1.2- Genus Misa - Banana and Plantain + Overview In most treatments, the family Musaceae has twogenera, MusaandEnsete. Cultivatedbananasare commercially important members of the family. Musais one of twogenerain the family Musaceae; it includesbananasandplantains. Around 70speciesofMusaare known, with a broad variety of uses. Though they grow as high as trees, banana and plantain plants are not woody and their apparent "stem" is made up of the bases of the huge leafstalks. Thus, they are technically gigantic herbs.
+ The names The word "banana" came to English from Spanish and Portuguese, which in turn apparently obtained it from a West African language (possiblyWolof). From the time of Linnaeus until the 1940s, different types of edible bananas and plantains were given Linnaean binomial names, such as Musa cavendishii, as if they were species. In fact, edible bananas have an extremely complicated origin involving hybridization, mutation, and finally selection by humans. Most edible bananas are seedless (parthenocarpic), hence sterile, so they are propagated vegetatively. The giving of species names to what are actually very complex, largely asexual, hybrids (mostly of two species of wild bananas, Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana) led to endless confusion in banana botany. In the 1940s and 1950s, it became clear to botanists that the cultivated bananas and plantains could not usefully be assigned Linnean binomials, but were better given cultivar names.
+ Cultivated bananas A number of distinct groups of plants bearing edible fruit have been developed from species of Musa. In English, fruits which are sweet and used for dessert are usually called "bananas", whereas starchier varieties used for cooking are called "plantains", but these terms do not have any botanical significance. By far the largest and now the most widely distributed group of cultivated bananas is derived from section Musa, particularly Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, either alone or in various hybrid combinations. The next but much smaller group is derived from members of section Callimusa (previously classified as Australimusa) and is restricted in importance to Polynesia. Of even more restricted importance are small groups of hybrids from Papua New Guinea; a group from section Musa to which Musa schizocarpa has also contributed, and a group of hybrids between section Musa and section Callimusa.
2- Taxonomy of the Genus Musa
2.1-History The genusMusawas first named byCarl Linnaeusin 1753. The name is a Latinization of the Arabic name for the fruit,mauz.MauzmeaningMusais discussed in the 11th-century Arabic encyclopediaThe Canon of Medicine, which was translated to Latin in medieval times and well known in Europe.Muzis also the Turkish and Persian name for the fruit. Some sources assert thatMusais named forAntonius Musa, physician to the EmperorAugustus.The word "banana" came to English from Spanish and Portuguese, which in turn apparently obtained it from a West African language (possiblyWolof). From the time of Linnaeus until the 1940s, different types of edible bananasandplantains were given Linnaean binomial names, such asMusa cavendishii, as if they were species. In fact, edible bananas have an extremely complicated origin involvinghybridization,mutation, and finallyselectionby humans. Most edible bananas are seedless (parthenocarpic), hence sterile, so they are propagated vegetatively. The giving of species names to what are actually very complex, largely asexual, hybrids (mostly of two species of wild bananas, Musa acuminataandMusa balbisiana) led to endless confusion in bananabotany. In the 1940s and 1950s, it became clear to botanists that the cultivated bananas and plantains could not usefully be assigned Linnean binomials, but were better given cultivar names.
2.2- Taxonomic System of the Genus Musa 2.2.1- Linnaean binomial name system From the time of Linnaeus until the 1940s, different types of edible bananasandplantains were given Linnaean binomial names, such asMusa cavendishii, as if they were species. + Sections Ernest Entwistle Cheesmancarried out a major revision of theMusaceaein the 1940s. Following his approach, the genusMusawas divided into five sections:Ingentimusa, Australimusa, Callimusa, Musa, andRhodochlamys. These were reduced to three in 2002. Previously, the2n = 20-chromosome species were separated into the sections AustralimusaandCallimusaand the 2n = 22-chromosome species were separated into the sectionsMusaandRhodochlamys. Studies have shown that genetic differences between each section in the same chromosome group are smaller than those within each section. This means the traditional separation of the sections can no longer be substantiated. Wong's studies do, however, maintain the separation between the 20- and 22-chromosome species. At present, the 2n = 14 chromosomeIngentimusasection also remains distinct. + Species The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families accepts 68 species and two primary hybrids, as of January 2013, which are listed below. The assignment to sections is based on GRIN (where this gives the species), regrouped according to Wong et al.
