Musa Ingens - Biggest Banana In The World

Banana is widely consumed all over the world and there are over 1,000 species out there. Among those species will be the Musa Ingens sometimes called Giant Highland Banana which is known to be the biggest banana in the world.

It is not a relatively new species as it has been planted many years ago. The Musa Ingens grow up to 25 meters in height with one banana truss weighing up to 60kg.

ADVERT

 

First Discovery

The first Musa Ingens was discovered in 1954 at Kabupaten Fakfak, Papua New Guinea. Its first discovery quickly brought sparks to the community due to how immensely huge the plant is.

During its first discovery, the banana plant was only found in small quantities. Despite its huge size, the Musa Ingens only grows in specific areas of the country and some even claimed that the plant grows voluntarily without any cultivating point.

The Musa Ingens plant grows to a whopping 25 meters in height and 2 meters in diameter. Not only the plant itself is huge but the leaves have an overall length of 5 meters long and 1.6 meters wide.

It is considered a giant tree that grows 1,000 - 2000 meters above sea level. The Musa Ingens is the biggest species in the Musaceae family and many studies have been done to learn deeply about this exotic fruit.

Huge Fruit Size

Aside from the plant and leaves, the fruit grows to a gigantic size and some of you might need some strength to lift this banana up. A Musa Ingens banana can be 18 - 20 cm in length and 3 - 4 cm in diameter.

ADVERT

This is of course far much bigger than your typical banana. It has a golden yellow flesh when ripe just like any banana. The fruit is so big that some even compare it to a newborn baby.

Based on its physical traits, the Musa Ingen is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the biggest banana in the world. To take the ripe fruit, one would need to climb this slippery plantain to the top and use some mighty force to cut it down with a machete.

The locals made a stair of their own so the process can be much easier.

Difficult Cultivation

If you think of planting one in your home country then tough luck as it might never grow. Musa Ingens is quite different from other bananas as the shoots rarely sprout which lengthens the period of cultivation.

Despite its popularity, this banana plant is still very uncommon as no one is entirely sure of the potential benefits it brings compared to other bananas. Until then, this banana will remain as this massive plantain that holds so many mysteries.

Source:

• Detik Food

Also read: Top 7 Biggest Flower Species In The World