Musa acuminata 'Grand Nain' | |
---|---|
Species | Musa acuminata |
Cultivar group | Cavendish subgroup of the AAA Group |
Cultivar | 'Grand Nain' |
The Grand Nain banana (also spelled Grande Naine) is a banana cultivar of Musa acuminata . It is one of the most commonly cultivated bananas and a member of the commercial Cavendish banana cultivar group. It is also known as the Chiquita banana because it is the main product of Chiquita Brands International. [1] [2]
Taxonomically speaking, the Grand Nain is a monocot and belongs to the genus Musa . Species designations are difficult when considering bananas because nearly all banana cultivars are descendants or hybrids of the Musa acuminata or Musa balbisiana , wild species that have been propagated for agricultural use.
The Grand Nain is a cultivar of the Cavendish bananas. This group of bananas is distinguished from other groups by their AAA genotype. The AAA genotype refers to the fact that this group is a triploid variant of the species M. acuminata. There are 33 chromosomes present in the AAA cultivar and all produce seedless fruits through parthenocarpy. [3] This fact means that the plants are spread by conventional vegetative methods and lack sexual reproduction. This lack of genetic diversity makes Grand Nains as well as other AAA cultivars vulnerable to diseases and pests. [4]
The accepted name of Grand Nain is Musa acuminata (AAA Group) 'Grand Nain'.
'Grand Nain' or 'Grand Naine' literally translates from French as "Large Dwarf". [3]
The name Grand Nain refers to its relative height compared to other Cavendish cultivars. It is shorter than the Giant Cavendish and taller than the Dwarf Cavendish cultivars. The Grand Nain cannot typically be distinguished from other Cavendish cultivars without growing the plants side by side and comparing the heights. [5] The plant, like other banana plants, is an herbaceous "tree" that produces large oblong leaves. The leaves often become torn or tattered at the ends as a result of mechanical stresses such as wind. Being an angiosperm, the Grand Nain produces large inflorescences that develop into the edible fruit. [6]
Bananas are ranked as the fourth-most cultivated crop in the world and constitute a significant portion of many populations' caloric intake. [4] While this includes all cultivars, the Grand Nain has become one of the most popular varieties for commercial plantations. Its characteristic medium height and large fruit yields make it ideal for commercial agriculture. The moderate height allows easy harvesting and some resistance to windthrow (plants breaking due to strong winds). [5] Plantations growing Grand Naines range from the tropical regions of Central America, Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. In many tropical communities, entire local economies are based upon banana production and exportation. [7]
Because of its importance as a staple crop as well as a cash crop, much botanical research has focused around the Grand Nain. Furthermore, its lack of genetic diversity eliminates unwanted experimental variables, thus increasing the validity of observed results. Of particular interest is the banana plant's sensitivity to aluminum, which slows growth and causes leaf abnormalities. Researchers found that introducing different species of mycorrhizal fungi can increase aluminum toxicity resistance. [8]
Because bananas are such a large and important crop in many tropical regions, their cultivation has several ecological ramifications, the most obvious of which is the clearing of rainforest. In the past, these ecological impacts as well as accusations of employee abuse plagued large corporations like Chiquita, Del Monte, and Dole (the three of which control two-thirds of the banana market). [7] Within the past 10 years, though, companies like Chiquita have taken steps to improve public relations by introducing more sustainable agricultural techniques. These include the utilization of kidney weed, which discourages weed growth without adversely affecting banana plants. Chiquita has also established a 284-acre (1.15 km2) reserve in Costa Rica and now recycles many waste materials associated with the industry. [9] These efforts have reduced but not eliminated ecological concerns associated with banana plantations.
Issues discussed apply to all banana cultivars commercially farmed of which the Grand Nain constitutes the majority.
A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing them from dessert bananas. The fruit is variable in size, color, and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind, which may have a variety of colors when ripe. The fruits grow upward in clusters near the top of the plant. Almost all modern edible seedless (parthenocarp) bananas come from two wild species – Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. Most cultivated bananas are M. acuminata, M. balbisiana, or hybrids of the two.
Panama disease is a plant disease that infects banana plants. It is a wilting disease caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc). The pathogen is resistant to fungicides and its control is limited to phytosanitary measures.
The blood banana, is a variety of the wild banana Musa acuminata native to Sumatra, Indonesia. The blood banana is an ornamental plant, named for the dark red patches on its leaves, though its small-seeded fruits are also edible. It grows 6' to 8' tall in the wild, but is well-adapted to container growing and can be maintained at 3' to 5'. It grows best in full or partial sun and is hardy in zones 9 - 11.
Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae. The genus includes 83 species of flowering plants producing edible bananas and plantains. Though they grow as high as trees, banana and plantain plants are not woody and their apparent "stem" is made up of the bases of the huge leaf stalks. Thus, they are technically gigantic herbaceous plants. Musa species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the giant leopard moth and other Hypercompe species, including H. albescens, H. eridanus, and H. icasia.
