Quote:
Originally Posted by Tog Tan
Ok people, my dumb crack earlier is a prelude to this;
While researching and gathering more pix for an article in our mag, I came to an area where Musa acuminata and Musa violascens grow side by side and hybridizing like nobody's business. You will have to be very observant to spot the resulting offspring.
In the past, these 2 sp were on their own turf. M-a in the drier open areas and M-v in the wetter areas near streams and rivers. Development has cleared land into housing and agri and the M-a is pushed next to the M-v. Only God knows how long before this particular area will have only the infused plant.
Species were maintained naturally before man arrived on their own terms by division of land mass, mountains and what not. Now, the progress of human has become the progress of their extinction through infusion of hybridization.
When I ponder upon it, I wouldn't believe the sds collected here can be true in either species. The fruits look right on either species but because of the close proximity, the sds can be the result of a primary hybrid. Of course then, there are the F3 and beyond because of cross pollination and their short cycle to flowering. Scary.....  |
Tog, do you have proof these species are hybridizing, such as witnessing an intermediate inflorescence? These two species are very different, one belonging to section Musa (chromosome count 2n=22) and one to Callimusa (2n=20), they should not be able to hybridize. In some very rare cases, bananas from differing chromosome counts have crossed, but it is not known exactly how it was done and there are only a very very small sample of these plants. I have never heard any accounts of introgression between different sections, thats not to say its not possible, but it is very unlikely and not observed.
Regarding Jareds original topic, I think it is a good practice. To me, this doesn't mean you shouldn't buy any plant you wish, but you should do your homework and find information about it. Many times over on this forum I have seen people rave over new plants that sometimes are already in the US under a different name and are easily available, or perhaps they are already growing them in their backyards.
I get offers all of the time for plants that I grow, and really, people don't even know anything about them, they just have not seen the name before so they think they must have it. For example, Musa ingens is on many peoples want list, and will probably not grow for many of those people. Its a highland species that requires cool nights and dies under constant warm temperatures. Does that mean people shouldn't try? Of course not, but its an important piece of information about the plant that may save some people from paying a ridiculous price for a plant that would die in their climate.