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During
the manual harvesting of bananas, agricultural workers generally
use machetes to cut down the stems, which is where the fruit
is found. A group of 10 or more bananas growing together is
called a hand, a bunch of four to six bananas is called a cluster
and a single banana is called a finger. On average, stems are
said to grow about 150 fingers. The banana hands on each stem
are cut into clusters using a knife such as the one shown here.
Using the curved inside edge of the knife, workers cut around
the clusters, using a circular motion. Apparently, these knives
are also used for pruning out smaller bananas. In our research,
there is no indication as to how the outer edge of the blade
is employed. Perhaps it is used for hacking away at more difficult-to-remove
banana clusters? |
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