Harvest bananas when the fingers are plump and the angles have rounded, still green. Cut the whole bunch and hang it in a cool, shady place.
Harvest when the fingers plump out and the angles round, still green
| Factor | Recommended | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Ready | Fingers full for the kind, sides rounded, still green | Waiting until the bunch turns yellow on the plant |
| How | Support the bunch and cut the stalk above the first hand | Letting a heavy bunch drop |
| Ripen | Hang in a cool, shady place | Refrigerating green fruit — cold stops ripening |
| After | Cut the spent stem at the base once the bunch is off | Leaving the old stalk to shade the next sucker |
Watch the fingers, not the calendar. When they have filled out and the sharp edges have smoothed, still green, the bunch is ready to cut. Hanging it in the shade usually tastes better than ripening on the plant. [1] Dwarf Cavendish is the usual dessert harvest. Plantain may be cooked green. Hardy Japanese banana fruit is seedy and is not this job. [2]
When do I harvest bananas?
When the fingers are plump and the angles have rounded, still green. Do not wait for the whole bunch to turn yellow on the plant.
How to harvest a banana bunch
Support the bunch, cut it, then hang it. Hands ripen in order, so you eat them over several days.
- Support the bunch from below. A full bunch is heavy.
- Cut the stalk about six to nine inches above the first hand. [3]
- Hang it in a cool, shady place. Do not bag it in plastic, and do not refrigerate it while it is green. [4]
- Take hands as they yellow. Then cut the spent pseudostem at the base so the next stem has light.
Will green bananas ripen off the plant?
Yes, if you cut them when they are already plump. Hang the bunch in the shade. Do not refrigerate green fruit.
Hang the bunch in a cool, shady place to ripen
From a planted sucker to the first bunch is often nine to twenty months of warm growth. A stem killed to the ground in winter will not fruit until the following year. Keep three stems of different ages on How to Grow Banana so the next bunch is already coming.
If the fingers still have sharp edges, wait. If they are plump and green, cut the bunch today and hang it in the shade.
FAQ
Can I cook green fruit like plantain?
Yes. Plantain is cooked green or ripe. Dessert bananas are usually hung until yellow. Do not refrigerate either kind while the peel is still green.
How long from planting to a bunch?
Often nine to twenty months of warm growth from a sword sucker. Cold weather stops the clock. A stem that dies to the ground will not fruit that same year.
Related guides
Recommended plants
References
- [1] UF/IFAS Extension -
https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/MG040 - [2] Gardening Know How -
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/banana/banana-tree-harvesting.htm - [3] Stark Bro's -
https://www.starkbros.com/growing-guide/how-to-grow/fruit-trees/banana-plants/harvesting - [4] UF/IFAS Extension -
https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/ST409
This note is part of Musa Guides.
More harvest timing notes by plant live in Harvesting Guides.
Updated: Reviewed by Bosquelle Editors