Originally Posted by Quenn

Hello! Firstly, thank you for being so knowledgeable, and open to newcomers! This is my very first banana plant, and I am already in love with it!

I do however have a few questions and concerns - just to make sure I'm on the right path to taking care of my wonderful banana plant. (For context, I live in northern Ohio (zone 6, I think), and have a west-facing covered deck.)

On July 2, I bought a lovely ~18" plant just labeled "Banana", so I have no idea what the variation is. I let her acclimate on the deck, where she got sun in the late afternoon for about a week, then moved her into full sun. She has since sprouted one full leaf, and the second newest is about half-unfurled. She came with some pups attached, that at first were not large enough to be concerned with, but after a week, had all opened new leaves, and made the whole plant look very bushy and crowded.

July 14, I went to the local nursery and picked up a bag of lava rock, cactus soil and new pots for the three largest pups (about 10-14"). I drilled holes in the bottoms for better drainage, put lava rock on the bottoms of the pots, some mixed into the soil, and separated the pups into their own pots. They've been on the deck and just receiving late afternoon sun. It's been almost a week, and I think they are doing okay so far. I water everyone in the morning, but the soil seems to stay pretty damp.

I'm always open to constructive criticism and advice. I'd love to identify the variation of my plants, and I will post pictures as soon as I figure out how!

Thanks in advance,
Quenn