BANANA PLANTS
Musa acuminata or Musa balbisiana
While there are more than 1000 varieties of bananas around the world, Cavendish bananas dominate the US market, thanks to the big plantations of Chiquita, Dole and the like. Cavendish are Musa acuminata.
Edible BANANAS are an evergreen perennial in tropical zones, and most die back to the trunk or even the roots in colder sub-tropical regions. It is technically not a tree but an herb plant.
They are botanically a berry, belonging to the Musa genus of flowering plants: primarily Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana.
Cultivated dessert bananas are generally seedless, sweet hybrids of Musa acuminata, while plantains or cooking bananas are usually either from Musa balbisiana or a hybrid of the two.
The trunk, more properly called a pseudostem, consists of tightly packed layers of leaf sheaths emerging from completely or partially buried corms.
Both male and female flowers are present in a single inflorescence, making the banana plant self fertile.
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A 'bunch' of bananas: one of the most fun fruits to grow!
VARIETIES OF BANANAS
There are many kinds of interesting bananas to grow for the Florida home gardener, including but not limited to Cavendish.
Cavendish bananas are a group of cultivars of Musa acuminata that represented 47% of global banana production by 1998 to 2000. They are distinguished from one another simply by height & features of the fruit.
(Most Musa acuminata take 10-14 months from spring to harvest. Protecting the trunk from freezing saves 4 mon.!)
Let's start with a basic few: Grand Nain, Dwarf Cavendish, and Pisang Ceylon 'Lady Fingers'.
All heights discussed below are measurements of the trunk height, to where the leaves begin.
Typical banana bunch contains 9-12 hands of bananas, each containing approximately 14-20 fingers (bananas).
banana bunches or stalks are heavy
The 'Grocery Store' collection:
These are all 'Musa acuminata':
GRANDE NAIN:
A cultivar of Cavendish, this is Chiquita's favorite. The name refers to its relative height, as distinguished from the Giant Cavendish and the Dwarf Cavendish. The leaves often become torn or tattered from the wind. Its name is French for "Large Dwarf".
Grand Nain grows from 6-8' tall and can produce 40-60lbs of fruit at a time.
It likes a somewhat acidic soil pH of 5.8-6.2.
Grows in full sun to partial sun in zones 8-11.
overgrown 15g Grande Nain
typical banana bunch
DWARF CAVENDISH:
At 6-7' average height, this banana is one of the shortest of the Cavendish bananas. Expect up to 8' in a greenhouse, and even 10' outdoors in South Florida.
Juvenile leaves will have some reddish-purple markings, but later more mature leaves will be all green. Fast growing. Winters well indoors.
Grows in zones 8-11. (needs cold protection in zones 8-9)
7g dwarf cavendish
15g large Dwarf Cavendish
'Pisang Ceylon'
aka LADY FINGERS:
Pisang Ceylon 'Lady Fingers' is the most common variety grown by Dole and used for their 'Baby Dole' or mini banana. It is an improved 'Mysore' banana. It is one of the best tasting Lady Fingers in the world, and the most popular variety grown in India.
Also known as 'Sugar Bananas', the fruits are quite sweet and only 4-5" long. They are light yellow in color and thin skinned. Bears large, compact banana bunches weighing up to 50lbs. Pisang Ceylon has a shelf life that out lasts other lady finger varieties by several days.
Plants are green-leafed with red midribs, and can also have a reddish trunk. The Pisang Ceylon cultivar is considered to be more resistant to Black Streak virus. Pisang Ceylon grows to 14-16' tall and has a stout root system, making it one of the more "wind resistant" bananas. Very hardy and drought tolerant.
7g lady fingers
lady fingers fruiting in Live Oak
what we generically call a 'bunch' is technically called a 'hand'
and that makes this a 'finger'
More Varieties:
the popular Exotics
We carry many more varieties than just the basics: some for flavor, some for their extended cold tolerance and easier fruiting in the temperate conditions of Central Florida.
7g Raji Puri
Raji Puri Pineapple
RAJI PURI
Somewhat of a dwarf at 6-7' tall, Raji Puri is one of the more cold tolerant bananas for zones 8b & 9. It has the sweetness of a typical dessert banana, and ripens in about 5-6 months from spring, making it one of the faster bananas to fruit in the area.
RAJI PURI PINEAPPLE
Much like the Raji Puri, but maybe slightly shorter and tangier, reminiscent of a pineapple flavor.
7g Blue Java / Ice Cream banana
3g Dwarf Ice Cream 'Nam Wah'
'BLUE JAVA' aka ICE CREAM BANANA
Ice Cream grows 12-14' tall, has a vanilla & cream flavor, and is root hardy in zone 9a, maybe some of 8b if in protected micro-climates.
Nam Wah aka DWARF ICE CREAM
Dwarf Ice Cream only reaches 5-6' tall, has a similar vanilla & cream flavor, and is root hardy in zone 9a, maybe some of 8b if grown in protected micro-climates.
3g Apple banana
Double Mahoi is quite robust
MANZANO aka 'APPLE' BANANA
Like its name, 'Apple' has a distinct sweet apple flavor, strong tart apple smell, and a firmer texture than the Cavendish bananas. Not as cold tolerant as Raji Puri -- better suited to zone 9b and warmer.
DOUBLE MAHOI
Double Mahoi is actually a type of dwarf Cavendish, typically reaching only 5-6' tall for the 'trunk'. Very wide, dark green leaves silhoutee 2 or more bunches of fruit simultaneously.
YES, we have NO bananas!
Update 2026: NO bananas available this season. Sorry, but we've run out of space for the moment. They will be back: later.
