View Full Version : My Ice Cream/Blue Java!
Kostas
06-03-2010, 09:57 AM
Hello!
Thanks to the great generosity of Michael(Abnshrek),i am the proud owner of an IC pup for about 2 week now!:woohoonaner:
Here it is for all of you to enjoy,and especially Michael which i thank a lot!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03518a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03515a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03519a.jpg
The new leaf is on its 5th day of growth only!
Enjoy!
AmberNichole
06-03-2010, 10:16 AM
AWEOSME! I have 2 coming in the mail tomorrow, i can't wait!
CoryS
06-03-2010, 10:57 AM
Congratulations! That's some really fast growth, too. And thanks much to Michael (Abnshrek) as well! He's definitely one of the most generous and helpful people I've ever met. :)
Btw, those are great shots of your Ice Cream banana pup! Will you be posting photos of the Blue Java?
Abnshrek
06-03-2010, 10:58 AM
Well that bad-boy looks pretty Happy there in greece :^)
Kostas
06-03-2010, 12:13 PM
Thank you very much all of you for your kind comments!
Thats great to hear Amber,i hope they arrive fast and safe for you!
Cory,
Indeed,its growing pretty fast and only gets faster everyday!:woohoonaner:
I totally agree about Michael,him and Basilios(a Greek friend of mine) are the most generous people i have met!!! :^)
Blue Java is just another name for the Ice Cream banana. But when i get other varieties,i will do post photos of them!
Thanks Michael! :^) I hope it grows to be huge soon!
Dalmatiansoap
06-03-2010, 12:31 PM
Looks in great shape.
Let it grow high Kostas! Very kind of Abnshrek, great job Amigo!
:woohoonaner:
LilRaverBoi
06-03-2010, 02:17 PM
Awesome! You'll enjoy the IC...they're great plants! They definitely do grow pretty quickly, which is always fun.
Mine went from this:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=15938&size=1
to THIS in a year!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=29893&size=1
And it's even bigger now! Have fun with it and best of luck!
Jack Daw
06-03-2010, 02:24 PM
Hello!
Thanks to the great generosity of Michael(Abnshrek),i am the proud owner of an IC pup for about 2 week now!:woohoonaner:
Here it is for all of you to enjoy,and especially Michael which i thank a lot!
The new leaf is on its 5th day of growth only!
Enjoy!
Congrats on that!!!!!!!!!
CoryS
06-03-2010, 05:56 PM
Thanks for the information, Kostas and LilRaverboi! I have an Ice Cream banana plant coming in the mail and had no idea it had 2 different names. But this thread is getting me very excited! :D
:woohoonaner:
blownz281
06-03-2010, 07:13 PM
Yes hats off too Michael!!:goteam:
palmtree
06-03-2010, 09:09 PM
Ice cream bananas are very good growers for me. They pup at a pretty small height too. Mine had a pup on it but as I was repotting it, the tender growth broke off. But I do see new growth so I hope the pup makes it. A very strong banana and its suppose to make great tasting fruit too!
LilRaverBoi
06-03-2010, 09:31 PM
They pup at a pretty small height too.
LOL...not in my experience :ha: Mine has 6-7 feet of pstem and a total height of 9-10 feet and no pups at all yet :(
Abnshrek
06-03-2010, 09:32 PM
LOL...not in my experience :ha: Mine has 6-7 feet of pstem and a total height of 9-10 feet and no pups at all yet :(
I second that motion.. :^)
Worm_Farmer
06-04-2010, 05:18 PM
My IC will not stop making pups, I swear I cut off 3 and now I have 9. IC is fun to grow, it is fast it was the first Banana I ever got to flower.
palmtree
06-05-2010, 03:31 PM
I sure hope that I actually have an ice cream banana because I was really surprised to see it pup at such a small height, but it does look like one so Im going to guess it is. Some bananas pup easier than others I guess. Plus mine was under some stress so I suppose that could have forced some pupping.
Kostas
06-06-2010, 09:02 AM
Thank you very much all of you for your replys!
Thanks Dalmatiansoap! I plan to do so!:woohoonaner:
Indeed extreemly kind of Michael!
