Musa basjoo Siebold ex Miq. is a very popular foliage ornamental plant for conservatories and outdoors that spreads real tropical flair. Like the dwarf banana (Musa acuminata), it belongs to the large family of banana plants (Musaceae). In contrast to the dessert banana (Musa x paradisiaca), which is most commonly eaten, it is a purely ornamental plant with beautiful flowers but small, inedible fruits.
Commonly known as the Japanese banana or hardy banana, it is now thought to originate from the Sichuan province of China. It is reputedly hardy down to –15ºC, but may require some winter protection if grown outdoors. It can grow to the size of a small tree, so gardeners are often shocked when the foliage dies back when the first frosts arrive. This is nothing to worry about, though – think of it as an enormous herbaceous perennial that, in most of the European countries, dies back in winter to the roots and will quickly produce new growth in spring.
The specific epithet, basjoo, is derived from the Japanese word "basho" which means banana.
The genus Musa was first named by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. The name is a Latinization of the Arabic name for the fruit, mauz (موز). Mauz meaning Musa is discussed in the 11th–century Arabic encyclopedia The Canon of Medicine, which was translated to Latin in medieval times and well known in Europe. Muz is also the Turkish, Persian, and Somali name for the fruit. Some sources assert that Musa is named for Antonius Musa, physician to the Emperor Augustus.