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Ensete ventricosum, photographed by an iNaturalist contributor
(c) gnomicscience, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) · CC BY-NC
#1173 most planted

Ensete ventricosum

Enset · also Ensete, Ethiopian banana, Abyssinian banana

Evergreen
101
trees mapped
0.00%
of all named trees
2
cities
7.5 in
median trunk (19 cm, 4 measured)

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Ensete ventricosum is a giant herbaceous plant notable for its large, banana-like leaves and pseudostems reaching up to 9 meters. Native to moist montane forests and riparian zones across East Africa, it serves as a crucial staple food in Ethiopia and is also cultivated as an ornamental for its tropical aesthetic.

Where it grows

Trees in each city's inventory, with the share of that city's named trees this species accounts for.

  1. Bogotá · Colombia
    93——
  2. Los Angeles · United States
    835 yr7.5 in

Traits

Foliage
Evergreen
Mature height
0–20 ft
Canopy spread
10 ft
Sun
Full sun, Part shade
Water needs
Moderate
Wildlife value
High

Trunk diameters across every city: median 7.5 in, mean 9.4 in, 90th percentile 13 in. Measured at breast height, as published by each inventory.

Native range

Terrestrial ecoregions where this species is native. Trees in the dataset mostly stand well outside it.

Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests

  • East African montane forests
  • Eastern Arc forests
  • Ethiopian montane forests

Interested in talking trees? arborary.world@gmail.comTree data © the respective municipal publishers and © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).