Bananas are elongated curved tropical fruits that grow in hanging clusters from large flowering herbaceous plants native to Southeast Asia and Australia. Botanically classified as berries, bananas belong to the genus Musa and are a key crop in tropical and subtropical regions. They are seedless, contain soft sweet pulp and have outer skins that range in color from green to yellow to red or purple as they ripen.

Banana Varieties & Attributes

While wild banana varieties display diverse sizes and shapes, cultivated bananas fall under two primary species – Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. Modern edible varieties like Cavendish and Lady Finger belong to the acuminata species. Plantains are starchy thick-skinned relatives from the balbisiana species commonly used for cooking vs raw fruit consumption. Beyond appearance and texture, banana varieties differ in sugar content, fruitiness, acidity and ideal ripening stage for consumption.

Banana Growing Conditions

Bananas thrive in hot, humid equatorial areas with plenty of sunshine and rainfall. Most commercial cultivation utilizes rhizomes of registered varieties nurtured in nurseries and eventually transplanted into plantation rows where trees fruit after 9-15 months. Plants flower and bear fruit year round reaching peak yield by 18 months. After harvest, stalks are cut down after bearing fruit to allow ratoon suckers to mature for the next crop cycle. Major producers include India, China, Philippines and Ecuador.

Nutrition & Health Benefits of Bananas

Though naturally sweet, bananas rate low glycemic index while providing key nutrients including:

Fiber – improves digestion and heart health
Potassium – reduces muscle cramps; aids nervous system function
Vitamin B6 – promotes immune response
Antioxidants – counter cell damage from free radicals

Researched health benefits also include improving gut bacteria, blood pressure, heart function, exercise recovery, stress and insomnia.

Banana Industry & Trade

Modern banana cultivation and trade developed greatly in the late 19th century. Global production reached 114 million tons in 2016 with developing countries comprising the majority. Exports mainly flow from Central America to North America/Europe and from Philippines/Southeast Asia to Japan/China. Though most supply flows to fresh fruit demand, processing ranks second for uses like powder, flakes, jam and baby food. Companies like Chiquita, Dole and Del Monte dominate international markets.

Bananas in Culture & Cuisine

As a tropical staple exported worldwide, bananas appear extensively in global cuisines from fried plantains to banana splits. They serve as everything from fast snacks to gourmet ingredients like banana ketchup. Folklore and symbolism across various cultures also feature bananas from inspiring amusing idioms in Chinese to serving as fertility symbols. Banana artwork by pop artists like Andy Warhol and cultural references reinforce its iconic status.

Background on Banana Art

Even as early as the 1860s, bananas featured in still life painting by European artists like Henri Matisse. By the 1950s, bananas became a motif in pop art appearing in work of Andy Warhol, Claes Oldenburg and Basquiat as commentary on consumerism and globalization – often using symbolism of the banana’s curve. Contemporary banana art continues to have cultural resonance from kitschy figurines to phallic implications to rebutting racial stereotypes through reclaimed Chiquita iconography.

Context on Banana Clipart

Clipart refers to downloadable, pre-made graphics inserted to visually enhance materials. Banana clipart contains small cartoon banana images with bright, eye-catching colors rendered in vector or jpeg formats. Given pom culture and innuendo associated with bananas, much clipart has humorously exaggerated features.

Examples of Banana Clipart

Banana clipart visualizes the fruit across various forms:

Single bananas – Plain yellow curved shape; some smiling with faces
Peeled bananas – Exposed white fruit; may show dotted black seeds
Banana bunches – Cluster connected at stems with gradient of ripeness
Anthropomorphic bananas – Bananas with arms, faces and personalities
Prepared bananas – Sliced or as ingredient in splits, breads etc

Using Banana Clipart

Typical applications of banana clipart include:

Health promotions – Conveying nutritional advantages, fitness tie-ins
Cooking resources – Visually listing banana recipes, shakes etc as ingredients
Educational materials – Explaining banana plant life cycles, anatomy etc
Print marketing for produce sellers, grocers, fruit baskets etc
Tropical branding – Resorts, touring companies incorporating fruit motifs
Cards, crafts, events and decorations needing a pop of visual fun

The familiar curved form makes banana clipart very recognizable while injecting bright, playful personality.

In this page clipartix present 81 banana clipart images free for designing activities. Lets download Banana Clip Art that you want to use for works or personal uses.