Bananas

At the garden I learned a little about bananas.

After the tree fruits, you remove the stem that held the stalk because after it fruits the stem dies. You cut it off to about knee-high with a saw. Cut it in cord wood sized chunks and let them fall to the ground around the base of the tree as you go down. You should be careful of the sap the comes out when you cut the stems. The sap is the basis for indigo die and can stain your clothing black. I got some sap on my shirt but didn't see any stain. I did see some stain on my arm, however.

If you want to tidy up the banana tree, you can cut off old leaves and also leave them around the base of the tree. Cut them off at the petiole. The banana will start new shoots to replace the old and the chunks of old stem and leaves will nourish the new shoots.

I also learned that a couple of Costa Ricans had said that a banana tree should have a mother, father, son, daughter, aunt and uncle. They meant that's how many stems the tree should have.

I learned from my own observation that the fruit lasts a long time on the stalk but once you cut some off, you better hurry home or eat them quick because they go bad quickly.

I pruned all the banana trees in the garden today and found out the garden needs a web site. I offered to help with that. I also got a lead on a part time job listening to tapes of whales in the arctic. Soon the adult education schedule will be out. I know I will find more things to do through that avenue.

Sometimes it is good to just let life unfold as it happens. It's just like the trail. I didn't know where I would sleep each night and I didn't know what the trail would be like each day. But every day I followed the trail and never failed to find a place to sleep.