Smokey-hitz

How are dwarf bananas made? I mean like do they take a regular sized banana plant and do something to it to make the pups dwarf?

__________________

ChuckT

Dwarfing is done by selective breeding over multiple generations or by crossing with a naturally short variety. Unless the genes are changed no change would be permanent.

andy17

Hi Smokey-hitz,
Dwarf bananas are like ChuckT said, due to some genetic change, not cultural like bonsai, which uses root pruning and small pots to restrict plant growth. Dwarfs generally are found as a smaller variation of a larger variety (Dwarf cavendish, Dwarf Brazilian, Dwarf Namwah etc.). They can occur as a natural genetic variation (like Chihuahua vs. Great Dane dogs), genes that naturally make for a smaller plant, or they can occur as a genetic mutation that dwarfs the plant. Either way, these changes usually only affect the plant growth habit and height; the taste and fruit size between dwarfs and regulars generally remain the same. However, super dwarfs (which are dwarfs of dwarfs lol) can vary notably because their growth is so compact that fruit size, set, and flavor can be affected. Hope this helps!

__________________
"Gardening is the purest of human pleasures." --Francis Bacon

venturabananas

Dwarf bananas are normally the result of somatic mutations. Normal breeding and selection is less important than in many other plants, because edible bananas reproduce asexually (with few exceptions -- e.g., the FHIA breeding program).

__________________