I am glad you like it LilRaverBoi and thank you very much for sharing growth photos of yours!!! That is indeed very fast and real beauty you got there!!!:bananas_b
I cant wait to see mine that size!!!:woohoonaner:
Thanks Jack!
I am glad you like this thread Cory! Congratulations on your new buy!
I cant agree more blownnz281!!!:goteam:
Thank you very much for the info on pup generation palmtree,LilRaverBoi,Michael and Worm_Father! Very interesting to hear!
Just a growth update on my IC,it fully opened the latest leaf blade early on day 7 and a new leaf was coming out already! The petiole has continued to grow and is elongation fast,just a tad slower than the new leaf is coming out! The last leaf is 1,5times the newest leaf visible in the photos! Looking forward to see how big the new one will grow to be! Cant wait to see the first leaf with drooping edges:goteam:
Clare_CA
06-06-2010, 10:36 PM
Mine pupped pretty quickly too and grew fast.
palmtree
06-06-2010, 11:18 PM
That kind of looks similar to whats happening to mine (except mine isnt as large yet!).
The pup that I accidentally broke off my IC banana is quickly recovering (whew!). I have a feeling this banana may be one of my favorites (My thai black banana is also doing fantastic).
Good luck and thanks for sharing your info and pics!
LilRaverBoi
06-06-2010, 11:26 PM
Hmmm...quite the variation in morphology cause mine doesn't look like that at all. Yours almost resembles a dwarf variety, Claire! And the leaves are soooo upright compared to mine. Interesting.
Clare_CA
06-07-2010, 11:48 AM
Well, I went back to check my diagram of where everything is planted. I actually got two Ice Cream bananas from Green Thumb Nursery and one from Stokes Tropicals.
LilRaverBoi
06-07-2010, 01:09 PM
LOL...that makes more sense to me now. Those look much more ice creamy to me. :ha:
Clare_CA
06-07-2010, 02:07 PM
Bryan, you have a really good eye for distinguishing between varieties. I am not able to do that yet. I'm going to need your help and some other members help in the future to figure out which ones are which when they bloom and bear fruit because I've moved some of mine at least once and twice in some cases, and so I've lost the identification on them that I once had.
Kostas, I didn't mean to hijack your thread! Your banana is awesome, and Michael was really nice to send it to you! Are you by chance the same Kostas from Greece that has plumerias too and posts over at the Florida Plumeria Society forum? If so, your place is awesome!
LilRaverBoi
06-07-2010, 03:46 PM
Bryan, you have a really good eye for distinguishing between varieties. I am not able to do that yet.
Eh, I'm no expert by any means....just do my best with the things I've picked up from my time here. Every time I see a picture, I try to guess what it is...it's a fun game. The wiki is a great resource for getting a knowledge base of plant ID's (or just doing an image search on the site).
And on the topic of banana identification....pretty sure Gabe makes us ALL look bad :ha:
Kostas
06-07-2010, 05:32 PM
Thank you very much for sharing your experiences with this cultivar!
I am happy your pup is recovering palmtree!:woohoonaner:
Clare,thank you very much for sharing your photos! The first ones indeed are shouting everything else than Ice Cream with their fat pseudostems and broad leafs! As Bryan said,just watching many photos of a certain cultivar help with iding it when you see it! Reading the id forum is an even greater help as it is often thoroughly explained what differentiates certain cultivar and what makes the poster think that banana is what he said.
No hijacking problems here,i am happy you posted!!! I am not a member of that society and havent got any Plumeria yet but its great to hear that someone else from Greece(and with the same name! Although Konstantinos isnt really a very unusual name in Greece....Kostas is a short version of Konstantinos) is seriously involved with tropical plants!!! Very few people here have unusual tropical plants unfortunately although our climate allows for many of them to grow and flourish!
Here (http://www.bananas.org/f2/my-pyrgos-garden-11517.html) is the thread of my Garden in Pyrgos! I hope you like it!!!
Clare_CA
06-07-2010, 10:30 PM
Excellent! Thanks so much for the info. on the I.D.'ing. I'll go check out that forum to get a sense of the characteristics of the bananas that I currently have.
The other Kostas that I know is Kostas Akalestos, and he is in Paros Island, Greece and has a nice collection of tropical plants. He is a very nice man if you are close to Paros Island. I believe he also has a fellow gardener in Greece that he trades plants with.