Cavendish bananas are the fruits of one of a number of banana cultivars belonging to the Cavendish subgroup of the AAA banana cultivar group. The same term is also used to describe the plants on which the bananas grow.
Gros Michel, often translated and known as "Big Mike", is an export cultivar of banana and was, until the 1950s, the main variety grown. The physical properties of the Gros Michel make it an excellent export produce; its thick peel makes it resilient to bruising during transport and the dense bunches that it grows in make it easy to ship.
The Dwarf Cavendish banana is a widely grown and commercially important Cavendish cultivar. The name "Dwarf Cavendish" is in reference to the height of the pseudostem, not the fruit. Young plants have maroon or purple blotches on their leaves but quickly lose them as they mature. It is one of the most commonly planted banana varieties from the Cavendish group, and the main source of commercial Cavendish bananas along with Grand Nain.
The Goldfinger banana (FHIA-01) is a banana cultivar developed in Honduras. The cultivar, developed at the Honduran Foundation for Agricultural Research (FHIA) by a team of scientists led by Phillip Rowe and Franklin Rosales, has been bred to be pest-resistant and crop-yielding.
Red bananas are a group of varieties of bananas with reddish-purple skin. Some are smaller and plumper than the common Cavendish banana, others much larger. When ripe, raw red bananas have a flesh that is creamy to light pink. They are also softer and sweeter than the yellow Cavendish varieties, some with a slight tangy raspberry flavor and others with an earthy one. Many red bananas are exported by producers in East Africa, Asia, South America, and the United Arab Emirates. They are a favorite in Central America as a form of aphrodisiac juice, along with being a favourite in India to promote fertility but are sold throughout the world.
Rhino Horn bananas, also called Rhino Horn plantains or African Rhino Horn, are hybrid banana cultivars from Africa. It produces strongly curved and elongated edible bananas which can grow to a length of two feet, the longest fruits among banana cultivars.
Musa acuminata is a species of banana native to Southern Asia, its range comprising the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Many of the modern edible dessert bananas are from this species, although some are hybrids with Musa balbisiana. First cultivated by humans around 10 kya, it is one of the early examples of domesticated plants.
The Blue Java is a hardy, cold-tolerant banana cultivar known for its sweet aromatic fruit, which is said to have an ice cream-like consistency and flavor reminiscent of vanilla. It is native to Southeast Asia and is a hybrid of two species of banana native to Southeast Asia—Musa balbisiana and Musa acuminata.
Lady Finger bananas are diploid banana cultivars originating in Malaysia or Indonesia, belonging to the Sucrier subgroup of the AA banana cultivar group. Lady Finger banana is the most widely cultivated AA cultivar and is one of the world’s most popular local bananas. Banana fruits are finger-sized, thin skinned, and deliciously sweet.
The Latundan banana is a triploid hybrid banana cultivar of the AAB "Pome" group from the Philippines. It is one of the most common banana cultivars in Southeast Asia and the Philippines, along with Lacatan and Saba bananas. Its Malaysian name is pisang rastali.
Lakatan bananas, also spelled Lacatan, are diploid banana cultivars from the Philippines. It is one of the most common banana cultivars in the Philippines, along with the Latundan and Saba bananas.
Matoke, locally also known as matooke, amatooke in Buganda, ekitookye in southwestern Uganda, ekitooke in western Uganda, kamatore in Lugisu, ebitooke in northwestern Tanzania, igitoki in Rwanda, Burundi and by the cultivar name East African Highland banana, are a group of starchy triploid banana cultivars, originating from the African Great Lakes. The fruit is harvested green, carefully peeled, and then cooked and often mashed or pounded into a meal. In Uganda and Rwanda, the fruit is steam-cooked, and the mashed meal is considered a national dish in both countries.
Musa × paradisiaca is a triploid cultivar of banana, belonging to the Cavendish banana subgroup, originating as the hybrid between Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, cultivated and domesticated by human very early. Most cultivated bananas and plantains are cultivars of this hybrid. Linnaeus originally used the name M. paradisiaca only for plantains or cooking bananas, but the modern usage includes hybrid cultivars used both for cooking and as dessert bananas. Linnaeus's name for dessert bananas, Musa sapientum, is thus a synonym of Musa × paradisiaca.
Flhorban 920 (FB920) is a synthetic banana hybrid developed as a cultivar of banana naturally resistant to Black and Yellow Sigatoka fungi in an attempt to replace the highly susceptible Cavendish banana. Additionally, FB920 has been shown to improve root resistance to Burrowing nematodes.
Masak Hijau bananas are triploid banana cultivars from Malaysia. It is a member of the commercially important Cavendish banana subgroup. It is a popular banana cultivar in Southeast Asia and the West Indies.