Residents of a town in Nottinghamshire, England, in the United Kingdom are puzzled by the regular appearance of a plate filled with peeled bananas left by the side of a road every month for over a year.
The mystery plate appears on the second day of every month on the corner of Abbey Road and Wensor Avenue in Beeston, and residents say it has been a constant in their lives for more than a year, BBC reports.
The purpose behind it remains unclear.
A local resident, Clare Short, discovered the pattern and noticed the bananas were consistently placed on the second day of each month.
In response, she put up a sign at the location that reads, “Please, respectfully, no more bananas! The uncollected plates and rotting bananas leave such a mess. Wishing a happy new year to you all.”
Despite the sign, Short revealed that a plate of bananas was left on January 2nd.
“I’ve asked around in the local community but no one really knows and no one can tell me anything,” Short shared with the BBC.
Residents have speculated that the bananas may be intended as a gift for local wildlife, while others think they could be some sort of religious offering, given the proximity to a church.
Short, who has come to accept the monthly occurrence, remarked, “I’ve come to take the signs down because I don’t really want to make it like a feud, I don’t want it to become a big thing. I think it’s a special thing for [someone] and I wish them well. But if they could come back and clean up the mess a few days later that would be lovely.”
Other neighbours would rather see the bananas gone for good.
“I live nearby and they’re very regularly here,” says 26-year-old Josh Trentham. “They are very annoying, I have no idea why they’re here.”
Jill Dowling added: “It’s so strange and disgusting, someone puts it there, and I don’t like it.”
Resident Janet Hutchinson, 81, said: “The bananas are clearly just bought, and the wildlife doesn’t touch them. They go mouldy – it’s gross.”
Another puzzled resident wondered if the gesture was perhaps a custom elsewhere.
Adam Castle, 34, said: “What is this thing? I don’t know if it’s a cultural thing or what, it’s strange. I’ve never heard or seen it anywhere else I’ve lived.”
