Bananas.org - View Single Post - Banana genera, species and cultivars info wanted

Kevin · 11-09-2009, 10:51 PM

I'm new to bananas, and was wondering about what genera and species there are that would be considered 'bananas'. I have found Musa, Ensete, and also Musella to be in the Family Musaceae. Is the term 'banana' accurate for this family, or only for Musa? Are there many species in this family? Has there been a lot of hybridization? Specifically, I am wondering about the only banana that I have, a Dwarf Orinoco - does anyone know the history of this one? Is it a hybrid? A cultivar of a speices? Have there been any records of the history of hybridization? I am familiar with the naming system of orchids, and it takes some getting used to other families where the rule is 'anything goes' and there are not records, so you have no idea what the make-up of a plant is.

What would you call the Musaceae family - Plantains? Or is there no common name to describe that family? If all three genera are the same, except for the fruit, what is a common feature of all, that would be easily described in a word?

11-09-2009, 10:51 PM	#1 (permalink)
Kevin Location: Winnipeg, Canada Find me on the map! Zone: 2b Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 184 BananaBucks : 133,480 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 31 Times Was Thanked 100 Times in 76 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 5 Times	Banana genera, species and cultivars info wanted I'm new to bananas, and was wondering about what genera and species there are that would be considered 'bananas'. I have found Musa, Ensete, and also Musella to be in the Family Musaceae. Is the term 'banana' accurate for this family, or only for Musa? Are there many species in this family? Has there been a lot of hybridization? Specifically, I am wondering about the only banana that I have, a Dwarf Orinoco - does anyone know the history of this one? Is it a hybrid? A cultivar of a speices? Have there been any records of the history of hybridization? I am familiar with the naming system of orchids, and it takes some getting used to other families where the rule is 'anything goes' and there are not records, so you have no idea what the make-up of a plant is. What would you call the Musaceae family - Plantains? Or is there no common name to describe that family? If all three genera are the same, except for the fruit, what is a common feature of all, that would be easily described in a word?