Ravenala madagascarensis Sonner.

ട്രാവലേഴ്‌സ് ട്രീ

Family : STRELITZIACEAE

Synonym : Urania madagascarensis (Sonn.) Raeusch.

Common Names : Traveler’s tree

Flowering Period : December – May

Distribution : Native of Madagascar

Habitat : Grown as garden plant

Uses : The seed is edible. Fruit edible as raw. The edible blue arils are tasteless. Sugar can be extracted from the sap of the trunk. The leaves are arranged into two rows, giving the impression of a gigantic fan. The common name of the tree is an indication of its alleged use by travellers, who are said to have drunk rain water that has accumulated in the basal cup of the petiole and in the flower bracts. However, this water is often rendered undrinkable by infestation with mosquito larvae and contamination by detritus. The leaves are used for roofing and as a packing material. The leaf petioles and midribs are used for making walls. The bark is used for making floors in houses. The stem is used in house construction.

Key Characters :

Tall palm like plants, up to 8 m tall and 18 cm in diameter, texture is smooth and ringed with old leaf scars. Leaves banana like, up to 3 m long and often wind torn giving the appearance of being pinnately divided. Flowers monoecious, small, white on a 30 cm long inflorescence. Fruit 2 cm in diameter, round, brown when ripe.