2- SectionIngentimusa 1- Musa ingensN.W.Simmonds 3- SectionMusa(incorporatingRhodochlamys) 1- Musa acuminataColla– wild seeded banana, one of the two main ancestors of modern edible banana cultivars 2- Musa acuminatassp.zebrina[=M.&nsbp;sumatrana]– blood banana 3- Musa aurantiacaG.Mann ex Baker 4- Musa balbisianaColla– wild seeded banana, one of the two main ancestors of modern edible banana cultivars 5- Musa banksiiF.Muell. 6- Musa basjooSiebold & Zucc. ex Iinuma– Japanese fiber banana, hardy banana. 7- Musa cheesmaniiN.W.Simmonds 8- Musa chuniiHäkkinen 9- Musa griersoniiNoltie 10- Musa itineransCheesman 11- Musa lateritaCheesman 12- Musa manniiH.Wendl. ex Baker 13- Musa nagensiumPrain 14- Musa ochraceaK.Sheph. 15- Musa ornataRoxb. 16- Musa×paradisiacaL.=M. acuminata×M. balbisiana– many of the cultivated edible bananas 17- Musa roseaBaker 18- Musa rubineaHäkkinen & C.H.Teo 19- Musa rubraWall. ex Kurz 20- Musa sanguineaHook.f. 21- Musa schizocarpaN.W.Simmonds 22- Musa siamensisHäkkinen & Rich.H.Wallace 23- Musa sikkimensisKurz 24- Musa thomsonii(King ex Baker) A.M.Cowan & Cowan 25- Musa velutinaH.Wendl. & Drude– pink banana 26- Musa yunnanensisHäkkinen & H.Wang– Yunnan banana, wild forest banana 27- Musa zaifuiHäkkinen & H.Wang
4- Section undetermined or unknown 1- Musa arfakianaArgent 2- Musa celebicaWarb. ex K.Schum. 3- Musa juwinianaMeekiong 4- Musa kattuvazhanaK.C.Jacob 5- Musa lanceolataWarb. ex K.Schum. 6- Musa luteaR.V.Valmayoret al. 7- Musa sakaianaMeekionget al. 8- Musa shankariiSubba Rao & Kumari 9- Musa splendidaA.Chev. 10- Musa tonkinensisR.V.Valmayoret al. 11- Musa yamiensisC.L.Yeh & J.H.Chen 5- Formerly placed here 1- Ensete davyae(Stapf) Cheesman(asM. davyaeStapf) 2- Ensete gilletii(De Wild.) Cheesman(asM. gilletiiDe Wild.orM. martretianaA.Chev.) 3- Ensete glaucum(Roxb.) Cheesman(asM. glaucaRoxb.) 4- Ensete lasiocarpum(Franch.) Cheesman(asM. lasiocarpaFranch.) - also placed in a separate genus asMusella lasiocarpa(Franch.) C.Y.Wu ex H.W.Li 5- Ensete livingstoniana(J. Kirk) Cheesman(asM. livingstonianaJ.Kirk) 6- Ensete perrieri(Stapf) Cheesman(asM. perrieriClaverie) 7- Ensete superbum(Roxb.) Cheesman(asM. superbaRoxb.) 8- Ensete ventricosum(Welw.) Cheesman(asM. arnoldianaDe Wild.,M. enseteJ.F.Gmel.orM. ventricosum(Welw.) Cheesman) 9- Heliconia bihai(L.) L. (as M. bihai L.)
