Extraordinarily Different Things to Do with a Banana
by Louie Jerome on Sep 06, 2008 with 21 Comments
Bananas have many interesting alternative uses. If you are holding a banana, you have many options. You could just eat it, or try something different.
Shining Shoes
Use inside of a banana skin to polish shoes and give an amazing shine.
Feed Your Plants
Photo credit: datapeetham.com
Bury banana leaves in the ground around bushes and large plants and they will provide a slow release of potassium and phosphorous to encourage healthy growth.
Mosquito Bite
Rub bites with the inside of the skin of a banana to stop the itching.
Ease Red Ant Bites
Photo credit: flickr.com
Rub skin on red ant bites and it will ease the stinging.
Sooth Grazed Knees and Elbows
Photo credit: flickr.com
The oil in a banana skin will soothe the skin and promote faster healing.
Keep Bugs Away From Plants
Photo credit: flickr.com
Place cut up banana skins around the bottom of plants to discourage aphids, etc from attacking plants, or laying eggs on them.
Fuel Your Car
Photo credit: flickr.com
An Australian company is working on the idea of using bananas to fuel vehicles. You can read more about this here
Clean And Shine Houseplants
Photo credit: houseplants365.com
Use the soft inside of a banana skin to dust and polish houseplants.
Smoking
Photo credit: picasaweb.com
Banana leaves can be dried and smoked, although this practise is not recommended on health grounds. The dried skins are said to release a drug which is supposed to be psycho-active. There is some controversy over the validity of this but bananas do without doubt contain the antidepressant drug tryptophan.
Cure Warts
Photo credit: photopedia.com
Rub warts with the inside of a banana skin and the potassium in it will cure the wart.
Face Pack
Photo credit: jupiterimages.com
Mix half a banana with an egg and a little almond oil to make a face pack that will leave your skin wonderfully hydrated and smooth.
Whiten Teeth
Photo credit: toothluver.com
Rub teeth gently with banana skin (used the inside surface) dipped in a little salt . It makes a difference after just a few days. Don’t use the salt everyday (use about every third day) or you will run the risk of damaging tooth enamel.
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Glynis Smy | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
Good info for my household file thanks louie
Anne Lyken-Garner | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
Does it really whiten teeth? That would be remarkable if it does. I’ll have to try that one.
Great pictures
IcyCucky | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
Great article, and so many useful tips!
Alexa Gates | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
I never knew any of this! thanks!
Judy Sheldon | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
Thanks for the tips, Louie. I love natural remedies. Take care.
Ruby Hawk | Sep 6, 2008 | Reply
I knew bananas wee good for a lot of theings but some of these I hadn’t heard of. I will have to try the tooth whitner.
Joe Poniatowski | Sep 8, 2008 | Reply
Interesting. Some of these are quite surprising.
Jp
jo oliver | Sep 8, 2008 | Reply
I love banana. I would eat it before it ever made to any of these uses…..but good to know. Thanks.
Darlene McFarlane | Sep 8, 2008 | Reply
I am impressed, Louie,
These are great tips. I especially like the tooth whitening one. I will give it a try.
Thanks for sharing.
R J Evans | Sep 8, 2008 | Reply
Exellent stuff! True about the teeth whitening? Stuff I never knew!
celticlady | Sep 9, 2008 | Reply
Reading the title I wondered \’ what\’s coming next?\’. I would like to try the face pack tip especially – not so sure whether I will be in contact with red ants but you never know. Very interesting article
Liane Schmidt | Sep 9, 2008 | Reply
Interesting, well done article Louie!
Blessings.
Sincerely,
-Liane Schmidt.
SeventhSibling | Sep 9, 2008 | Reply
Fascinating! Great pictures.
Zenka | Sep 12, 2008 | Reply
Finally an article I enjoyed to read, good job Louie
Sonny M | Sep 18, 2008 | Reply
WOWSY WOW who knew? Thanks for the info ….gona try some of these out….my parrots go thru bananas like they were candy so I have lots n lots of peels.
dana | Sep 19, 2008 | Reply
It’s not really the banana that whitens the teeth. The banana skin holds the salt securely and the salt acts like an abrasive and grinds away the stain.
BEAUTIFUL photos and a great presentation!!
Scooter Penn | Sep 25, 2008 | Reply
I’ve been using dried banana peels around my roses and have had fabulous results.
banana dude | Oct 5, 2008 | Reply
hey man – i is smoking these things
Celeste Silkey | Nov 16, 2008 | Reply
Hay bananas are my favorite thanks for the great information
Dee Gold | Mar 2, 2009 | Reply
I love bananas and this is a very helpful article.I’ll give it a thumbs up in stumble upon.thanks
Cashmere Lashkari | May 11, 2009 | Reply
I only knew about the facepack. Rest of the uses are all new to me. Must say i am intrigued about the car fuel.