The Banana Plant Rule.....

The banana plant (musa acuminata) is the path towards a "Green" future.  Every single part of this plant has a use.  Of course we eat the fruit:

I am told the banana fruit can even be made into wine, although I have never tried this.

Banana peels are rich in calcium, potassium and Vitamin D.  The peel can be rubbed on skin to soften skin, or rubbed on teeth after brushing to whiten them.  Of course they make great compost ingredients.

But this is only a small part of how this miraculous plant is used.  The leaves (when fresh) are used as a wrapper (and natural plate) for steaming rice dishes or tamales:

or when dried woven into a beautiful basket:

or as a roof:

The BLOSSOM is a tasty "veggie" for curries, and it tastes very much like meat.  One must know how to prepare it, however, or have black stains on counters that will NEVER come out.  It's delicious!

For weddings or special events the trunks were hollowed out and carved (much like pumpkins) into which tiny coconut oil lamps were placed.  Some were so intricate....sorry I can't find photos of one, but they were beautiful.

The trunks were also used as fodder for animals and the "shoot" within the trunk was used for cooking.  The fibre of the trunk was woven into a fabric as fine as silk and made into shirts and "cholis" (sari blouses):

In essence none of the plant ever went to waste.  Our ancestors used various plants in similar ways...sometimes the roots were boiled to make dyes, but what we need to do is live life according to the Banana Plant "rule" - NOTHING goes to waste, NOTHING!!!

One simple way to start is to carry your own bag (preferably cloth that can be washed) to the grocery store instead of using "plastic bags".   Even as you pick your veggies - so many people place them in plastic bags....why?  Presumably, you will wash all your veggies anyway before cooking, so why waste more plastic?

And what do we do with all the excess plastic that WRAPS chicken and stuff??  Please someone tell me.  And the styrofoam trays into which the meat is placed IS recyclable, so keep that in mind. 

This is my poster for awareness of conservation (that's what we USED to call it, now we call it "going GREEN") - do we want to leave such a legacy of pollution to our grandchildren?

Let's all try the Banana Plant Rule - before it's too late!