2.2.2- Cultivar Group System + Overview In the 1940s and 1950s, it became clear to botanists that the cultivated bananas and plantains could not usefully be assigned Linnean binomials, but were better givencultivar names. Banana cultivars derived fromMusa acuminataandMusa balbisianacan be classified into cultivar groups using two criteria. - The first is the number ofchromosomes: whether the plant isdiploid,triploidortetraploid. - The second is relationship to the two ancestral species, which may be determined bygenetic analysisor by a scoring system devised by Simmonds and Shepherd. A cultivar is scored on 15 characters, chosen because they differ between the two species. Each character is given a score between one and five according to whether it is typical ofMusa acuminataor ofMusa babisianaor is in between. Thus the total score for a cultivar will range from 15 if all characters agree withMusa acuminatato 75 if all characters agree withMusa balbisiana. Intermediate scores suggest mixed ancestry: for example, 45 would be expected for diploids with equal genetic contributions from both species. Groups are then named using a combination of the letters "A" and "B". The number of letters shows the ploidy; the proportion of As and Bs the contributions of the ancestral species. The AAB Group, for example, comprises triploid cultivars with more genetic inheritance fromMusa acuminatathanMusa balbisiana. A character score of around 35 is expected for members of this group. Within groups, cultivars may be divided into subgroups and then given a cultivar name, e.g.MusaAAA Group (Cavendish Subgroup) 'Robusta'. The following is alist of banana cultivarsand the groups into which they are classified. Almost all modern cultivated varieties (cultivars) of edible bananasandplantainsarehybridsandpolyploids of two wild, seeded banana species,Musa acuminataandMusa balbisiana. Cultivated bananas are almost always seedless (parthenocarpic) and hence sterile, so they are propagated vegetatively. They are classified into groups according to a genome-based system introduced by Ernest Cheesman, Norman Simmonds, and Ken Shepherd, which indicates the degree of genetic inheritance from the two wild parents and the number ofchromosomes (ploidy). Cultivars derived fromMusa acuminataare more likely to be used as dessert bananas, while those derived fromMusa balbisianaand hybrids of the two are usually plantains or cooking bananas. For a more detailed explanation of this system and a list of some edible banana and plantain cultivars using it, see the List of banana cultivars.
+ List of banana cultivars 1- AA Group DiploidMusa acuminata, both wild banana plants and cultivars: 1- Chingan banana 2- Lacatan banana 3- Lady Finger banana(Sugar banana) 4- Pisang jari buaya(Crocodile fingers banana) 5- Señorita banana(Monkoy, Arnibal banana, Cuarenta dias, Cariñosa, Pisang Empat Puluh Hari, Pisang Lampung) 6- Sinwobogi banana 2- AAA Group TriploidMusa acuminata, both wild banana plants and cultivars: + Cavendish Subgroup: 1- 'Dwarf Cavendish' 2- 'Giant Cavendish'('Williams') 3- 'Grand Nain'('Chiquita') 4- 'Masak Hujau' 5- 'Robusta' 6- 'Red Dacca' 7- Dwarf Red banana 8- Gros Michel banana + East African Highland bananas(AAA-EA subgroup) 3- AAAA Group TetraploidMusa acuminata, both wild bananas and cultivars: 1- Bodles Altafort banana 2- Golden Beauty banana 4- AAAB Group Tetraploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca 1- Atan banana 2- Goldfinger banana 5- AAB Group Triploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca. This group contains: + The Iholena and Maoli-Popo'ulu subgroups are referred to as Pacific plantains. + Iholena subgroup -subgroup of cooking bananas domesticated in the Pacific region + Maoli-Popo'ulu subgroup -subgroup of cooking bananas domesticated in the Pacific region 1- Maqueño banana 2- Popoulu banana + Mysore subgroup -cooking and dessert bananas 1- Mysore banana + Pisang Raja subgroup 1- Pisang Raja banana + Plantain subgroup The Plantain subgroup, composed of "true" plantains or African Plantains - whose centre of diversity is Central and West Africa, where a large number of cultivars were domesticated following the introduction of ancestral Plantains from Asia, possibly 2000-3000 years ago. 1- French plantain 2- Green French banana 3- Horn plantain&Rhino Horn banana 4- Nendran banana 5- Pink French banana 6- Tiger banana + Pome subgroup 1- Pome banana 2- Prata-anã banana(Dwarf Brazilian banana, Dwarf Prata) + Silk subgroup 1- Latundan banana(Silk banana, Apple banana) + Others 1- Pisang Seribu banana 2- Plu banana 6- AABB Group Tetraploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca 1- Kalamagol banana 2- Pisang Awak(Ducasse banana) 7- AB Group Diploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca 1- Ney Poovan banana 8- ABB Group Triploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca + Blue Java banana subgroup 1- Ice Cream banana 2- Ney mannan 3- Ash plantain 4- Pata hina 5- Dukuru 6- Vata + Bluggoe subgroup 1- Bluggoe banana 2- Silver Bluggoe banana 3- Pelipita banana(Pelipia, Pilipia) + Saba subgroup 1- Saba banana(Cardaba, Dippig) 2- Cardaba banana 3- Benedetta banana 9- ABBB Group Tetraploid cultivars ofMusa×paradisiaca 1- Tiparot banana 10- BB Group DiploidMusa balbisiana, wild bananas 11- BBB Group TriploidMusa balbisiana, wild bananas and cultivars 1- Kluai Lep Chang Kut(?) Source: List of banana cultivars - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_banana_cultivars .