I am short on time right now so I will check out your link again tomorrow. I started to look at the pictures, and it looks like it was a very big job to get the land in the right condition for planting. That is so great! I will check it out again tomorrow because I want to read about all that you've done and see the pictures. Thanks so much!
CoryS
06-08-2010, 12:23 AM
That kind of looks similar to whats happening to mine (except mine isnt as large yet!).
The pup that I accidentally broke off my IC banana is quickly recovering (whew!). I have a feeling this banana may be one of my favorites (My thai black banana is also doing fantastic).
Good luck and thanks for sharing your info and pics!
I'm happy to hear your IC pup is all right! :D And I'm very happy to hear that your thai black banana is doing fantastic! I live in zone 7, too, and have a thai black on the way in the mail. Do you have any photos posted yet?
Bananaman88
06-08-2010, 11:19 AM
Hmmm...quite the variation in morphology cause mine doesn't look like that at all. Yours almost resembles a dwarf variety, Claire! And the leaves are soooo upright compared to mine. Interesting.
Bryan...my guess would be that yours looks a bit droopy due to the indoor lighting conditions you are growing it under. It probably hasn't pupped due to being in a pot. If you had that bad boy in the ground, it would probably pup within a month! Not that it can't pup in a pot but if root space is limited I think that could be causing it.
LilRaverBoi
06-08-2010, 08:09 PM
Bryan...my guess would be that yours looks a bit droopy due to the indoor lighting conditions you are growing it under. It probably hasn't pupped due to being in a pot. If you had that bad boy in the ground, it would probably pup within a month! Not that it can't pup in a pot but if root space is limited I think that could be causing it.
You do raise many valid points, Brent. Though I was basing my comparisons mostly on what my plant looked like when it was younger (aka last summer/fall) after it had been growing outdoors in full sun all season. The leaves of mine have never really pointed upright (horizontal at most) at any point in its growth (with the exceptions of when it was tiny or the leaf was recently put on). If you look at the pic of the plant that quoted post was referring to (which later was revealed to actually be raja puri, not ice cream) all of the leaves point upward.
As far as the pupping goes, you're likely correct that growing in a pot has helped to inhibit this. But if I compare it to my other plants, the Ice Cream is the ONLY one that has not pupped (and I've had it almost a year and a half...and always in larger than necessary pots). I really wish I did have a place to plant it in the ground, though. Not for pupping, but simply to see how much faster/stronger it would grow!
Kostas
06-12-2010, 04:43 PM
Good to know that Claire!
Paros is not very close to Athens or Pyrgos but as i tour the islands with my boat during my summer vacations,i may pass from there...Antiparos is quite beautyfull! Paros is too windy and dry generally although there is an excellent shipwreck for diving between Paros and Naxos where many tropical fishes can be found! The currents there form a favourable spot for these tropical fishes that entered the Mediterranean from the Red Sea:woohoonaner:
I am glad you find my project interesting! It has finally progressed to a good degree,although there are certainly still lots to be done and plants to be planted, and this year,i am expecting a couple of my palms to trunk!!!:woohoonaner:
Btw,my IC banana opened the leaf in the photo and just opened another one which is much bigger looking! It has a leaf blade 20cm long and 1/3 times bigger from the last one! Looking forward to the next one!!!!
Patty in Wisc
06-12-2010, 08:27 PM
Bryan...my guess would be that yours looks a bit droopy due to the indoor lighting conditions you are growing it under. It probably hasn't pupped due to being in a pot. If you had that bad boy in the ground, it would probably pup within a month! Not that it can't pup in a pot but if root space is limited I think that could be causing it.
I have 4 pups from my potted IC...and, 5 pups currently on my Truly Tiny & pups on dbl Mahoi - all potted. It must have something to do with the lighting. Or, maybe they'd have more if inground.
Patty, How did your bunch come out--how many hands?
LilRaverBoi
06-12-2010, 10:45 PM
Patty, How did your bunch come out--how many hands?
Check her contest page for the full details (http://www.bananas.org/f211/guess-how-many-i-c-fingers-11663.html). Basically, it's a bit disappointing....all male flowers :( At least she got a bloom, though! Props either way!
