Re: The Samoan culture use smoke to ripen bananas - how does this work?

Ethylene production is one of the results of incomplete combustion of 
hydrocarbons.  There, presumably, is ethylene in the smoke of lit bonfires, 
causing the fruits to ripen.  You can find a good discussion on how 
ethylene works to ripen fruits, induce flowering, prohibit flowering and 
inhibit stem and root elongation, in Plant Physiology by Salisbury and 
Roth.