Banana bunches
Title | Info |
---|---|
Common name | Banana |
Scientific name | Musa |
Taxonomic group | Musaceae |
Source | Dan L. Perlman |
Economic botany | Food plants |
Food plants | Fruits |
Date | 1999 |
Location | Northeastern Costa Rica,Costa Rica,North America |
Banana harvesting, Costa Rica. The man in this image is pulling a large number of bunches of bananas along an overhead trolley; each bunch may weigh up to 100 pounds (about 40 kg). Bananas appear to have arisen in Southeast Asia or New Guinea. A banana plant produces just a single large bunch of bananas during its lifetime. The banana flowers are not pollinated, and the plants reproduce by suckers since no viable seeds are produced. After fruiting, the plant is cut down so that new suckers may arise from the roots and underground stem. The bananas in the background of this image are covered with plastic bags, into which pesticides are sprayed. As this area was being photographed, a light airplane flew overhead spraying pesticides more widely across the plantation.