What is a Robusta banana?
The Robusta Banana has a thick signature yellow peel when perfectly ripe, encasing an ivory cream colored, semi-starchy flesh. These fruits are elongated and slightly curved.
Which banana went extinct?
Cavendish banana
The Cavendish banana rose to fame in 1965 when the previous banana superstar, the Gros Michel, officially became extinct and lost the throne. The Cavendish is poised to face the same fate as the Gros Michel banana. This is because Cavendish bananas lack genetic diversity.
What is the two varieties of banana?
Almost all the modern edible parthenocarpic bananas come from the two wild species – Musa acuminataMusa balbisiana. The scientific names of bananas are Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana or hybrids of Musa acuminata and balbisiana, depending on their genomic constitution.
What are the healthiest bananas?
In one of the polls conducted by the Times of India regarding the healthiest banana, a majority of people leaned towards the spotted bananas, calling them the healthiest choice of bananas, while in reality, it is the brown variety that packs the most antioxidants.
Can you eat bananas from Musa Basjoo?
Musa basjoo grows in Brazil to 5.00 meters (17 feet) tall. The fruits are edible and are eaten in Japan as delicacy, they are small and therefore used like dessert bananas, when very good ripen, but does not taste for everyone.
What is Panama disease?
What is Panama disease? Panama disease TR4 is considered one of the most destructive diseases of banana plants worldwide. It is caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Tropical Race 4).
Are plantains clones?
Almost all modern cultivated varieties (cultivars) of edible bananas and plantains are hybrids and polyploids of two wild, seeded banana species, Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. Cultivated bananas are almost always seedless (parthenocarpic) and hence sterile, so they are propagated vegetatively (cloned).
What kind of leaves does a Musa plant have?
The leaves are large, basal, spiral, sheathing (with the long, sheathing leaf bases overlapping, forming a pseudostem), a petiole (sometimes termed a “pseudopetiole”) present in Musa, lacking in Ensete, simple (often tearing in several places perpendicular to the midrib), and penni-parallel-veined.
How many species are there in the genus Musa?
The genus Musa has more than 50 species, with some of these species having numerous subspecies. The diversity has led to the genus being divided into three sections from the five traditional sections: Musa (2n = 22, incorporating Rhodochlamys ), Callimusa (2n = 20]
Why is the taxonomy of Musa not fully resolved?
Musa taxonomy is not fully resolved due to difficulties in distinguishing between true wild and edible diploid or polyploid varieties.
How many pairs of chromosomes does the Musa have?
In the mid-twentieth century, a classification based on chromosome number and morphological traits helped identify four sections: Eumusa (currently Musa) and Rhodochlamys with 11 pairs, and Callimusa and Australimusa with 10 pairs of chromosomes.