We were curious, by George, and we found a fruitful story ripe for the picking. Are banana puns low-hanging fruit? Yes. Do we have a bunch of them? Also yes.
At Westlake Porter Public Library, you can find a lot more than just books — movies, video games, tools for makers like 3-D printers, and right now, 21 living banana trees.
“And he said, ‘Oh, you know, he's got these banana trees. And in the winter, he's got to store them someplace that has high ceilings and good lighting. He wondered if he could store in the library over the winter,’” Mangels said. “And I thought about that, 'Wow, how cool would that be?’ What other library in Ohio, or this climate, has banana trees or tropical plants in their library all winter long? And it seemed like a really good idea.
Meivogel comes into the library about once a month to water them, and the library’s high ceilings and large windows let in plenty of sunlight for plants, some of which are over 10 feet tall. They've been placed all around the library, including the kids area, by information desks, in conference rooms and on the library's second floor.
Meivogel said that even in the summer, the bananas that do grow are much smaller than average, and they’re not great to eat.“Well, my daughter got me one for Father's Day one year,” Meivogel said. “Planted it, and kind of liked it, so we just kept going with it.” Meivogel said he’s had as many as 50 or 60 tropical plants in his yard at one time, which previously posed an unexpected hazard.