NATIONAL BANANA DAY - NATIONALDAYS CHALLENGE
WHAT TO DO WITH A 19 CENT BANANA
Celebrate! It is April 8th, National Banana Day! It's also World Heritage Day, but I am nowhere near finishing the post I started for that one, so I'm saving it for another day. So, National Banana Day it is!
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Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
Click on the image to view full screen!
| Camera | EOS 5D Mark II |
| Lens | EF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM |
| Exposure | 1/125 sec; f/29; ISO 100 |
| Post-processing | Adobe Photoshop®, Adobe Camera Raw |
No don't go bananas on me when I tell you that bananas are the most popular fruit in the world, 100 billion of them being eaten every year! Did you know that they don't grow on trees? We have them in our yard, but when we have a cold winter like this past one here in Florida, the plant dies to the ground and regrows in the springtime. The banana plant is actually a herb (or an herb if you are American) – the world's largest one!
A new banana plant growing beside some saw palmetto plants in my Florida backyard.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 6S Plus
A dead banana plant this past winter in my Florida backyard
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Eating a banana is good for you. How? Eating a banana may reduce the risk of asthma and cancer and also help lower blood pressure. It contains tryptophan, which is converted into serotonin by your body. The result? Relaxation and a good mood! An average banana is only 95 calories too! It is also rich in all kinds of minerals, including potassium which is good for muscles and helps prevent kidney stones! A banana is also a good source of fiber.
And don't waste that banana peel when you are done eating the banana! You can rub the inside of the banana peel on your itching mosquito bites to help reduce the itch and inflammation.
Then when you are done with that, chop up the phosphorus, potassium and calcium rich peel and add it to the compost heap, or add it directly to the soil, burying it about four inches deep around the plants and away from the roots. You can also add the peel with water to a large container to make banana peel tea to use as a fertilizer your your plants. Just let the peel steep for a couple of days, and voilà - instant fertilizer!
Banana peels steeping in water to make banana peel tea.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 6S Plus
You can license my image of banana peel tea at Getty Images here
So, there you have it – all for a 19 cent banana at Trader Joe's – my favorite grocery store!
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Wow! I had no clue it is a herb!
I do go bananas for bananas :) And eat at least 1 a day. Such delicious fruit :)
Who knew eh? There is not really a trunk. The "trunk" is actually made up of curled banana leaves and is soft and fleshy!
Well, like bananas) Good evening)
Thanks for stopping by!
I love bananas. Thanks for sharing.
Just remember not to waste the skins! :-)
Just had a delicious banana this morning with a salad ( brunch).
Always have eaten them. Thank you for the post @dmcamera and the terrific photos :)
We really do have a national day for everything, even a banana :) Thanks for the banana info, just to put it out there, the banana peel is also good for gentle scrubbing of your plant leaves. I have to try that fertilizing thing you mentioned, thank you.
I didn't know there is a day for bananas. Every day we seem to celebrate something. We use our peels of fruits as fertilizers. Also, we can make banana patties out of banana peels :D
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