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Lisa
12-08-2009, 02:07 PM
This is my first year growing Cold Hardy Bananas. I planted them in May and enjoyed them this summer. I searched many different sites and many folks said just to pile the frozen leaves over the plant and leave them alone for the winter. It is so cold here......10 degrees this morning. I think this is too cold for my plants. Is there anything I can do at this late stage of the game to increase their chance of survival.......Help!!!

cherokee_greg
12-08-2009, 03:15 PM
Welcome dig them up and put them somewere warm thats alful cold wow 10 degrees !!!!!!!!

Lisa
12-08-2009, 03:20 PM
So it won't kill them?? Digging them up right now??

(thanks for the welcome by the way:)

Eric
12-08-2009, 04:07 PM
No! It won't kill them but it would help to know what type of banana you're growing.
When you dig them up, dig deep to get plenty of roots. Get the plants inside quickly as possible and near a warm spot in your house.
1. Wash all the dirt off the roots & corm.
2. If any part of the plant is soft & squishy (spongy), cut those parts off.
3. Dry it off gently with absorbant paper towels.
4. Put what's left (after cutting off the soft parts) somewhere dark. Exposure to light, while the plant is warm, can cause it to come out of dormancy.
5. Leave them stored at less than 55 degrees F for the winter & replant them in the spring.
It always takes a few weeks for the plants to start growing new stem & leaves in the spring so be patient. Please keep us posted on your progress. Ask any new questions you need to ask.

Now, Welcome aboard, Lisa, from Oklahoma :) ! It's a very friendly & info-packed site. If you have any questions about using the forum, just ask!

Lisa
12-08-2009, 04:19 PM
Hi Eric;
thank you so much. I have been freaking out. I will follow your suggestions and let you know if they make it. I purchased large Cold Hardy Bananas......Musabasjoo. The care tag said it would be hardy for my zone 8, but I never dreamed it would ever get this cold here.

Eric
12-08-2009, 04:28 PM
Hi Lisa :). Musa Basjoo is a very cold-hardy cultivar but I still dug mine up, for the winter, before I gave it to a friend. Another great looking & cold-hardy cultivar is Musa 'Tiger' Sikkimensis. It's hardy down to -3 degrees F and has red striping in the leaves, super!
Yeah, think it's def gonna be a cold winter this year. Already been down in the teens and we never get that low till Jan-Feb in Oklahoma!
Best of Luck!

Patty in Wisc
12-08-2009, 05:34 PM
Lisa, 10 f is too cold for nanas! If you can't dig it up then wrap it with some old blankets , towels or anything. The leaves may die but don't let the p stem freeze. Also, put extra mulch around base.

Caloosamusa
12-08-2009, 07:08 PM
Lisa, Welcome to Bananas dot org,

Eric and Patty know how to handle bananas in Cold country. Follow their advise! :2239:

CValentine
12-08-2009, 08:13 PM
Welcome Lisa!! :) ~Cheryl

Lisa
12-08-2009, 08:48 PM
Thank you all for the advise. I have never been an avid gardener but fell in love with Bananas.....go figure. Not the best choice for a beginner gardener, nor the best Oregon winter to learn in. I will do my best to help them survive this cold snap......

Bob
12-08-2009, 09:18 PM
You may want to use the search feature(click on search on the blue line above) and look up: "putting the bananas to sleep for the winter" thread. It is a long running post on bare rooting bananas for cold climate storage. Checking out the Cold hardy bananas section you will find under the main bananas.org page. There are lots of posts with techniques and pictures that will help with what you're looking for. Good luck....and welcome aboard.


P.S. Are you in Coastal Oregon or more inland? That matters too if you're planning on overwintering outdoors.

