Musa basjoo

MP-0016 / 0024 — Musaceae

Musa basjoo Siebold & Zucc. ex Iinuma (identity to be confirmed)
Basho (JP)

A giant herb whose trunk is a cylinder of leaf sheaths; in Okinawa, banana fibre is woven into bashofu cloth.

Distribution

The native range of Musa basjoo is uncertain (southern China is usually given); in the Ryukyus, the fibre banana known as ito-basho is treated as Musa balbisiana (syn. M. liukiuensis).

Habitat

Cultivated in gardens and fields, and naturalised near villages in moist, sheltered sites.

Morphology

A giant perennial herb. The apparent trunk (pseudostem) is a tight cylinder of overlapping leaf sheaths. Leaves are very large, oblong, with a strong midrib and many parallel lateral veins that tear easily along the veins in wind. Flowers are borne in a pendulous bunch with large bracts.

Botanical notes

In Okinawa, bashofu — a textile woven from banana fibre — is a nationally designated craft whose village of origin, Kijoka in Ogimi, lies in Yambaru. The fibre plant used there is ito-basho (Musa balbisiana, syn. M. liukiuensis); whether the plant shown here is that taxon or Musa basjoo is still to be confirmed.

References

Taxonomy and distribution follow Plants of the World Online (Kew), YList (Yonekura & Kajita) and regional floras; CITES Species+ for trade status. Descriptions are provisional and are revised as specimens are verified.