Latundan banana
{{Short description|Type of banana originating in the Philippines}}
{{redirect|Pisang raja sereh| Pisang raja udang|Red banana}}
{{Use dmy dates|date = February 2019}}
{{Use American English|date = February 2019}}
{{Infobox cultivar
| name = Musa 'Silk'
| image = Ripe latundan bananas.jpg
| image_caption = Apple bananas
| hybrid =Musa acuminata × Musa balbisiana
| cultivar = 'Silk'
| group = AAB Group (Pome Group)
| origin = The Philippines
}}
The Latundan banana (also called Tundan, silk banana, Pisang raja sereh, Manzana banana, or apple banana) is a triploid hybrid banana cultivar of the AAB "Pome" group from the Philippines. It is one of the most common banana cultivars in Southeast Asia and the Philippines, along with Lacatan and Saba bananas.{{cite web |url= http://www.fao.org/docrep/007/ae216e/ae216e07.htm|title= Analysis of induced mutants of Philippine bananas with molecular markers|author= Hautea, D.M., G.C. Molina, C.H. Balatero, N.B. Coronado, E.B. Perez, M.T.H. Alvarez, A.O. Canama, R.H. Akuba, R.B. Quilloy, R.B. Frankie, C.S. Caspillo| date= 2002-07-19|publisher= Institute of Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, University of the Philippines Los Baños, FAO Corporate Document Repository|access-date=12 January 2011}} Its Malaysian name is pisang rastali.{{cite web | url=https://pepper.ph/go-bananas-11-varieties-worth-seeking-philippines/ | title=Go Bananas with These 12 Varieties Worth Seeking Out in the Philippines | date=5 April 2021 }}
Description
Latundan banana plants typically reach a height of {{convert|3|-|4|m|ft|sp=us}}. They require full or partial sun exposure. The flowers are yellow, purple, or ivory in color. The fruits are round-tipped with thin yellow skin that splits once fully ripe. They are smaller than the Lacatan cultivar and the commercially dominant Cavendish bananas.{{cite web |url=http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/lacatan-latundan-senorita-bananas|title= Lacatan, Latundan & Senorita bananas| date= March 8, 2007|publisher= marketmanila.com|access-date=13 January 2011}}{{cite web|url=http://www.da.gov.ph/tips/banana.html|title=BANANA|date=March 8, 2007|publisher=Philippine Department of Agriculture|access-date=13 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20030626214805/http://www.da.gov.ph/tips/banana.html|archive-date=26 June 2003}} They have a slightly acidic, apple-like flavor.{{cite web|url=http://www.learn2grow.com/plants/musa-silk-silk-a-a-b-group/|title=Musa 'Silk', AAB Group|publisher=learn2grow.com|access-date=11 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308110608/http://www.learn2grow.com/plants/musa-silk-silk-a-a-b-group/|archive-date=8 March 2012|url-status=dead}}
Taxonomy
In older classifications, the Latundan cultivar was once the plant referred to as Musa sapientum. It has since been discovered that Musa sapientum is a hybrid cultivar of the wild seeded bananas Musa balbisiana and Musa acuminata and not a species.{{cite web |url= http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~drc/msapientum.htmu/Sorting/Musa.html|title= Musa sapientum|publisher=users.globalnet.co.uk|access-date=11 January 2011}}{{dead link|date=October 2012}}
The Latundan banana is a triploid (AAB) hybrid.{{cite web |url= http://www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au/Sorting/Musa.html|title= Sorting Musa names|author= Michel H. Porcher| author2 = Prof. Snow Barlow| date= 2002-07-19|publisher= The University of Melbourne|access-date=11 January 2011}}
Its full name is Musa acuminata × M. balbisiana (AAB Group) 'Silk'.
Uses
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
= Culinary =
Latundan bananas are popular dessert bananas that are eaten raw or cooked without the skin. The shoots and stalks are eaten cooked. In Myanmar and Thailand, the flowers are cooked and eaten in some recipes.
= Home Decor =
They are also cultivated as ornamental plants.