Eric
12-08-2009, 09:31 PM
Lisa, definitely check Bob :) ! He's who I turn to for winter advice. I think he sleeps with his nanners under his electric blanket :ha: !

stumpy4700
12-08-2009, 10:40 PM
Welcome from Tennessee

Lisa
12-09-2009, 12:38 PM
Hi Bob;
I am inland......just a little east of Eugene. Walterville area to be exact. A lovely place to live, but we did get "squashed" with this cold blast. My poor tropical garden took a great big hit. Next year I will be more prepared. I tried digging in the frozen ground this morning, attempting to lift them and bring them inside; but the ground is too hard. I wrapped them with large comforters for now. It is supposed to warm up this weekend; I will try digging again then.

Bob
12-09-2009, 02:14 PM
Hi Lisa , yeah my windmill and fan palms are in the same state. Doubled over with snow this morning. I'm hoping by the weekend I can take care of them as well. Yeah coastal Oregon is easier. I have friends in washington who have it easier than I do even though they're farther north than you or I. I don't get a s much rain though which can make it tough as well.

LilRaverBoi
12-09-2009, 03:00 PM
Welcome to the site! I hope you enjoy it here and learn a lot. Another good idea I've heard a lot of people utilize here is wrapping small christmas lights around the stem of the plant because they give off small amounts of heat. Just another idea to toss into the mix. Best of luck!

Lisa
12-09-2009, 03:06 PM
thanks for the tip.
Next year I might try building a cold frame around each plant...bubble wrap etc. once the temperatures drops. The only thing that might be a problem is air circulation and too much moisture build up....causing root rot. I see so many ideas from different Oregon people......all doing something different. Trial and error.......

Seaner
12-09-2009, 04:40 PM
Hello and welcome! Eric says Bob uses cold frames so you can def get info about that from him. Good luck!

jeffreyp
12-09-2009, 06:14 PM
My dad has been growing musa basjoo up in East Lyme Connecticut and trust me it get's alot colder for a longer duration up there. All he does is pile on about a foot or so of mulch around the pups and main stem(s). The main stems die back but come back each year to a height of around 10 ft. There is no risk of losing a musa basjoo in Oregon, or northern California if one follows the same regimen.

Here is a pic from August of this year...


Banana Gallery - Musa Basjoo in East Lyme, Connecticut (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=27588&cat=510)

Lisa
12-09-2009, 06:28 PM
Thanks Jeffrey!!
Hopefully mine will be OK.......I have them covered with old comforters right now. It is supposed to warm up this weekend. I will mound plenty of mulch at their base....hopefully they make it.
So far I am feeling like a "not so good" parent of my little musa basjoo plants:(

Eric
12-09-2009, 07:05 PM
Dunno, if I was a nanner, I'd def want ya to adopt me :D ! Ya got the problem solved in a single day, not bad :) !

Jeffrey! Thanx for the great info on mulching Basjoos & cold-hardiness :) ! Next Basjoo I get, I'll def follow your advice & mulch it outside for the winter. I'm pretty sure Oklahoma doesn't get quite as cold as Connecticut!

Lisa
12-09-2009, 07:16 PM
Eric;
I just checked out your photo gallery and am shocked!!! Amazing!!! You are in zone 7 and can maintain that jungle without everything dying in the winter?? You can't possibly dig everything up and move inside before the cold starts.......Or do you??

Lisa
12-09-2009, 07:27 PM
Okay, everyone!!!! Now I really feel like a bozo.
Erik; I see now that "yes indeedie" you dig those baby's up and bring them in.........I should've kept looking before commenting. My hats off to you sir!!! I lot of work !!! Gorgeous results though!

Eric
12-09-2009, 07:56 PM
Eric;
I just checked out your photo gallery and am shocked!!! Amazing!!! You are in zone 7 and can maintain that jungle without everything dying in the winter?? You can't possibly dig everything up and move inside before the cold starts.......Or do you??

