Banana is a plant which  has a life span of 12 to 15 months and takes around 8 to 9 month to grow full height and there it starts  fruit bearing.  Approximate days taken for fruit maturity itself is 50 to 100 days.  During the entire period,  some of the special cultural  operations are to be carried out to keep the banana plants healthy for better fruit  yield with enhanced size and  quality. These practices include Mattoking, De suckering, Propping, Bunch trimming, Bunch covering and removal of leaves.

Special Cultural Practices to be Performed in Banana Cultivation

Desuckering:

       Desuckering is the practice where the unwanted suckers around the mother plant are cut and cleared.   No doubt suckers are the main  propagating materials in banana cultivation,  which ensures continuity in  cultivation and fruit productions.   The appearance   of suckers is a continuous phenomenon as auxiliary buds of under ground stem keep producing them. These suckers start emerging when the mother plant attains the age of three month. The number of suckers produced  depends on the variety, seasons and soil fertility. But the presence of too many suckers are unwanted and same compete with mother plants for nutrients and space. Retaining  one sucker to one mother plant is the  usual practice and some times two are also allowed. The remaining  suckers are to be removed in early stages, before they attain height of 30 cm and leaves are still be in tender and bract like stage.

      Production of the suckers is  year round  in humid region,  but  ceases or slows down during winter due to low temperature in sub tropics.  So removal of suckers also a continuous practice and labor demanding.

      Desuckering to be carried out at ground level with out affecting mother plants.

Propping:

       Propping is a practice of giving support to banana bunches to prevent against lodging. Falling of banana stem is very common and they  more prone to fall  with shallow underground portion, week stem, heavy bunch, strong wind.  Sometime  burrows dug around the plants by rats, rotting of rhizome and portion of stem due to stem borer infestation, nematode infestations of roots, increase the severity of lodging . Depending on the height of the variety one or two poles made up wood or bamboo are used to support the plants. In case dwarf cultivars, single pole with sharpened end buried into ground and other end wedged and placed exactly below the curvature of peduncle of the bunch. In case of tall variety two poles which are  tied at the top, fixed below the peduncle.

Mattoking:

       The term mattocking refers to cutting of pseudo -stem of banana plants immediately  after bunch is harvested. Here stems are cut and removed at a certain height (usually at a meter height and above) to transfer the food stored in the mother plant to follower  sucker meant for next crop.

Bunch Trimming:

          Removal of withered floral  parts like styles which are attached to at distal end of the fruits is called bunch trimming in banana. This has to be carried out carefully by hand with damaging to fruits. This is usually done in dwarf varieties to avoid fungal growth like cigar end rot and to prevent scarring on fruit.

Bunch covering:

         In this practice,  banana bunches are covered with polythene sheets to provide suitable micro climate for fruit development for better size and quality. It is useful in subtropical climate where winter in severe and of long duration. Covered bunches remain warm and with suitable micro climate developing inside the cover  to ensure proper physiological process for fruit development. It also protect the bunch from insects and pests visiting and from dust and dirt accumulating. Polythene covers of  required dimensions are used for covering the bunch in such way that, cover should hang 15 cm below the distal end of the bunch and to cover the bunch at proximal end completely. Covering should be done after bracts of the bunch are fallen.

        Bunch covering is not recommended in tropics and during summer in subtropic as there is no requirement of micro climate altering in vicinity of bunch. Covering under such condition may increase in temperature and reduce humidity leading to damages like fruit cracks, premature ripening, dropping of fruits.

Removal of Leaves:

       Presence of required number of broad, lengthy and greenish leaves is an indication of health banana plants. It represents sufficient water and nutrients availability in soil and gives an idea that  plants are free from any pest and disease.

      Removal old, dried, diseased, insect eaten or infested leaves is very essential in banana cultivation. Leaves which has attained yellow color or already dried down and  hanging from pseudo stem no longer useful to plant, in turn hinder the growth by affecting light penetration and air circulation. Removal of disease affected leaves are also to be cut and destroyed to prevent further spread of pathogens. Some time healthy leaves rubbing or overlapping or scarring the the fingers should also be removed.