Is it time.....

to repot??? LOL Isn't this an ugly sight? This has been stuck in a dark room all winter and now it's found new life. Somehow (with the help of DH) I've got to move this to a bigger pot. After I clean all the dead off of it, should I take all the pups from it or leave them? I've never removed a pup before, but I'm guessing I just remove soil and hack away at it? (I think I read that somewhere) Anyone have other suggestions?

Last year when I potted this one up, it was about 2 feet tall, I took 2 fertilizer tree spikes and broke them in half and stuck them in the soil. This banana sure seemed to like it. Excuse the mess.....I had many pots in hibernation and they are all stuck out back now.

I don't know too much about bananas but I would repot. I know they all look ugly after winter and beautiful by the end of the summer.

Man, what a chore it was to get those pups. We ended up having to break the pot it was in......look at these roots.

Here is my 10 yr old looking through the forest of Nana's! I think DH counted 18 pups. Hopefully we didn't kill them.

Is that the chinese banana?

Hi TM....I think so, it was labeled Musa lasiocarpa when I purchased it. I think I've had it for 3 years now.

I had one planted in the ground,never did flower,and the second year it never came back,maybe some day I will try another one.
Do you get flowers on yours in the container?

Hi TM, this will be my 3rd yr with this nana. It was pretty big when I got it (about 4'). I sure don't know how long it takes for them to flower, do you? We took all the pups from it and put it in a larger container this year. I think I'll plant a pup in the ground and see if I have any luck. Hopefully I will get a bloom on one of them.

Well I heard it takes so many leaves before the bloom,anywhere from 23 to 49 leaves,depending on the vareity of banana.
Then again I've seen pics where they overwintered a chinese banana,and when coming out of a semi dormant stage it flowered before any leaves came first.
You just never know!!!
I grew up in Altus Okla,the winters were usually fairly mild,I think you could overwinter a chinese banana fairly easy,with a little winter protection only needed,good luck.
Don

Thanks for the good luck wishes, Don. I live in a suburb on the west side of OKC. I'll mulch heavily this winter and let you know how it goes.

http://seeds.thompson-morgan.com/us/en/product/808/1
http://www.zanthan.com/gardens/gardenlog/archives/000485.html

Hope those links will help with some information. I have heard that the tubers and rhizomes do better after separating the pups.

Dinu, thanks for the information. I've noticed that the mother plant is doing much better after we separated the pups. And she's even started putting out new pups....LOL in just a week. I just hope I see a bloom this year. Wish me luck!

wouldn't that banana be hardy in your zone?

ely

ely, I've had it in a pot for the past 2 years. I didn't think it would be hardy here. Not sure, but I thought the only hardy banana in my zone was a basjoo, but PlantFiles show it hardy here. I bet we find out this winter! LOL

This message was edited May 30, 2005 1:18 PM

I had read that these were very hardy but in the Christmas freeze(26* for a few hours) it took the worst beating of any of my bananas. Some are still just stems, no leaves and several died.
One of mine did bloom this year, it's 3 or 4 years old, I forget exactly. It is very common for them to lose their leaves before they flower. I have seen one flowering in a container, in a greenhouse in MO. It was a stem with no leaves and a huge yellow flower!

Thanks for the info Susie, I don't think it would make it here. We get down in the teens and sometimes colder. And normally for weeks. I still think I'm going to plant one in the ground. I'm curious how big it will get. LOL I'm going to leave it also. It will be between the house and an outbuilding. Maybe it will have it's own little microclimate and survive.

yeah block the north wind and mulch heavy... cover with a bucket...

ely

I will do that ely. I planted one in the ground today so we will see how it goes.