Nom

I read that seeds from store-bought bananas can't germinate. Is this true? Is there a 0% chance of germination?

I deseeded an entire banana from my local market, really tiny seeds. I stuck them to a paper towel to dry out. They've been dry for about a week.

Is it that the plants are sterile or what? Just confused why the seeds won't germinate, if they won't. If they will, what conditions should I germinate them in? I have a germination chamber for some other plants that stays around 85F during the day and 60F at night, it's under constant light.

Richard

Store-bought bananas don't contain seeds

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DoctorSteve

What you see in the banana that look like seeds are aborted ovules, or undeveloped ovules. It is where seeds could have formed if the banana had been pollinated.

Nom

Ah... Darn.

RobG7aChattTN

If you were to open up the fruit of a species banana (a wild type that is completely fertile) you'd find that the whole fruit would be full of hard seeds...maybe the size of a small un-popped kernel of popcorn. You'd pull back the peal and find that it was just full of those seeds with just a think coating of banana fruit surrounding each seed (90% seed and maybe 10% fruit). The only way to eat those wild bananas is to break off a chunk, stick it in your mouth and suck the meager fruit off of the seeds and then spit the seeds out. The beauty of the commercial varieties is that they are sterile and just full of creamy fruit without the seeds.

Nom

So I won't be able to eat the bananas of my Gran Nain and Dwarf Cavendish I bought? Are they going to be full of seeds? Is there a way of preventing the flower from getting pollinated while still producing a fruit?

steve169

Gran Nain and DC are a sterile variety of banana. Since they are sterile they wont have seeds and would be like any banana you buy at the store: ready for consumption.