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Musa troglodytarum

L. (1763)

This name is accepted

Kingdom: Viridiplantae Phylum: Magnoliophyta Class/Clade: Monocots Order: Zingiberales Family: Musaceae Genus: Musa

borabora, fe‘i banana [fei banana], mai‘a hē‘ī [maia hei], mai‘a polapola [maia polapola]

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Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Polymorphic herbs 5–12 m tall, sap purple.

Stems: Pseudostems shiny black on lower portion, grading to bright green above, 3–8 m long, 20–55 cm in diameter at base.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Alternate, ascending. Blades 200–400 cm long, 40–60 cm wide. Base with a course basal sheath, sheathing bases closely overlapping and appressed to each other, forming an erect, herbaceous pseudostem from which the petioles depart at the summit (Pseudo)petioles 30–100 cm long. Surfaces bright green. Margins entire. Veins parallel. Petioles 20–50 cm long. Stipules absent.

Flowers: Flowers in inflorescences erect, fruiting axis stout, 30–60 cm long, 7–12 cm in diameter. Flowers irregular, functionally unisexual, those subtended by the lower bracts pistillate, those subtended by the upper bracts staminate. Tepals 6, in 2 series, petaloid, upper 5 connate into a tubular structure, adaxial tepal distinct. Stamens 5 with 1 reduced staminode; filaments slender, distinct; anthers linear, dithecal. Ovary inferior (pistillate flowers), 3-celled, 2–12, 5–6 cm long, split to base adaxially, nectariferous, enclosed within green, lanceolate bracts ca. 30 cm long and 10 cm wide, ovary 2–8 cm long.

Fruit: Fruit variable in size and shape; stout; straight to slightly curved; 8–22 cm long; 4–8 cm in diameter; apex tapered to rounded; skin tough and leathery; ripening orange to reddish orange; flesh starchy; pale lemon yellow. Seeds absent or few; scattered; 4–6 mm in diameter; seed coat black; irregular; hard.

Ploidy: 2n = 20

Habitat: Sparingly cultivated and persisting in mesic to wet valleys at low elevations.

Elevation Range:

Historical Distribution

Images

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Uses and Culture

USES

  • Introduced relatively recently, from Tahiti where it is used as a main starch crop, cooked when mature, similar to breadfruit; black stems used in weaving with hala (Wagner et al. 1990:1466).

  • Purple dye (sap)

Natural History

Statewide Status

Only found in cultivation

Island Status

Kaua'i Only found in cultivation
O'ahu Only found in cultivation
Molokai Only found in cultivation
Maui Only found in cultivation
Hawai'i Only found in cultivation

Dispersal Agents


Pollinators

Bibliography

Name Published In: Sp. Pl. ed. 2: 1478 (1763)

Other References

Wagner et al. 1990:1466 (K?, O, Mo?, M?, H? [only spm. at BISH is from 1960 in Pālolo Valley, O]); Whistler 1991:61 (status change from pol to nat); Staples & Herbst 2005:707 (KEY), 710 (DESCR)

Occurrences

SNo. Scientific Name Locality Habitat Basis of Record Description Recorded By Record Number Island Source Date
1 Musa troglodytarum Waiale River Preserved_Specimen Weed very large and imbricate heads. MacDaniels, L.H. 30276 Maui BISH 1927-01-01
2 Musa troglodytarum Koolau Mts.; Palolo Valley ca. 1.5 mile above uppermost house Abundant in small area on Palolo stream. Preserved_Specimen Sap clear; infruct. erect; frt coppery-orange skinned. Stone, B.C. 3428 Oahu BISH 1960-05-06
3 Musa troglodytarum Koolau Mts.; Palolo Valley ca. 1.5 mile above uppermost house Abundant in small area on Palolo stream. Preserved_Specimen Sap clear; infruct. erect; frt coppery-orange skinned. Stone, B.C. 3428 Oahu BISH 1960-05-06
4 Musa troglodytarum Koolau Mts.; Palolo Valley ca. 1.5 mile above uppermost house Abundant in small area on Palolo stream. Preserved_Specimen Sap clear; infruct. erect; frt coppery-orange skinned. Stone, B.C. 3428 Oahu BISH 1960-05-06
5 Musa troglodytarum Tantalus, U.S.Exp.Sta Preserved_Specimen (terminal part of inflorescence) MacDaniels, L.H. 30278 Oahu BISH 1926-10-12
6 Musa troglodytarum N. fork of Wailua River Preserved_Specimen MacDaniels, L.H. 302732 Kauai BISH 1927-02-01
7 Musa troglodytarum Preserved_Specimen Young fruits and male flowers. MacDaniels, L.H. 302714 Oahu BISH 1926-10-20
8 Musa troglodytarum Foster Gardens Preserved_Specimen Plant 3' tall, 1 thick; largest leaf: petiole 12 long, blade 24 x 9.5, blades & petioles of largest lvs & stalks green; smallest leaf, nearest infl., w/long red petiole & green blade. Flr: peduncle & rachis yellow; flr bracts stiff, scarlet tipped. w/green, flr yellow tipped w/green. Basal fl bracts each 4 + 1 2.5 long female flr & frt. Middle flr bracts empty 2.5 long. Upper flr bracts each w/2 male flrs (bracts 2 long, flr 1.5 long). Potter, C. Oahu BISH 1958-10-21
9 Musa troglodytarum Wahiawa Preserved_Specimen Stem 3+ ft. high; infl. erect; flr light orange-yellow, male above, female below, female prod. or 1 or O in ea. bract; bracts scarlet, 10 (lower) to 2 (upper) long, tipped w/light orange-yellow. Coker, A.H. Oahu BISH 1959-03-16
10 Musa troglodytarum Hilo Preserved_Specimen MacDaniels, L.H. 30277 Hawaii BISH 1926-11-01
11 Musa troglodytarum O'ahu Cultivated in lowland Metrosideros forest UNKNOWN . Coordinates do not match to country in source data. Not found a country in reverser geocoding. Bioversity International R. E. Palmer Oahu HAPI 3/5/1998
12 Musa troglodytarum Wahiawa Preserved_Specimen Stem 3+ ft. high; infl. erect; flr light orange-yellow, male above, female below, female prod. or 1 or O in ea. bract; bracts scarlet, 10 (lower) to 2 (upper) long, tipped w/light orange-yellow. Coker, A.H. Oahu BISH 1959-03-16
13 Musa troglodytarum Tantalus, W.side Preserved_Specimen MacDaniels, L.H. 302710 Oahu BISH 1926-12-01
14 Musa troglodytarum Waimanalo, near Mauanawili division ridge Preserved_Specimen Oswald, O. Oahu BISH 1934-03-22
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