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BANANA
PLAINTAIN
(Musa paradisiaca)
plantain fruit, bananas
Description:
Tree, often reaching a considerable size, 30 ft.tall, thick and
heavy. Leaves are erect or ascending 5-9 ft. long and 1-2 ft.
wide. Flower is a spike and drooping. Bract is red or violet,
6-12 in. long. Calyx, yellow and white. Plantain fruit, banana,
has up to 100 in a bunch. Grown in tropics around the world.
Edible:
Hardy, ripe fruit eaten whole or cut into slices, roasted, baked,
boiled, fried, an ingredient in soups and stews. Brewed for beer
and vinegar, has high starch content. Dried and ground into flour
as a meal. Leaves, used for making mats, bags and for packing.
The finer leaves have been used for cigarette papers.
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