Hi everybody,
here's a pic of another Ice Cream living in Greece! It's been planted to the ground about a month ago and had a bit of a problem unfolding the leaves after transplanting, but now everything is fine.
It's amazing what a growth speed in the ground can be seen - compared to container grown nanners!
It's now about 70 cm high (2' 4"). I got it last September. It overwintered on my balcony in a pot with little protection. We had light freezes, but it survived. Now it'll be a big banana very soon.
If you want to visit it, you have to come to the island of Skiathos. It's one of the places where the movie Mamma Mia was shot! And the place, where my IC is living is for rent in summer! I will turn that place slowly into a banana jungle.
This plant was a first try, together with an Ititnerans Gigantea. But this one had a tough time, because it's not watered automatically as the Ice Cream, so it suffered a bit in the last three weeks. But it's still alive!
The problem is, that I'm not on the island all summer long and our guests won't water my nanners. But if you wish to do so, I'll give you a discount :-)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=33959&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=33959&ppuser=5708)
Picture was taken with my iPhone! I think I should clean the lens :-)
Kostas
07-11-2010, 05:30 PM
Thank you very much all of you for your replys!
Brent,
Its great to see another member from Greece!!! Your IC is awesome looking and sure gonna be big soon now in the ground:woohoonaner: Mine has tripled in size from when i got it but has a long way to go to reach flowering size... If it gets a meter tall before winter,i will be very happy!
Well,what a coincidence,this year i will be going to Skiathos for vacations again as i have been doing 4-5years now and as i was doing in the past for 7summers in row:woohoonaner: I love this island!!! Where is your rental property located?
I will be coming with my boat which also acts as a hotel so i wont be needing a rental property unfortunately,otherwise yours would be my choice probably! I remember 10years back when i was in a hotel in Florida,i was eating breakfast under bananas every day and was loving it so your banana jungle is gonna be very popular when it starts forming! Unfortunately the plantings of hotels and rentals in Greece is poor in many cases.
If your rental is close to the port,i would gladly visit and water the bananas if you like during my stay(most of August)!
Velutina
07-11-2010, 06:13 PM
Here is my Blue Java growing in 112F heat. It's a pretty tough variety!!
http://i612.photobucket.com/albums/tt201/triterium/July112010006.jpg
Kostas
07-11-2010, 06:31 PM
Its beautyfull Adam,thanks for sharing!!!
Wish you get a flower early next year!:woohoonaner:
Mine has not seen 112F yet i think but it will probably do see them too eventually! I love how the leafs droop in the high heat! Mine does that in some degree too even though is very small!
Kostas
07-16-2010, 07:32 AM
My IC was getting a little root bound and roots were growing out of the pot and in the ground so i decided to just ground plant it where it is in my garden in Melissia. And so i did this morning! Here are some pictures of it!!!:woohoonaner:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03522a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03523a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03524a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03525a.jpg
Its mostly mound planted on the grass to assure excellent drainage in winter as the soil of the garden is mostly clay and not well draining at all...The mound is of excellent quality,fast draining,organic rich soil which i think it will enjoy! As you see its also mulched. The stones are for decoration for the planted to be well approoved from the other residents of the building i live in. Personally i hate using stones in such an unnatural manner but since this is not solely my garden,i am doing what i have to plant the banana there!
I hope you like it!:woohoonaner:
Abnshrek
07-16-2010, 10:21 AM
Hey, Kosta's she looks Happy with her 7 lucky rocks :^) Nice Pic's
kaczercat
07-16-2010, 01:19 PM
very healthy !
ewitte
07-16-2010, 06:18 PM
The small one from last year (now the biggest) - also it had to cut all the way to the ground in January. Purchased as a 6" pup last summer!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=34285&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=34285)
Kostas
07-16-2010, 06:18 PM
Thank you very much Michael and Matt for your kind comments!:woohoonaner:
I hope it rewards me with some fast growth then Michael!:goteam: I am glad you liked the pics!
Thank you very much again for this awesome gift Michael!:nanadrink:
Beautyfull banana you got there ewitte!:woohoonaner: I wish mine grows that big that fast!
