Bananas.org - Musa acuminata subsp malaccensis

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Musa acuminata subsp malaccensis - Grandaddy of edible 'naners

Of the 4 species of wild musa found in Malaysia, this is the most common.
I wanted to highlight this plant sometime ago but I just didn't know how to get about it! It's so common here that I (personally) find nothing special about it. Over here, it is a weed. It grows everywhere, in the bushes, forests, in the city and even in the center of housing areas. Nobody cares to rid of it and they are much tolerated especially by the Malay population here.

As we all know, the M-a is the progenitor of most edible 'naner cultivars and how true it is! If you get the chance to taste the seeded fruit, you will know. It is very aromatic and very sweet, except that the fruit is basically a seed pod, chock full of it. The Malays have a recipe for a dessert which they extract the pulp of the fruit and mix it with flour. Each fruit has approx 90-105 sds. Imagine a bunch!

First impression of this sp is the undersurface of the leaf. It is a waxy white in color and it can be seen from a distance away as evident in the photo. The upper surface is a matte green. When young, it often has maroon red blotches. Most fade away when the plant is about 3-4ft tall. Call me an optimist, I am still looking for an adult plant with colored leaves! The mid rib is yellow both at the top and bottom of the leaf.

This plant grows to a p-stem height of about 9ft. Most flower and fruit at about 6-7ft. The bud is a beautiful Carmine red. This is a very tolerant sp as it can be seen growing in all sorts of conditions, from very wet to very dry.
Up to now, I am still amazed (and still taking pix) of the seedlings' leaves. They tend to have bluish iridescent on the uppersurface caused by the presence of wax. Just lovely!

Parts of the plant are used by the different races here. It's leaves are used to wrap cooked food and as a wrap in steaming food. Many just use it as a disposable plate of sort especially by the Indians. The Indians also use whole plants which are cut with the flower and propped up as a decoration for ceremonies.
In the past, the p-stem is cut into small sections and used as a supplementary pig fodder. The bud is eaten raw or cooked here as a salad.

In its natural habitat, it is not seen in the understorey of the forest. They are abundant in the open areas whether dry or next to a stream. Sunlight is very important for it. I have observed that birds or small mammal such as monkeys seem to eat only the fruits which are ripen on the plant. Raw fruits are always untouched, but once it ripens, it is gone in a very short time.

For more pix, pls check my photo gallery for the M-a Album:ha:

Baby Blue! All sdlgs have a certain amount of blue iridescent on the uppersurfarce. This is the 'bluest' I have seen so far.

The undersurface of the leaf is a waxy white. Lucky me, the breeze helped me to get this pix. Really stark against the dark forest background.