Originally Posted by Dvivian

Here on the Adelaide Plains in South Australia where the annual temperature fluctuates from -1 to 46 degrees centigrade home grown bananas are not exactly rare but the most of the general public don't think they will grow. The climate is often described as warm temperate or even Mediterranean so a banana plant which might produce fruit in 12 to 18 months in the tropics can easily take 3 years or longer here. During our cold winter the banana plant will be almost dormant, thus resulting in the loss of about 6 months growth. Fortunately frosts are infrequent and simply burn one or two leaves off the plant or blacken the top of any uncovered fruit. The other limiting factor for growing bananas here is the low rainfall of about 550 mm annually. Although many banana varieties are quite drought tolerant one needs to use a lot of water in order to produce decent banana crops. This is not a hindrance if you're prepared to pay for a larger water bill or have your own water source.

I grow the following bananas in our suburban backyard:
-'Pisang Ceylan'– improved form of 'Mysore'
-‘Pisang Raja’, Mysore variant
-'Latundan' (also known as Silk or Sugar)
-'Ducasse' (aka Pisang Awak or Kluai Namwah or Kayinja)
-'Blue Java' (aka Ice cream)
-'Dwarf Red Dacca'
-'FHIA-01 Goldfinger' Pome hybrid
-'Lady Finger' aka 'Pome'
-‘Dwarf Cavendish’ (aka "Kluai Hom Khieo Khom", "Pisang Badak")
The most successful varieties in my experience in our location have been the Silk, Ducasse and an unidentified cultivar that I have grown for decades.

As you can see I am pasionate about banana growing. I hope to expand my collection by swapping plants with others in Adelaide.
I am especially looking for:
Rajapuri, Pisang Mas (aka Kluai Khai, Terema, Senorita, Sucrier, monkey banana) and Dwarf Ducasse (aka Dwarf Namwa, Kluai Namwa Khom)