I had two young banana plants in pots that I had inside over the winter. As soon as it was frost free, I put them outside even though it was still cold and in full sun (I know, a mistake) and what's left of their leaves are brown and shriveled.
I took them out of their pots in planted in the woods line, rich soil in part shade. I don't see any improvement as of yet. Did I kill them? What can I do besides give them superthrive (which I already did) and when should I see improvement if there is going to be any?
Bananas, will they be okay?
Water, the fertilizer and time. As soon as it starts warming up they will do just fine and start growing beautifully again.
It hapens to me every year, yes Im lazy, but by later this summer you wont even realize that they got so ugly looking.
That's great news. I finally got the ice cream banana I've always wanted and would hate for it to perish! The other one I started from seed so I have an attachment to it.
How often should I fertilize by the way?
What is the best fertilizer for banana plants?
I was told Palm food is best .
Something with a low middle number like 15-5-15 and close to equal numbers on either side ........(cal_mag by Peters is one )
I'm sure someone with more experience will pop in here .
Starting my first season with 5 varieties of 'naners .........
I used to grin at the traffic that crawled past when the brugs are in bloom, just wait until they see Wisconsin Banana Plants out front ...... lololol
Lol. Oh, the work we have to do for our tropicals in the colder zones!
Hah !
I looked over all the plants & seedlings after I moved them out to the grow barn .
( THAT was a lot of work .)
I found it hard to believe that I lived through the winter with all of them in the house.
A guess we all , plants, humans and critters were over-wintering , eh ?
So you don't have a green house either? The sun room was so full it was almost impossible to walk in there.
I was hybernating, I don't know about you!
Nope !
No GH. or sun room. Also no use of the dining room or being able to walk all the way around the bed.
Plants wintering dormant in closets and the basement.
I'm currently marking out 10 x 12 HH area that I will put up this week. This is only for a season extender tho.
Outta here !
I tried to keep mine dry and dormant... I'd no place real cool so they were in the hallway.. as inside the house was warmer.. about mid winter things there started looking so dry.. like a mear shell of a plant ...an ouer plant crust of what was over air.. so i started watering my bags of tropicals... just for a bit of moisture... bananas.. cannas.. all growing after.. are approaching full sized and are readdy now to go out... I know they will take a beatting when they get outside..as they have yet to experience any wind in their growth.. and little sun..as it was pretty dark under the roof ladder and the piles of things kept growing under the stairway skylight.. but I have always lost things in that last 1/3 of winter through the complete lack of water in such a heated area.. If I can ease them out..I think I'll have succeeded this year..
I'll just stake the 5' tall cannas.. [ which are now taped to the walls to keep them from flopping over] when they go around the roof pond in the tropical corner..
now if i can find the dahlias in the piles of bags... Gordon
2pugdogs
'Naner fert http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4373585889
*/;-)
Gordon,
Try putting them into dormancy next winter , in a coolish closet or basement with minimal or no light @ around 50 -60 degrees.
With my brug trees I just give them a cup of water every 3 or 4 weeks to keep the roots from drying out.
Next winter will be the first for me overwintering large bananas 'cause when I traded for them they were only pups .
I kept them potted in the window with minimal water & no fert. Kept them growing slowly and healthy through the winter.
Scooterbug.. as I said I'd no cool place for them... my options are out on the roof... real cold... down in my house... about 78* F.... down in the basement... quite warm... maybe 80*F or so... there are two gas furnaces pumping hot water ... and 120 gallons of hot water heaters in three heaters.. it's warm.. and the hallway... about 65-70* F or so.. and everything was great till I gave that cup of water ...with them getting dry... and they were off to the races... warm and now wet... I also keep a score of plumerias up and growing... and the occasional flowering in mid winter is worth the labor of tending a large growing garden inside through the winter ... ya just make it through .. given the situations you find yourself in... and it's what they do so well also... Gordon
ah shoot , i missed that part.