Thread: Europe Trade
View Single Post
Old 05-25-2009, 03:48 PM   #56 (permalink)
maesy
Junior Member
 
Location: Lucerne,Switzerland
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 132
BananaBucks : 35,600
Feedback: 3 / 100%
Said "Thanks" 19 Times
Was Thanked 115 Times in 45 Posts
Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times
Default Re: Europe Trade

Jack,
I have always been reading Franks posts about his winter storage. In fact it was my motivation to store them bare rooted in the cool basement through winter. Just like many american banana lovers do, where they have warm weather for 7 or 8 month and then a not so cold winter with frosty nights for the rest of the year.
I have found out that the growth in our clime is not comparable with the growth in the states. Our average temperature in the growing season, is never as high as in the states, which pushes bananas into fast growth.
Here is already august when the ground has warmed up to the temperature the bananas like!
In the states that happens in June!
The only exception was 2003. Then my garden looked like a jungle already in the middle of July.
The other and maybe the main reason that it takes so long for the bananas to get going is, the perma frost and cold average winter temperature, causes a very long time to warm up the soil.
All in all, the bananas can not make enough strength in summer to get through the dark, cold and long winter time.

But,.... Never give up!!!

Me personally cut down the amount of different cultivars. I planted a dwarf brazilian and a dwarf orinoco out in my garden in iron baskets, they are easy to take out without disturbing the roots too much. Beside them I have a musa sp. yangtse that I also put in the ground to over winter like musa basjoo.

Marcel
__________________
"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,..."
(John 1,12)
maesy is offline   Reply With Quote Send A Private Message To maesy