BANANA FACTS

A cluster of bananas is called a hand and consists of 10
to 20 bananas, which are known as fingers.


As bananas ripen, the starch in the fruit turns to sugar.
Therefore, the riper the banana the sweeter it will taste.

                        

Banana plants are the largest plants on earth without a
woody stem. They are actually giant herbs of the same
family as lilies, orchids and palms.



Bananas are one of the few fruits that ripen best off the
plant. If left on the plant, the fruit splits open and the
pulp has a "cottony" texture and flavor.


Bananas were officially introduced to the American public
at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. Each banana
was wrapped in foil and sold for 10 cents. Before that
time, bananas came to America on the decks of sailing ships
as sailors took a few stems home after traveling in the
Caribbean.

                          

Each banana plant bears only one stem of fruit. To produce
a new stem, only two shoots - known as the daughter and
the granddaughter - are allowed to grow and be cultivated
from the main plant.