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FloriDan
04-09-2020, 09:47 AM
So we bought a new house a month ago and were told the plants in the back were ornamental, fruitless bananas. I wasn’t in love with the idea of ornamental bananas, especially since I’ve wanted to grow my own fruit for as long as we’ve lived in Florida.

Anyway, this morning, I decided to cut back all the dead and burned leaves on the plants. I wasn’t sure if that would kill off what was left, but since I wasn’t in love with the plants in the first place, I didn’t really care. I got to the very back of the group and there was what appeared to be a completely dead plant ... bent over, all the leaves dead. I chopped it off at the base and when I went to throw it in the compost pile, lo and behold, there’s a cluster of small, underripe fruits attached to a long dead bloom.

Now I don’t know what to do. Do y’all think this might be something edible? They kinda look like burro bananas, but I’m not sure. I don’t have any hopes of these ripening, but if there’s a chance I might get fruit out of the plants in the future, maybe I don’t want to chop them all down and start over.

Any ideas/advice?

http://danielandbrenda.com/IMG_3215.jpeg

http://danielandbrenda.com/IMG_3218.jpeg

Mikemooreflorida
04-09-2020, 10:43 AM
open up a fruit, if its got seeds its probably just an ornamental variety..

by looking at the plants i'd say it gonna be an edible species, but fruits will tell you the full story

Iowa
04-09-2020, 12:19 PM
Looks a little Orinoco, are the Banana's 3 sided? As stated if they have large seeds they are ornamental.

Backyard Banana Joe
04-09-2020, 04:11 PM
Burro aka orinoco. bet you 100 banana bucks

Backyard Banana Joe
04-09-2020, 04:14 PM
And they probably will ripen. My clues to that are 1 the stem was dead, 2 the bloom was at an end, and 3 they look PRETTY filled out, and they have fungus on them hinting that they have been there awhile. What do do you think? Could I be a dective? Lol

FloriDan
04-09-2020, 04:32 PM
Thanks everybody! The fruits seem to be four-sided. I don't know how long they've been hanging there, but I'd guess it's been a LONG while. I zoomed in on a pic I took on house inspection day in late December and the tree is definitely on the way out in that shot.

I picked one of the smaller, curvy ones and sliced it open. Seems to be a pretty healthy seed pod down the center, but maybe that's just because its so green. I'm going to leave the bunch hanging on the back patio and see what I end up with!

http://danielandbrenda.com/IMG_3221.jpeg

edwmax
04-09-2020, 04:50 PM
Not orinoco ... The fruit will ripen and then you could get a taste. Even ornamental bananas are eatable. You Just have to spit seeds. ... From the pic you show I do believe those are ornamental types.

Backyard Banana Joe
04-09-2020, 05:00 PM
Not orinoco ... The fruit will ripen and then you could get a taste. Even ornamental bananas are eatable. You Just have to spit seeds. ... From the pic you show I do believe those are ornamental types.



This will be interesting!! Two different options! But don't ornamental bananas have seeds

edwmax
04-09-2020, 08:38 PM
This will be interesting!! Two different options! But don't ornamental bananas have seeds


That was what I said. The nana fingers are not well filled out and the seeds are not full size. The one cut open anyway. But the seeds shown in the pics are much bigger than the ones seen in eatable bananas. ... In case you are wondering the little bitty black spots in Dole bananas and other eatable type bananas are undeveloped SEEDS and sterile.

Backyard Banana Joe
04-10-2020, 09:46 AM
That was what I said. The nana fingers are not well filled out and the seeds are not full size. The one cut open anyway. But the seeds shown in the pics are much bigger than the ones seen in eatable bananas. ... In case you are wondering the little bitty black spots in Dole bananas and other eatable type bananas are undeveloped SEEDS and sterile.

at one point, awhile ago, when I first wanted to grow bananas, I thought those where seeds...…… lol I bet everyone did at one point

Gabe15
04-13-2020, 05:46 AM
Orinoco, 100%.

Backyard Banana Joe
04-13-2020, 10:48 AM
Orinoco, 100%.



YES!!!! I knew it!!

edwmax
04-13-2020, 01:44 PM
Not orinoco ... The fruit will ripen and then you could get a taste. Even ornamental bananas are eatable. You Just have to spit seeds. ... From the pic you show I do believe those are ornamental types.






Well ... wrong again ... Some of the fingers appeared to have 4 ribs, while the others were hard to tell.


I wrong once many years ago. That was corrected with a divorce. Been happy since.

Iowa
04-13-2020, 01:49 PM
YES!!!! I knew it!!

And no Banana Bucks were lost!

Iowa
04-13-2020, 01:51 PM
Well ... wrong again ... Some of the fingers appeared to have 4 ribs, while the others were hard to tell.


I wrong once many years ago. That was corrected with a divorce. Been happy since.

They start out 3 sided and shove out as they fill and add side #4.

edwmax
04-13-2020, 06:02 PM
They start out 3 sided and shove out as they fill and add side #4.




Cut an Orinoco finger section (cross cut) then you can see there is only 3 ribs in the peal. As the finger fattens the bulge sometime look like another rib.

Gabe15
04-14-2020, 12:05 AM
The number of ridges has to do with where the finger is in the hand, how they press against each other as they grow, its not a diagnostic trait. You have to look at the whole plant.

FloriDan
05-22-2020, 07:11 PM
I just realized I never followed up on my adventure. The bananas ripened, somewhat, in about a week. I ate a couple. They weren't great, but they showed promise. I think had they developed fully, they would have been tasty. The wife tried and turned her nose up. She wasn't as excited as I was.

A neighbor said a former owner of the house was always trying to get him to try bananas from what is now our backyard, so I'm going to try and track that guy down and ask him about the plants.

Thanks, everybody, for helping trying to ID!

http://danielandbrenda.com/nanas.jpg

Backyard Banana Joe
05-22-2020, 08:09 PM
I just realized I never followed up on my adventure. The bananas ripened, somewhat, in about a week. I ate a couple. They weren't great, but they showed promise. I think had they developed fully, they would have been tasty. The wife tried and turned her nose up. She wasn't as excited as I was.

A neighbor said a former owner of the house was always trying to get him to try bananas from what is now our backyard, so I'm going to try and track that guy down and ask him about the plants.

Thanks, everybody, for helping trying to ID!

http://danielandbrenda.com/nanas.jpg



Here's a pointer: orinoco are best when FULLY ripe- slightly black. Those don't look ripe enough...... Orinoco taste pretty good when fully ripe.:nanadrink:

FLABREWER
05-26-2020, 09:41 PM
this looks like what I've got too. I've been looking online to identify them. Tasty when ripe lightly sweet and tart which I like. not edible until fully yellow with a hint of brown. Plants are fruiting all over the yard if pics are needed.