Abnshrek
07-17-2010, 08:09 AM
Hey Kostas here's my Ice Cream :^)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=34327&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=34327)
I put my Ice Cream in the ground last week. I was waiting for it to produce some pups before I planted it--It has 3 pups now--I will let them get a little bigger and then remove 2 to make sure that I can protect them from the cold next winter. The main stem is over 6 ft tall now.
Kostas
07-19-2010, 05:05 PM
Wow,a wonderfull IC you got there Michael!!!:woohoonaner:
I cant wait mine to grow that big!
Well done sbl,sounds awesome! Post some pictures if you would like for all of us to enjoy!:lurk:
Dalmatiansoap
07-19-2010, 06:29 PM
my two cents:ha:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=34440&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=34440&ppuser=4565)
:woohoonaner:
Kostas
07-22-2010, 09:40 AM
Thats a beauty Ante,thanks for sharing!:woohoonaner:
Kostas
09-15-2010, 04:53 PM
Hello!
I thought I would post a few updated photos of my IC pup for you to see! It grew quite well for me the past time and now its impossible to miss when looking at the garden from a distance! Here are a few photos of it from a couple of days ago,it's now growing another new leaf already!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2368a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2366a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2365a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2362a.jpg
I hope you liked it!!!
Για σου, Κωστα!
I hope you had a great summer and Καλό χειμώνα!
If this seems all Greek to you, other guys: you're right! :08:
Your Ice Cream looks great and grew dramatically over the summer. I don't have updated pics of my Ice Cream in Skiathos at the moment, but hopefully soon. At the moment we just have one car, so I couldn't go there. We had an accident last Friday, so the big car is being repaired at moment. But nobody was injured in the accident, which is the most important.
So I hope to go there soon.
Μπέρντ
kaczercat
09-15-2010, 06:26 PM
That plant just took off, look how tall it got !
Kostas
09-16-2010, 07:15 AM
Thank you very much for your replys Berd and Matt!
Γειά σου Bernd!
I had a great time this summer and if it weren't for the exam period I am having,I would still be enjoying the summer here! Thank you very much for your wish,καλό χειμώνα και σε σένα although it would be nice if we didnt have one!
I am glad you like how it developed over the course of our summer! I was amazed by it's height gain as well and look forward to see it grow overhead! I hope the pseudostem survives our winter....
Looking forward to see updated pictures of yours when you can!!! It must have grown a lot since i saw it live!
I am sorry to hear about your accident,at least it was just metal and fixable!
Matt,
It started growing like crazy as soon as I ground planted it! I hope it continues with that rate and hopefully flowers early next summer if I am extremely lucky!
All the best,
-Konstantinos
Kostas
09-25-2010, 05:58 PM
Just an overhead photo of my IC I took a few days ago,after the new leaf i told you about before unfolded,from my 1st floor balcony! The location I planted it is perfectly protected from the wind as you can see from it's mostly entire leafs!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2422a.jpg
It would be great if it keeps it's leafs entire at final size as well!
CoryS
09-26-2010, 01:23 AM
That's some awesome growth for just 2 months, Kostas! :D And those leaves look great! Mine's still growing kind of slow. We had a lot of 100's [F] all through August and it stopped growing. But now that it's cooler it's growing again! I'll post photos soon. August and September are a busy time for me but things are slowing down now.
Dalmatiansoap
09-26-2010, 02:23 AM
my two cents:ha:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=34440&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=34440&ppuser=4565)
:woohoonaner:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=36940&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=36940&ppuser=4565)
two months update!
Its getting huuge Kostas, lets hope that two of us will start Ice Cream mania in Europe:ha:
BTW, I like your palm collection!
:woohoonaner:
Its getting huuge Kostas, lets hope that two of us will start Ice Cream mania in Europe:ha:
BTW, I like your palm collection!
:woohoonaner:
I'll join the Euro-IC-mania with my Ice Cream. I hope to share new pics with you soon. I haven't be to Skiathos, where it's planted for the last month. I hope to go there in about three weeks.
Jack Daw
09-26-2010, 04:33 AM
two months update!
Its getting huuge Kostas, lets hope that two of us will start Ice Cream mania in Europe:ha:
BTW, I like your palm collection!
