The banana
๐ In short
The banana is a tasty, filling fruit that grows in hot, rainy countries. It's long and curved, with yellow skin that's easy to peel. The banana plant looks like a tree, but it's really a giant herb, the biggest in the world!
๐คฉ Did you know?
- A banana plant is between two and a half and nine meters tall.
- A hand usually has between 10 and 20 bananas.
- A banana plant gives one bunch and then dies, and a new plant grows in its place.
- Wild bananas have big hard seeds, but the bananas we eat have tiny ones.
๐ Find out more
๐ It's not a tree
A banana plant has no woody trunk like trees; what looks like a trunk is leaves rolled tightly around each other. Its leaves are huge, and people sometimes use them as umbrellas or plates.
๐ Hands and fingers
Bananas grow in a big hanging bunch made of groups: each group is called a โhandโ, and each banana a โfingerโ.
๐ก It ripens after picking
Bananas are picked green and ripen on the way, turning yellow. If they're left a long time, brown spots appear and they get sweeter.
๐ฏ Quick energy
Bananas give the body quick energy, so athletes love them. They're rich in potassium, which is good for muscles and the heart.
๐ธ More pictures
๐งฉ Test yourself
1 Is the banana plant a tree?
2 What do we call one banana in a bunch?
3 Which picture shows โThe bananaโ?
๐ณ Discover more
๐ท Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons
- VicFic2006 ยท CC BY-SA 4.0
- Scot Nelson ยท CC0
- Shubert Ciencia ยท CC BY 2.0
- Steve Hopson, www.stevehopson.com ยท CC BY-SA 2.5
