Mercedes Benz goes Bananas
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto 
on 07.25.05
Daimler Chrysler has used a few natural fabrics and fibres in its Benz’s before but now is using them in structural parts- a cover for the spare tire in the three-door A class. They are mixing abaca banana fibres with polypropylene for their first structural components combining natural and synthetic fibres. Mercedes claims a 60% reduction in energy required to produce the part,reductions in waste and CO2 emissions. The fibres are up to 2.7 metres long, and are immensely strong and rot resistant. Mercedes is also investing in a project to reforest part of the Philippines where abaca banana plants grow under the forest canopy. Now this is an idea with appeal. ::David Booth in National Post (not online)
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Until I moved to Miami and better understood sub-tropical and tropical flora, I had NO idea how fast Banana plants grow. From planting to harvest is about 10-12 months.
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami has an impressive array of cultivars that is absolutely worth checking out if you're ever in the area.
You'll have to look up the URLs yourself, though, because I keep getting denied for "questionable content". I wonder if the filtering is a bit strict here.