Bananas

Peter I'm storing the Maurelii in the shed, cold has not been the problem I was expecting, up till now anyway, its been the humidity.

I assume you are going to repot that lot and hope the new bit roots at some point?

 

They were potted up. I am afraid I have a bad habit of curiosity - I keep taking things out of their pots, and removing the soil to have a look at the roots. I have done it with various plants - but none seem to have suffered ........... so far.

On a seperate subject. What's the best way to get a banana in flower and hopefully fruit? I appreciate edible fruit (ie Dwarf Cavendish) is not easy. I get the feeling, from reading, that Musella lassiocarpa is one of the easiest to get to flower. Has anyone managed to get flowers and even fruit ?

 

I've had Basjoo flower on the allotment along with sikkimensis, but not recently
Never had any fruit form as there was no way they could cross pollinate.

I've got what I believe to be a dwarf Cavendish in my conservatory, its proving to be very dwarf, making new leaves but very little upward growth, its also making loads of pups.



I think Armandii had a Musella lasiocarpa in flower a couple of years ago.

 

I have read that bananas will flower after they reach a certain stage, sometimes after a certain number of leaves. In a hot country this could be in one season for some types, but is often spread over two summers. This description went on to say that each time a banana goes dormant over the winter and has to grow again from scratch then the clock is set back to zero - so dormant bananas very rarely flower. I am hoping that if I can keep mine ticking over in winter they might manage to finish the course.

But fertilisation is another matter.

 

Peter, I have had basjoo flower in late summer mostly, but on one occasion a stem flowered in early spring, maybe the flower formed very late and waited until spring before being pushed out, I'm not sure.

Not sure also if that contradicts the theory, what is actually meant by dormant?

I dont think nanas actually really go dormant in the way some plants do, it a bit like saying a rubber plant is dormant because it stops growing over winter.
The rubber plant does not start from scratch the following year, it carries on where it left off the previous season.
That surely is why we try to protect the stems, if you can save the stem through winter, you are ahead of the game the next season.

 

Perhaps there are almost two seperate dormant states - there are probably technical names for them. I understood, from what I read, that if a banana gets cut to the ground in winter and loses all its top growth, then it has to start again almost like a new plant in its first year. And then it has difficulty in flowering in just one season before its cut to the ground again in the following winter.

However I assume that if it retains its top growth but just goes to sleep, then it can wake up in the spring and carry on from where it left off. I understand that basjoo is very hardy - presumably yours keep its top growth. That's very encouraging that it flowered for you. I recently bought a couple for 49p each from Homebase, who obviously didn't want to overwinter them. I am keeping them at 10C in my garden room, where they have retained their foliage - so I will keep my fingers crossed for the future.

 

Grow them as big as you can in pots in your garden room Peter, if possible, dont plant out next summer, but plant out the summer after, then protect the stems and hope for a mild winter.
You could easily get flowers the following summer.
Sounds long winded, but most of this kind of thing is, as you probably know.

 

Thanks Pete - I have been planning to grow them under glass for as long as possible. I doubt that any banana would survive outside over winter in Yorkshire, even with protection - hence my desire to propagate Ensete 'Maurelii' so that I can have a sequence of replacements. I understand that the Musas will pup more easily.

However I am probably putting my money on Musella (now re-classified as Ensete!) lasiocarpa and Musa velutina, which I understand don't grow very tall, and can stay under glass for a longer time. I don't have a lasiocarpa yet, but its on my list for this year.

As for 'Dwarf Cavendish' - I understand they can be a lot less dwarf than yours - so I will still have to go down to Morrisons for my fruit.

 

I've got a few small lasiocarpa plants, but they look rubbish at the moment.

If and when, I repot my M cavendish, I could possibly pass on one of the pups to you, if you wanted one.
As I say, not sure its cavendish, but its the dwarfest nana I have come across, especially under glass, as most tend to get very leggy.

 

Pete - thats very kind - but I do have a Cavendish - I really only bought it because it was very cheap. I understand that they need more heat over the winter than many others. So I wasn't relying on it surviving the winter - a previous small one I had, died - even (or perhaps because ) I overwintered it inside the house a couple of years ago. My current Cavendish is in my garden room and isn't doing much - but looks quite healthy. Its only small but still has its top growth.

 

Hi Pete and Peter

As the sun is out today (albeit a bit windy and looks like I was being blown over with the blurry pics ) I thought I would post my Cavendish which, as you both know, lives outdoors permanently. The lowest we have gone is 3c and she is mighty tatty but will be trimmed back in a couple of weeks. Lots of new central growth and pups have survived also.



The S nicolai faces the Cavendish and is also tatty ...



However, the dwarf BoP is behind the Viburnum and looks okay sporting six flower heads ...

 

My understanding is that Basjoo is the hardiest (coming from the North island of Japan, I believe, which is a lot colder than here - although may be drier, in the winter)

Someone suggested to me growing Musa sikkimensis from seed, each year, and planting out, with no winter protection, and then when I had some that survived the winter I would have found soem genetically stronger ones - and could stop raising from seed

Musa Mekong Giant is reputed to be hardier than the type. Only had mine a couple of years, and its still in a pot (doesn't seem to grow very fast) so I can't tell you how well it gets on, as yet.

 

Speaking of sikkimensis, I grew some from seed a couple of years ago & planted them out in a sheltered corner last year - they did well:

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.. to over winter, I built a bubblewrap & duct tape wigwam around them & packed it with fallen leaves, then put a second layer of fleece around the outside to provide another layer of trapped air to keep the cold out.

This morning I decided to unwrap & see whats left:

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Bubble wrap layer:

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All wrapping off:

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Rather damp leaves removed:

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looking a bit sorry for themselves but all four plants are solid & have new leaves unrolling - I will give them a day or two to dry out & then make sure that they are happy; the new leaves on the biggest one are a bit battered & might need some help to unroll.

But overall Im happy with that - they are all alive at this point & I was not really expecting that, they should get huge if the weather permits this year. I do have the fleece handy "just in case" although theres nothing lower than 6' forcast for the next week.

 

@OxfordNick

Hi Nick

I would put the fleece back on early evening , it would be a pity to get caught out with a frost , but looking great and from seed even better.
Spruce

 

I've moved my E. maurelli into the greenhouse from the shed, its still dry, I was hoping to see signs of growth before potting up, let alone watering.
But today I decided to cut off the withered stuff on the top of the stem, I was hoping to find good green looking central parts, but it all look fairly rotten.

I'll give it a while yet, to see how it goes.