:woohoonaner:
""Must find better climate. Must find better climate!!!"
Kostas
09-28-2010, 11:49 AM
Thank you very much for your replys all of you!
I am glad you like it Cory! It indeed grew a lot in just a few months time! Mine powered through our high summer heat once established in the ground! It receives only part day sun and did great! When it was in a pot,I think high heat did slow it a little(although it may just have been that it got slightly root bound) but once ground planted for 1-2 weeks,it put on some amazing growth!
I wish you fast growth with yours!!!
Ante,
Wow,your IC got really Biig!!! Its a beauty! Mine seems to be about 2-3 months behind then...Looking forward to see it as big!!!
I will be happy to share pups of my Ice Cream with other members once it grows some!
I am glad you like my palms Ante! Most are still relatively small but i should have 2-3 more trunking next year hopefully! :woohoonaner:
Bernd,
Looking forward to updated photos of yours when you get them!!!!
Jack,
**Must find the will move** :ha:
Joking aside,you can fruit bananas even where you are as many climate challenged members here showed us this year! It just takes more effort unfortunately... It would still be worth to try it at least once though!
Btw,another new leaf is emerging on mine:woohoonaner:
Kostas
12-26-2010, 12:47 PM
I thought I would show you some progress pictures of my IC banana!
Here it is growing well!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2488a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/IMG_2489a.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/60d80c56.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/ede1a55b.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/7bf8f108.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/5de6ccab.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/923ef5f1.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/DSC03586a.jpg
And here it is some days after seeing marginally below freezing temperatures for a day and -2,5C to -3C overnight... What's surprising for me is that some of the leafs still have some green photosynthetic surfaces left after all that cold and all the damage has demonstrated itself!!! I look forward to spring and an early summer bunch hopefully!!!!! :woohoonaner:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/4f35b302.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/31d20ffc.jpg
I hope you like it!!!
Kostas
06-06-2011, 09:56 AM
Here is an updated picture of my Ice Cream
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/3048066b.jpg
Its been exactly like that for about a month now,showing no growth at all despite our good,hot weather. The inner leaf sheaths(but outer in relation to the green new leafs)are dying back,getting brown but not very soft, downwards but the outer leaf sheaths are not dying back. Its rather frustrating to see this banana come up good from the winter only to stop growing at its second leaf! What do you think the problem is and what can i do to help it start growing again fast? I was hoping for a flower in late summer but i am loosing hope seeing no growth for so long...
The banana is watered well,organically fertilized and firmly rooted/doesnt rock.
Thank you very much in advance!
sunfish
06-06-2011, 12:32 PM
I wonder if your not better off cutting off below the leaves. Maybe there is some leaves jammed up in the p-stem
Kostas
06-06-2011, 12:46 PM
Thank you very much for your reply and suggestion Tony!
I am also inclined to think that it may be choking and possibly has leafs too short to emerge in there as the last leaf poking out never emerged any more. If thats the case,wont the problem resolve itself after some leafs and eventually push its way through? I am a little reluctant to cut it in case winter has depleted its resources. At least now it has a functional leaf that helps some with energy production.
Is there any chance of internal rot(growth center rot) going on? Or would the leafs have already been affected?
Thank you very much in advance!
sunfish
06-06-2011, 12:54 PM
My kru did the same thing and finally pushed new growth.Some other bananas that I cut had an easier time pushing new growth. Yes there may be some rot on the stuck growth.I think it's better to cut but see what Jon , pitangadiego has to say
Dalmatiansoap
06-06-2011, 01:50 PM
Is there any chance of internal rot(growth center rot) going on? Or would the leafs have already been affected?
Thats what happend to my IC, main steam is gone now but its pushing 6 pups now.
Kostas
06-06-2011, 03:08 PM
Thank you very much for your replies and help!
Good to hear your Kru recovered from this unaided! I will wait for Jon's suggestions as well then and see! I really hope it shows pushes new growth out of there again!
Ante,
Did your IC that rotted internally,send out any new growth after winter or not? The green leafs you see on mine is this years growth so i hope this lessen the chances for meristem rot but dont really know...
Thank you very much in advance!
Dalmatiansoap
06-06-2011, 03:11 PM
It did grow one leaf after winter and than collapsed.
