Re: Removing Bloom Flower
You will often read that cutting off the bud helps the fruit develop because it is using more energy from the plant, but studies have shown this is not the case. The size of the bunch and fruit are predetirmined well before flowering ever takes place, and in the paper I remember reading there was no difference found in fruit development time between buds left on and buds cut off. That being said, there is at least one very good reason to cut the bud and that is because it adds excess weight and if its continuously growing it can be too much for the plant to physically support and you may have fruiting plants topple easier. If you want to keep the bud and the plant is sturdy, that is fine too. I personally like keeping some of them for breeding purposes, but thats a whole different issue.
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Growing bananas in Colorado, Washington, Hawaii since 2004. Commercial banana farmer, 200+ varieties.
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