Ensete glaucum

Ensete glaucum, the snow banana, has also been classified as Musa nepalensis, Ensete giganteum, or Ensete wilsonii.

Distribution

This gigantic monocarpic herbaceous plant is native to China, Nepal, India, Myanmar, Vietnam and Thailand. It is also native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Taiwan. It grows from in elevation.

Description

Ensete glaucum has a thick, waxy with sometimes bluish tinge, solitary pseudostem. It grows larger than the Abyssinian banana.
Its leaves are long and wide.

Cultivation and uses

The plant is cultivated as an ornamental plant, for its unique swollen bulbous base and large leaves and is used to feed pigs in parts of China.
In India the pulp of the fruit is eaten, considered highly medicinal, and given to infants and patients. Young shoots and a flowering part are eaten as a vegetable. The plant is used in religious and domestic celebrations.
It is easy to raise from seed. It is an extremely fast growing banana given heat, but not as hardy as the Abyssinian banana, and is not as well known.