Introduction

Design Resource

Banana Fiber Craft - Ernakulam, Kerala

Ancient Banana leaf Craft

Prof. Bibhudutta Baral,Divyadarshan C. S. andLija M G

Introduction

Any south Indian would enjoy the meal with eating on the Banana leaf that was the typical tradition practiced long before. But even today during marriages, festivals and family functions food is served on the banana leaves with varieties of curries and side dishes along with it. In Kerala, most of the houses grow the banana plant at their home surroundings and taken care by themselves. But in Kacheripady of Ernakulam district of Kerala in India, people have found the technique of extracting the fibers from the pseudo stem of the banana plant at the Vimala welfare centre.

They prefer the manual method of extracting the fiber and as there is a shortage, the banana fibers are brought from Tamil Nadu to make into variety of products. There are various types of banana such as the following.

Pisang Mas:
These fruits that are small, thin and straight with sweet taste.

Gros Michel:
These fruits are lesser solid with texture as plum.

Orinoco/ Topocho:
These fruits have thick body and is bigger than the rest of the bananas.

Purple:
These fruits are resistant to illness with a strong flavor.

Apple:
These are more numbers in bunches with a good flavor and nice aroma.

Big Cavendish/ Grand Naine:
These fruits are thick skin and dwarf bananas.

Male:
These fruits are few in numbers with good taste generally fried and cooked.

It is one of the oldest fruits of India which is the rich source of energy. Nearly all parts of the plants are useful and also the fruit as ripe and unripe. Bananas are botanically a berry which is an edible fruit, with the plant that is a herbaceous flowering plant.

Bananas are called perennial herbs that aren’t the real trees. The trunks of the banana consist of leaf stalks with new leaves rising inside below the ground. Even the flower push through central and emerge from the centre of the crown. It takes about nine months to grow and produce the bunch of bananas with little baby plants (suckers) around the base. The suckers can be taken and planted separately or left with the mother plant to be grown. Bananas generally need an ideal temperature of 26-30⁰c with lot of water and very rich soil for plantation. Every part of this plant can be used for various end uses, even after cutting the fibers for various products.

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Banana Fiber Craft - Ernakulam, Kerala