Kostas
06-06-2011, 03:17 PM
Thank you very much for your reply Ante!
How did it collapse? Did it started from the newly produced leaf? How soon after its production?
Sorry if i bring bad memories but it really would help to know that...
Thank you very much in advance!
Dalmatiansoap
06-06-2011, 03:26 PM
New leaf just bended a side after some time and than I started with sliceing. Went all down to corm, allmost 2m of pstem.
If I were you I would cut some 10 cm below leaf petiole for inspection.
Kostas
06-06-2011, 03:30 PM
Thank you very much for your reply Ante!
Both new leafs seem ok and the outer one is quite strong and stiff so hopefully it has chances...No pups yet.
Kostas
06-14-2011, 12:12 PM
I am both sad and happy to say that my Ice Cream pupped a few days ago and now has 2 pups growing with about a week to half a week size difference between them. I am happy it finally pushed some growth but unhappy i wont get bananas from it this year....unless the main pseudostem decides to push new growth again at some point. Its not dying back but not doing anything as well...
Kostas
03-06-2013, 02:37 PM
Just a quick update,after a long time,on how my Ice Cream is now. I didn't care for it well enough during its second year in the ground and it was totally sluggish that year. But last summer,I started taking good/decent care of it and it managed to grow from ground level to 1m tall pseudostem height with a pup of 50cm pseudostem height. It remained undamaged till about mid-January when we had 3 days of cold with sub-zero temperatures for part of them. Here is how it look now,as we enter to spring!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/7B0C3C42-D7F3-4FD0-B91B-76296FA393F8-290-0000009E25512C33_zpsb121f863.jpg
Looking forward to new growth!!!! :)
Kostas
04-01-2013, 11:59 AM
My ''Ice Cream''(Pisang Awak) has been growing slowly but well since a little before the previous photo was take and about a week or a little more ago,a new leaf appeared! It has been growing at a good pace and is about to open now,probably needing 1-3 more days from now. About three days ago,the first hint of a new leaf appeared at the top of the pup as well and its growing fast! I will try to baby this mat this year and get it as big as possible to hopefully get a flower next year. Anyway,here is an updated photo of my ''Ice Cream''!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/FEB6AB52-7E1B-46AE-8B98-91D8438813EF-1283-0000011250430D5A_zps73c9d86d.jpg
Not much to look at yet but that first leaf will be a good start once it opens! :)
Kostas
04-07-2013, 10:11 AM
The first leaf of my 'Ice Cream' finally opened today!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/461B0F26-2A65-4C68-B87F-089D4620D306-1283-000002216D95ED00_zps9b40f299.jpg
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/D8422142-C150-415E-BF91-6A3B983F4DAD-1283-0000022184B58C4D_zps85b2ea19.jpg
Took longer than i thought but its a nice start! Looking forward to more new leafs and faster growth!!! :woohoonaner:
edzone9
04-07-2013, 10:18 AM
Looking Good !
Kostas
04-10-2013, 05:44 PM
Thank you very much Ed! Its working on it! :)
crazy banana
04-11-2013, 01:23 AM
Yeah, looks nice! See, never give up.
Kostas
04-23-2013, 05:35 AM
Thank you very much for the encouragement! Much appreciated! :)
Here is a new photo of it! I cut away the dead leafs as they were beating up the new leaf of the pup with the strong winds we had the whole of last week...
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/63F2F03B-15E5-41D8-907B-0D30825CAD15-1283-000004C2B92B77F0_zpsc29b6134.jpg
A new leaf is pushing its way inside the petiole and should emerge very soon! :woohoonaner:
Kostas
05-28-2013, 10:24 AM
Here is an updated photo of my 'Ice Cream'(Pisang Awak). Didnt grow as much as i had hoped but its starting to look better!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/24899E24-CF8D-4D61-A9AB-EDD50E4DDB38-1300-000005573916408C_zps2eb45038.jpg (http://s162.photobucket.com/user/Kostas_G/media/Bananas/24899E24-CF8D-4D61-A9AB-EDD50E4DDB38-1300-000005573916408C_zps2eb45038.jpg.html)
:)
Kostas
10-02-2013, 03:45 AM
A few updated photos after a nice growing season! :)
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/null_zpsf7031e4a.jpg
Pseudostem color
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/null_zpsf067f86f.jpg
View from my 1st story balcony!
