Musa violacea, mannii, velutina

[flaflowerfloozie]

How possible is it for the Musa Mannii, Velutina and Violacea to cross and set seed? I was at a local botanical garden and saw a bunch of bananas had set in a small area they were Mannii, violacea and velutina, all within 30 foot of one another and closer.
What is the probability of any of these crossing?
I know someone out there knows about the DNA and all those specifics on these ornamentals.
Thanks

[Gabe15]

It is very easy for the to cross, but whether or not it will happen depend son if there are suitable pollinators present, or if someone makes hand pollinations.

[flaflowerfloozie]

I feel honored I got the attention of Gabe15!

Well Hummm, I don't know what a suitable pollinator is exactly for bananas?
Bees, bats, moths doesn't matter I wasn't there to see it.
I doubt anyone hand pollinated these, looks like they can't keep up on the weeds much less have the time to hand pollinate anything.
Maybe I should have asked if I could have a banana??

Thanks bunches for the reply Gabe!!

[shannondicorse]

Originally Posted by flaflowerfloozie

I don't know what a suitable pollinator is exactly for bananas?
Bees, bats, moths doesn't matter I wasn't there to see it.
I doubt anyone hand pollinated these, looks like they can't keep up on the weeds much less have the time to hand pollinate anything.

Flaflowerfloozie,

Here is my take. If you have even domestic honey bees visiting your bananas there is a good chance that some cross pollination events - leading to viable seeds - would be taking place.

But these 3 banana species are self-fertilising, so you can get a bunch of fat fruit full of viable seeds from a solitary, isolated inflorescence (Contrast this with solitary inflorescences on isolated Musa balbisana and M. acuminata malaccensis where you won't get even a single seed set...).

The problem then becomes one of growing out scores or hundreds of seed and looking for a paltry few bee pollinated hybrids! That is not an easy task.

shannon

shannon.di.corse@gmail.com

[flaflowerfloozie]

Originally Posted by shannondicorse

Flaflowerfloozie,

Here is my take. If you have even domestic honey bees visiting your bananas there is a good chance that some cross pollination events - leading to viable seeds - would be taking place.

But these 3 banana species are self-fertilising, so you can get a bunch of fat fruit full of viable seeds from a solitary, isolated inflorescence (Contrast this with solitary inflorescences on isolated Musa balbisana and M. acuminata malaccensis where you won't get even a single seed set...).

The problem then becomes one of growing out scores or hundreds of seed and looking for a paltry few bee pollinated hybrids! That is not an easy task.

shannon

shannon.di.corse@gmail.com

Understood, I assume though that the open air botanical garden probably has plenty for winged pollinators, it does seem though that most if not all of these since all had set fruit about the same size look as though they had bloomed at or about the same time...so it was a question in curiosity of the 3 possibly crossing since they are within close visible sight of one another.
I would be willing given the chance to start seed in hopes of a cross...if nothing else it would be interesting...thanks for your insite

[shannondicorse]

Originally Posted by flaflowerfloozie

I would be willing given the chance to start seed in hopes of a cross...if nothing else it would be interesting...

Flaflowerfloozie,

Just be prepared to grow out oodles of seed! You might not be able to discern a hybrid for a long while... so you'd have to have a lot of ground space and pots!

Not to mention forbearance! LOL!

shannon

shannon.di.corse@gmail.com

[flaflowerfloozie]

Yea I ran out of ground space for the most part at least till somethings get rearranged here...I was hoping to encourage that by starting to utilize the house roof...what did he do in response? He put up a set of stairs for me...LOL

All the big stuff is on/in the ground...don't anyone panic.

So I'm thinking that (as my imagination goes) going to the Botanical garden in the dark of night, climbing the fence, locating said bananas in the dark filling a knapsack with a bunch of multi colored fruits driving all the way home with the contraband, to sit on my den floor for hours, days even weeks cleaning all these seeds and then planting said seeds on point 18 acre (less than a 1/4 acre) to find out a year later it was in jest...Nahhh... not happening...LOL
Oh...Lets not forget ALL Ornamental bananas, you can't even eat them.

I think someone told me that there velutina bananas had like 80 seeds each fruit, can you imagine how many bananas and how many seeds and all the lost time, money and resources to get zip...?? Not to mention the multi colored Jungle!

My adventurism only goes so far, my imagination is wild though.

Really it was a question of curiosity knowing nothing about the intimate details of banana breeding/crossing/copulating.

Although I am looking for a new banana to plant in a saved space, it has to be an edible...decisions, decisions, decisions!

[shannondicorse]

Originally Posted by flaflowerfloozie

Really it was a question of curiosity knowing nothing about the intimate details of banana breeding...

flaflowerfloozie,

Banana breeding can be made easier. So that even we amateurs can do some of it. There's much to be said for trying to sneak velutina and laterita genes into domesticated bananas.

In the case of velutina, e.g.... as you know, this bears a rather chubby and tasty fruit. If you can get seedlessness into it you can conceivably produce an "annual", rather dwarf, banana that you can conveniently plant in the spring, and harvest in summer or thereabouts.

This gets around the need to breed frost-tolerant banana varieties (...a very difficult proposition indeed!).

This is what banana breeders (...i call 'em the "Banana Mafia" ) aren't doing. Thinking out of the box. They keep on trying to build a better mousetrap. While the mice are killing themselves with laughter!


shannon


shannon.di.corse@gmail.com