. I got in November 2010 new disease resistant plants from Embrapa, unfortunately they were still 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 cm) tall. I planted them onto one nursery bed with red clay soil and shadow shelter of feathers of coconut palms directly at the group in the front of the vegetable garden of Antonio, where the group is grown best of all.

We could manage to get one pup of Musa basjoo for our cold hardy banana breed program and seed production. According of Ercilia, the wife of Antonio, the pup was grown very good and grew quickly large. Also different banana species could obtained and are still in the nursery of Colecionando Frutas. Total 15 should have germinated according of Helton, including Musa balbisiana, cheesmani, sikkimensis, sikkimensis 'Red Flash', sikkimensis 'Manipur', itinerans 'Indian Form', siamensis 'Thai Gold', yunnanensis, formosana and acuminata ssp. microcarpa.

On 16th September 2009 Helton visited us with his wife and his dad and brought us several banana cultivars and species in the form of suckers and seedlings together with some fruit trees and Stevia rebaudiana. Best thanks to them!

Unfortunately the soil in our garden has proven as not very favorable for bananas, only on some places the bananas do well, we have sandy soil at the most parts of our garden, the sandy soil warms up too quickly and also dries too quickly. At the pond they do very well, the ground-water level is higher there and the 3 banana trees which Antonio has planted there are grown well and became large. Therefore I planted several further bananas there, under all Musa balbisiana, formosana, basjoo, ornata, and acuminata ssp. zebrina. It stays to hope, that they will grow much better there than otherwhere. Also the banana group at the vegetable garden of Antonio has proven as very good. One notice was made that the hedge very close at the house is grown best and more far from the house more and more badier, well only in the red clay in the half shadow could bananas grow well. As trial I have planted heliconias, Musa velutina and ornata very close at the house on the lawn out, where the soil is red clay and the place is half shaded and the hedge grows tallest there, unfortunately the most of the heliconias have died by drought in August and September 2012.

At all the disease resistant cultivars like Musa 'Figo', 'FHIA-18' and 'Mysore' do deal with the sandy soil well. It is different from cultivar to another cultivar, which soil conditions do be available. Musa 'Mysore' has proven as the best!

To build one large banana collection, it is necessary to purchase one further yard with good red clay. This has Ercilia recommened to me, in the case of the definitive emigration to Brazil. She knows really about growing bananas, since her husband was formerly banana farmer. Our Japanese neighbour self has made trials with bananas for 6 years, not very successful. But I saw huge and vigorous banana trees in some gardens of the further neighbourhood. One water tank of 350 litres for the additional irrigation of the bananas during the dry season is already ordered and the water turm is built and installed. If I do get enough money to extend our chácara, then I will also perhaps apply one investition visa and buy the yard which Ercilia recommened to me. Therefore we do not concentrate only to bananas, but also to other fruit species, also cacti with edible fruits will be planted, one baobab is already planted, our fruit collection will be extended. But also the soil of our chácara should be improved and get with the time one humus layer. Branch and garden cut should not be brought to the street to garbage disposal but shreddered and composted. Also horse or cattle manure should be mixed in, more see our Terra Preta Project beside the project "Hardy Fruit Bananas".

Currently not all of the listed banana species and cultivars are in our garden, partly they are hosted by our partner Helton Josué in his nursery in Angatuba, see also Colecionando Frutas Musaceae. In the future the list might be extended, as the next we try to get the cultivars Musa 'Java' and Musa 'São Domingo' in Brazil. Helton gave me one book about Brazilian fruits and there I read about 20 banana cultivars in Brazil, containing of the both. I surmise that the both also do have alias names. Musa 'Java' could be another name in Brazil for Musa 'Blue Java' or Musa 'Ice Cream' and also Musa 'São Domingo' could be another name for Musa 'Tall Red' sein. On 22nd October 2012 we visited Helton and could get pups and seedlings of Musa laterita, Musa 'Gros Michel', Musa 'Marmelo', Musa itinerans 'Burmese Blue', Musa itinerans 'Indian Form' (does form runners in the nursery of Helton!) and Musa 'Abobora' and planted them on 26th October 2012 into the special garden at the pond out.