Bassa

I live in Panama where growing banana's is easy and fried plantain is the national dish. I am by no means an expert when it comes to banana's however I do know what I like to eat. Can someone please help me understand what exactly is a so called "Thai Banana"? I can tell you what they look like but I would really like to know the Latin name and purchase some seeds.
The Thai Banana that I know is short ....around 6-7inches. Yellow when ripe and has a distinct stem connection in that this end of the banana is quite bulbous (not pointed). It is rounded at the stem connection. I have searched around the internet and cannot find what I am looking for or even know what this banana is most properly called. I just know its popular in Thailand and is used in cooking there. It also tastes great!
I am hoping that someone can clue me in and that I can purchase some seed to propogate in my yard. Best Bassa

JP

Just a pointer, fellow grower; do not plant seeds if you want to eat bananas. You'll get bananas full of seeds and those things are hard! Try to find a plant or a pup from an edible non-seeded variety. It shouldn't be hard to find where you live.

Please do take the time to present yourself to the community in the member's introduction section. post a thread there, you'll get better visibility.

Try posting pics of the banana, it could help.

Good luck.

Bassa

Thnaks JP, There are banana's aplenty here but i'm looking, as I mentioned in my post, for a particular type of banana? Its actually more difficult here than you may imagine.
Unfortunately I do not see this banana very often and usually I do not remember to take a pic. I was planning to buy some seed perhaps on e-bay but my guess is that most of these seed ads have been miss identified. I definitly need some professional advice. Thanks again for the pointer.

JP

Find one or a bunch of bananas, take a picture and post it on this thread. You can do this with your cell phone, assuming you have one... I have a good idea of the type of banana You are looking for and can probably ID it if I see one. Even better if I can have a pic of a slice of it too.

JP

Could it be musa cardaba? Look it up and tell me... What does it taste like? What do you use it for?

Mudturkle

My guess would be Namwa. It is available from going-bananas.com Photo gallery offering a view of all different types of banana plants, bananas and banana trees.

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Central Texas Zone 8B and Gulf Coast zone 9B: Raja Puri, Dw. Brazilian, Dw. Orinoco, Dw. NamWah, Dw. Cavendish, Dw. Green?, Dw. Red? Iholena Tigua, Veinte Cohol, Misi Luki, Pisang Raja.

JP

Can't be Namwah if the tip is bulbous...Namwah is not round at the end, it has a clear nipple. Without pics, we can only rely on the description...

Bassa

First very many thanks to JP and Mudturkle.
One thing I forgot to add is that this so called "Thai Banana" is rounded and smooth. I.e. It’s not angular in cross section.
We have a market here in the mountains and I sometimes see these fruit however they are in popular demand and sell out quickly. I plan to take a photo and post it as soon as I can find it again. They have a creamy slightly ascerbic apple flavor.
I looked at the link posted and the closest picture I could come up with is shown at the link below.
http://www.going-bananas.com/images/...e/halfripe.jpg

Just a note for those interested I am building an Asian compound as part living and part Buddhist retreat on 1.5acres. I am trying to make this area as self-sufficient as I can. There are so many things that grow well in the tropics however Banana's are an obvious choice. We can cook them ....so many Asian style dishes, make custard and fruit smoothies…. Etc. etc. etc. It is very difficult getting non-native plants imported here in R. de Panama however the Aduana usually turns a blind eye towards a few seeds.
Thanks again: Bassa

JP

Yeah, that's not round. There's definetely a nipple there. Mudturkle was probably right. It looks like namwah. But with an apple flavor, it could be manzano...
The best would be to pay the guy that sells it to bring you a pup. That is if it's grown in your country... We never know; it might work.

ErichRoby

It sounds like saba to me which supposedly comes from PI

exovetek

Kluai Nam Wa is one of the most popular bananas in Thailand, but there are several varieties of Nam Wa available there. check out bkinterplants on ebay and his website. He sells several varieties and ships large, healthy, disease free corms directly from Thailand.

Musa Fruit - Musa & Heliconia