Hi guys
I live in New Orleans - zone 9 - and we are right on the edge of sometimes freezing for a day or two in the winter, sometimes not.
In the summer of 2015 I planted my first banana trees, Dwarf Cavendish. Last winter was unusually cold and they froze to the ground but sprung right back up come the spring. So they grew tall this year but - no bananas. I was told I "had to cover them". I never see anyone else here cover their trees, though, and they grow bananas, even the wild ones.
This weekend they are predicting temperatures down to about 33 degrees, which is not quite freezing but it could be a little colder than they expect and I fear disaster. It may not get colder than this all winter, but then again it might, weather is a little unpredictable here through February. (It was in the 70s just the other day! We had the AC on!)
I have pruned them considerably but they still have leaves and are still growing. What should I do to protect them from a brief and passing frost that will last at most a day? Or do I have to cut them down and cover them entirely? They will not go dormant in this climate from what I can see.