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t244/Kostas_G/Bananas/null_zps1e3d9161.jpg
This is the first time my Ice Cream grows so well and gets so big in Melissia! It now has a 3m tall pseudostem and nice big leafs! If its growing point survives winter ok,it should be flowering for the first time next year!!! :woohoonaner:
crazy banana
10-02-2013, 11:50 AM
Nice job. If this one starts to fruit, You will be able to harvest them straight into your cereal bowl from the balcony. Should not take much longer. I have three fruiting right now about this size.
Kostas
10-02-2013, 05:38 PM
Thank you very much! :) It should be fun when it flowers with the inflorescence highly visible from the balcony,as well as the bananas! They may even be harvestable from up there as you say,though its a little far from the pseudostem,around 1,5-2m maybe. The pup is growing closer though and its bunch could even lean on the rail!
Great to hear yours are flowering at about the size of mine! I hope mine doesn't flower before winter as the bunch will be lost then,Melissia are 9a/8b,and 330m altitude,not good at all for bananas! I hope it passes through the winter again with no major setback and flowers in June,when it will have enough leafs on it :)
crazy banana
10-02-2013, 06:03 PM
Thank you very much! :) It should be fun when it flowers with the inflorescence highly visible from the balcony,as well as the bananas! They may even be harvestable from up there as you say,though its a little far from the pseudostem,around 1,5-2m maybe. The pup is growing closer though and its bunch could even lean on the rail!
Great to hear yours are flowering at about the size of mine! I hope mine doesn't flower before winter as the bunch will be lost then,Melissia are 9a/8b,and 330m altitude,not good at all for bananas! I hope it passes through the winter again with no major setback and flowers in June,when it will have enough leafs on it :)
Can you protect it during winter season with frost cloth, especially because it should be easier to cover the tall plant right from your balcony. Add lots of mulch. I have put a big structure around my mat last year ( see my gallery photos) and it worked to a certain degree. I do not think that I can do it this year, because it got so big. Hope to harvest at least one bunch before winter, the others I am planning to put banana bags on for protection.
Kostas
10-02-2013, 06:38 PM
I plan to try covering the two biggest pseudostems with something during our snow events but I don't know exactly what to use and how much difference it will make as our freezes are adventive and prolonged,with snowy weather for a week or 2 each winter...not nice at all! I have never protected it before and it always survives but some years it lost its growing point while the pseudostem was never damaged in any significant amount. That's always my main fear in spring,wether the main pseudostem will resume growth or pass the energy to a pup which makes for a long delay. This is the first year it pupped naturally though so there are many growing centers now and theoritically,they can't all be compromised!
So would wrapping individual pseudostems with frost cloth and adding lots of mulch to cover the base benefit the plant enough during adventive freezes to be worth the hassle?
Abnshrek
10-02-2013, 07:12 PM
I think frost cloth would help alot.. some christmas lights would do even more.. I think its looking pretty good.. see what you can do to get a head start on next year is how I look at it.. :^)
Kostas
10-06-2013, 11:57 AM
Thank you very much for the suggestions on cold protection! Shall I wrap the whole pseudostems individually with frost cloth or all together? Don't Christmas lights get too hot to cause burn where they touch the pseudostem under the insulation of frost cloth? Can this protection be left on safely through all the days with freezing nights or shall it be removed during the day? The mat doesn't get much sun in winter but the tops of the tallest pseudostems will be getting some sun.
Btw,the main pseudostem is starting to thicken fast from the base up,maybe it will decide to flower in the middle of winter unfortunately...Thankfully,the biggest pup seems perfect size for a good next year's harvest :)
cheson74
10-10-2013, 06:18 PM
How are the Ice Creams I sent you?
Kostas
10-14-2013, 02:24 AM
Hi Cheason! :)
I have long been meaning to post photos of the real 'Ice Cream' you sent me and is doing well but it choked in summer and wanted to wait for recovery first. Its growing center pierced the pseudostem sideways in mid-summer and now its finally as tall as it was before choking. I just opened a new thread for it with pictures for you to see :)
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