Have you ever picked up a banana and thought about how they grow and how long it takes? Before I started growing bananas I wondered the same thing. I am continually looking at the time to harvest of different banana varieties and thought I would put a little table together for others who may be wondering as well and give you some answers.
How long does it take to grow bananas? In general, in good tropical conditions, bananas can produce fruit in 10 to 16 months from the planting date, while some produce in as little as 8 months or as long as 19 months. This is dependent on a number of factors including but not limited to banana variety, and in some cases banana crop cycles will be outside of these numbers.
With such a wide range of growing times it may be worth looking at some of the different varieties one may come across in the store, on banana farms, in nurseries, and hopefully some backyards.
How long does it take to grow banana plants. Common varieties and their time to harvest.
When most people talk about banana plants they are referring to commercial edible varieties, so that is what I will be writing about here. If you would like to know a little bit more about wild banana fruit you can read my article on wild banana fruit here.
To give you a little reference, the most common variety of banana in the United States is the Cavendish banana, and there are many sub varieties of Cavendish as well, two of which are listed in the chart below.
The Cavendish banana replaced the variety called Gros Michel as the major export banana in the 20th century. The Gros Michel was being decimated by Panama Disease. Panama disease is a soil born disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum. Cavendish showed resistance to this disease and replaced the Gros Michel, and is now the major export banana, for now. The Cavendish is being threatened by another strain of Panama Disease that is not resistant too, and it may also end up being replaced by another banana.
There are many varieties of banana around the world and some or destined for local markets only. Below I have listed some common varieties that are grown in different areas and the number of months it takes to harvest them from planting.
| Variety | Months to Harvest (In a tropical environment) |
|---|---|
| Grand Naine (Cavendish) | 10.1 |
| Williams (Cavendish) | 10.5 |
| Rose | 10.7 |
| Santa Catarina Prata | 12.7-14.9 |
| Hua Moa | 12.8 |
| Lakatan | 12.9 |
| Goldfinger (FHIA-1) | 13.6 |
| Monthan | 13.6 |
| Yangambi KM 5 | 13.8 |
| Saba | 14.8 |
| Mysore | 14.8 |
| Kru | 15.1 |
| Gros Michel | 15.6 |
| Cardaba | 15.7 |
It should be noted that the true months to harvest times may actually be longer for export bananas, like cavendish varieties for example. Export bananas are almost always picked early, when they are not ripe and the numbers above may reflect that.
If you are interested in learning about more varieties and there agronomic details please check out Banana Varieties The ACIAR Years 1987-1996 from the ACIAR which I found at MusaLit.org and Farmer’s handbook on introduced and local banana cultivars in the Philippines from Biodiversity International. Both are great resources and if you really feel like nerding out they are a fun read.
How long does it take for a banana fruit to grow? From fruit to flower.
Does it take a long time for banana fruit to develop though? Well lets compare it to another common fruit for referance, apples. According to BMC Plant Biology apples take around 150 days to develop which is longer than many bananas.
How long does it take for banana fruit to grow? Generally, in tropical areas it takes 90 to 140 days for the fruit of common banana varieties to develop. Bananas outside of the tropics or in unfavorable conditions will have different development times.
| Variety | Time From Flower To Fruit – In Days |
|---|---|
| Lakatan | 93 |
| Grand Naine | 93 |
| Williams (Cavendish) | 101 |
| Gros Michel | 108 |
| Rose | 122 |
| Goldfinger (FHIA-1) | 134 |
| Yangambi KM 5 | 141 |
| Cardaba | 141 |
Bananas aren’t trees though so comparing them to apples may not be the best example. Comparing them to something like tomatoes isn’t the best either because they produce fruit in a much shorter time than bananas. It is simply a reference to go by.
When to harvest bananas. Is there a banana season?
Banana fruit harvest times will vary depending on variety and the intent of the bananas being harvested. Export bananas will generally be harvested in the green stage, local market bananas and home grown bananas may or may not be harvested in the green stage depending on use.
Export bananas will generally be harvested in the green stage because the fruit will not be fully ripe, so it is more firm. This will allow the fruit to be shipped with less damage. Some bananas like some red bananas will not actually be green in the green stage, because they are actually red.
These export bananas will continue to ripen after harvest because bananas are a fruit that can actually ripen off the plant, while some other fruits must remain on the plant until maturity. This is something most people are probably familiar with as they watch the bananas on the counter or table start from green, then yellow, and then to turn spotted and eventually brown.
Local bananas can be picked ready to be consumed within a few days, so they may be fully or nearly ripe at harvest if they are going to be eaten fresh. If the bananas are a cooking variety they may be picked green because they will be higher in starch and don’t need to be sweet. There
What time of year are bananas harvested? Well, bananas aren’t really a seasonal fruit. They produce fruit at a certain stage of growth and it doesn’t matter what time of year it is. This is probably because bananas for the most part are a tropical fruit and ideal weather for fruiting is all year long.
What happens after bananas plants fruit, do banana plants die after harvest?
Unlike trees which bear fruit year after year and can also grow for many decades, or even hundreds of years, banana plants do not live very long. Well to be clear the main portion with the largest pseudostem dose not live that long.
After a banana bears fruit, the main portion of the plant with the largest pseudostem will die. The offshoots of the main banana plant, called a sucker or pup will continue to grow producing fruit of their own. Each one of these new plants will produce suckers of their own allowing a clump of bananas or what is more commonly referred to as a mat, to live indefinably.
In commercial production these banana suckers are usually cut off of the mother plant and planted in another location, or may be used for micropropagation of the bananas. I have also seen that some farms may leave a sucker on the mother if the sucker is in line with the row of bananas. That way no replanting is needed. They only need to remove the mother plant after harvest or simply cut it down.