Thanx :) ! Well, actually, me, Sean, and a friend do it. We dig and bring all the bananas in as houseplants... cept the Really big ones! We cut most the leaves off the huge ones & overwinter those in a back room, dormant. We keep water plants alive under strong lights in a shallow water tank & the aroids (elephant ear types), Zantedeschias (Calla lilies), Saffron, some Cannas, Passion vines, Gingers, Diefenbachias, Coffee trees, & palm all come inside as houseplants, too. But you'd be surprised how much winters over outside with little or no protection. The Robert Young & Red Margin timber bamboos can survive major ice storms and things like Giant cannas, Shamrocks, Purple Heart, large Zantedeschias, Irises, etc over-winter naturally here!
It is def a lot of work, and the yards look like construction sites for a while, but with 3 or 4 of us working, it all gets done in time! Btw, we always start over-wintering about a week before the nightime lows get down to the 40's (F). That gives us plenty of time!
Guess ya can see now that zones aren't as important as how good you can over-winter things inside :) ! We've had the Blue Java (Ice Cream) banana plants going for 3 years now and they just keep getting bigger & taller every year :) ! Luv it!
Please keep us posted on how your Basjoo does! Cause if your Basjoo will do that good where you are, I'm gonna get one & just leave it out year round with heavy mulching!
Thanx again :) for the great compliments!
Btw, you are NOT a bozo, just a newbie! It probably won't be long before you'll be giving Me advice!

Lisa
12-09-2009, 08:02 PM
Well you guys ROCK Eric!!! Gorgeous work. I am sure I will be bugging you a lot as I learn. I can only dream of having a beautiful yard like you guys have some day.
Thanks again for the help.

Patty in Wisc
12-09-2009, 09:06 PM
I dunno, but I think Christmas lites would make it too warm. You want it to go dormant & heat will wake it up. I think your old quilt will work just fine then slip a big plastic trash bag over & mulch. Take it off when it warms up. I would put plastic around base to keep corm from too much moisture.

Seaner
12-10-2009, 10:31 AM
Well you guys ROCK Eric!!! Gorgeous work. I am sure I will be bugging you a lot as I learn. I can only dream of having a beautiful yard like you guys have some day.
Thanks again for the help.

Eric says thanks - Me too :) ! Bug us all you need to! We always love helping out new members :D !

Lisa
12-10-2009, 12:09 PM
It is supposed to warm up a little and start snowing; so I will be taking your advice Patty and will keep the moisture out. The gardeners that I have talked to in this area that attempted Bananas in this area say the moisture killed the plant not the cold...(of course we haven't had these low temperatures for such a long stretch of time in many, many years...)
Sean; just checking out your album and see you have an Elephant Ear. I would eventually love to add these to my garden someday too.......So cool!!

Eric
12-10-2009, 02:25 PM
Patty's right. Cold + wet = dead nanners :(. Cold is anything below 50*F. Yeah, those Elephant Ears are super! Especially if ya put them around the banana trees, looks awesome! The one I gave Sean gets up about 4-5 feet tall (so far) and has 3 foot long leaves :) ! They also are pretty easy to take care of & very easy to overwinter!

Lisa
12-10-2009, 02:47 PM
Does anyone have Trumpet Bushes?? A business close by planted several amongst his Elephant Ears and Hardy Bananas......they looked terrific this summer. No one sells them locally. Can anyone recommend an online source for the Trumpet Bushes??

Bob
12-10-2009, 05:35 PM
Hi Lisa.... the problem with trumpet bush is that several plants are called this. One of them is the tropical brugmansia or datura the other tecoma. All of them have large trumpet or I'd say lilly like flowers. Do you know which one you're after?

Lisa
12-10-2009, 05:47 PM
Hi Bob;
I believe it's the Angel Trumpet I want.....(brugmansia). I have heard if you mulch them well, some hardy varieties will survive in my zone 8. Can you make any recommendations for online purchasing??

Patty in Wisc
12-10-2009, 06:10 PM
I got some from here
COUNTRY GARDEN CATALOG (http://countrygdn.com/catalog3.html)
or, you could sneak up & take a cutting or 2 or 3 (which is what I would do LOL) & root it in water, or you can wait till early spring & I could send some cuttings.

Lisa
12-10-2009, 06:13 PM
Sounds great; I will check this out and possibly "hit you up" for some cuttings come spring.....thanks so much Patty:)