Banana, the oldest and best known fruit, is a vital part of our diet today. It is a symbol of fertility and prosperity for many countries in Asia and Africa. Although it is best known as a food crop, almost every part of the banana plant are very much useful in a number of ways. That is why in India the banana is called ‘herb with all imaginable uses’.
Banana is a tropical plant and it grows abundantly in tropical countries. It actually belongs to South-East Asia and the Indonesian region where it used to grow wild in the forests. Over the years, appropriate selection and cultivation of different varieties produced the edible banana. By the beginning of the Christian era banana had already created its special status as a famous fruit in the Asian, Mediterranean and African countries. It was taken to South America by the Spanish and was cultivated there.
There are over 200 varieties of bananas belonging to 30 species. The banana tree grows round the year in hot and moist climate. It is a not a conventional tree as there is no wood in the stem rising above the ground. Its height differs from 5 to 30 feet. Each plant has about 10 huge leaves, which are around 6to7 ft long and 1 to 2 ft wide. The banana leaves grow very close together, one inside the other and spread out at the top of the stem. For banana cultivation, bits of its rootstock are planted. Each rootstock has one or more sprouts, popularly called as eyes. Green shoots appear above the ground after three or four weeks out of which the strongest shoot only becomes a plant. After nine or ten months of planting, a flower sprouts on the banana plant and small bananas appear on the flower stalk.
Sweet dessert bananas are eaten raw but cooking bananas and plantains are boiled, steamed, fried or roasted. Both bananas and plantains are often fried and made into chips. In some African countries dried chips of the unripe fruit are stored as famine food. In hot lands banana flour is made by drying and grinding either the green or ripe fruit and the flour is used to make cookies and cakes. In Philippines banana ketchup is widely used, in Central and East Africa juice of ripe banana known as ‘beer bananas’ is a favourite drink, in Australia bananas are called are called ‘good mood food’.
Banana is a delicious, seedless and hygienic food with a thick skin. It comprises water (75%), sugar (20%), proteins (2%), fats (1.5%), cellulose (1%), and other substances (1%). Banana has a rare combination of energy value, tissue building elements, protein, vitamins and minerals including calcium, phosphorous, magnesium and iron. It has such a high caloric value that a large banana supplies more than 100 calories. So, in combination of milk banana makes up almost a complete balanced diet. Banana contains vitamin A, B, C, D and E.
Bananas are a first-class energy food. Experiments have shown that banana fed children excel in physical development. They are also a good protector of eyes and a builder of good teeth. Bananas are considered very good for maintaining the health of the skin and for keeping oneself young and healthy. A diet of banana and skimmed milk is supposed to help in reducing weight. Bananas are easy to digest and promote a healthy digestion. Mashed banana with salt cures dysentery. The pulp of a well ripened mashed banana mixed with buttermilk and taken, as a drink will soothe the burning sensations of the soles, palms and eyes. This pulp is also an ideal infant food. A paste prepared by mashing a well ripe banana and applied on burns and wounds is very soothing and heels the affected parts quickly. Again Bananas are very much useful and used as medicine in intestinal disorder, constipation, piles, arthritis, gout, anemia, allergies, kidney disorders, tuberculosis, urinary disorders, and ulcerative colitis.
Banana plants yield a strong, elastic fibre that is used in the manufacture of marine ropes and production of handicrafts. Banana waste is used in several countries like Costa Rica and Australia in the production of paper. In South-east Asia banana leaves are used as disposable ‘biological’ plates. In many African and Asian countries banana leaves are used for thatching, for wrapping food during cooking. Starch extracted from banana is used to produce glue. Shampoo is also prepared from bananas and their peels. The log of banana plants are used as boats.
Hence, banana is an important plant, and all parts of the plant including the banana fruit are very useful.