The bananas commonly found in grocery stores appear to be entirely seedless, which often leads people to wonder if bananas naturally lack seeds. While the bananas most people eat do not contain prominent seeds, their wild ancestors did, and many wild banana varieties still do. The absence of seeds in cultivated bananas is a result of centuries of human selection and agricultural development.
The Appearance of Wild Banana Seeds
Wild bananas contain numerous seeds. These seeds are typically hard and black, often described as pea-sized or larger, usually less than half an inch in diameter.
The seeds are not smooth; instead, they are irregularly angular with a wrinkled surface. When you peel a wild banana, these dark brown to black seeds are scattered throughout the fruit, often occupying a significant portion of the pulp. In some wild varieties, seeds can make up approximately 25% of the fruit, making the edible flesh less accessible and sometimes tough to chew.
Why Cultivated Bananas Lack Seeds
The seedless nature of cultivated bananas, such as the Cavendish variety, stems from a biological phenomenon called parthenocarpy. This process allows fruit to develop without fertilization, leading to seedless fruit. Early farmers selected wild banana plants that naturally produced fewer or smaller seeds, favoring those with more edible pulp.
Over time, through selective breeding and cultivation, banana varieties evolved to become triploid, meaning they possess three sets of chromosomes instead of the typical two found in most organisms. This triploid genetic makeup disrupts the normal process of sexual reproduction, specifically meiosis, preventing the formation of viable seeds. Modern cultivated bananas are primarily derived from two wild seeded species, Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, or hybrids thereof. These early domestication efforts, dating back at least 7,000 years in regions like Papua New Guinea, focused on propagating these desirable seedless traits vegetatively through methods such as suckers or tissue culture.
Growing Bananas from Seeds
While cultivated bananas are seedless and cannot be grown from their tiny, undeveloped ovules, it is possible to grow wild banana varieties from their seeds. However, this process is more challenging and time-consuming compared to propagating bananas vegetatively. Wild banana seeds possess a tough outer coat that inhibits germination, requiring pre-treatment to encourage sprouting.
To facilitate germination, the seeds typically need to be soaked in warm water for 24 to 48 hours and may benefit from scarification, a process of gently scratching or nicking the seed coat. Even with pre-treatment, germination can be slow and erratic, taking anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on the specific variety and environmental conditions. Ideal conditions for germination usually involve maintaining a consistently warm soil temperature, often between 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (15-27 degrees Celsius), and ensuring the soil remains moist but not waterlogged. The fruit produced from these seed-grown plants will contain large, hard seeds, differing significantly from the seedless bananas typically purchased.