hurricanelyly
01-03-2013, 11:02 AM
So my friend bought me a blood leaf banana for my birthday in early September. It used to look like this:
Banana Gallery - my blood leaf, healthy (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=51805&cat=500&ppuser=15155)
I have planted it in tropical plant soil. It was living on my front porch in Indiana and doing very well, with new growth pretty regularly.
By the end of October I brought the container inside because it was getting cold at night. I don't have a south-facing window but I put it in my living room which gets the most light in my house from a west and a north facing window. The plant was still producing new growth for about a month and seemed like it was doing well. I overwatered it once and then did not water it for a while until the soil dried out. I would say that water is not the problem now. However, over the past month it has rapidly declined. The only new center leaf I got at that time was bare of all red markings and thinner than previous leaves. Now it is looking like it could give up the ghost at any second:
Banana Gallery - dying and sad! (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=51806&cat=500&ppuser=15155)
From reading other posts it seems like maybe I should cut off the remaining leaf, pull the root ball up from the soil and let it hang out in my basement until I can replant it in the spring. If this is correct, what is the best way to go about this? Is there something else I should be doing instead?
Thanks for your help, this is my first banana and I would really like it to survive the winter! It was so pretty and really cheered up my porch!
Banana Gallery - my blood leaf, healthy (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=51805&cat=500&ppuser=15155)
I have planted it in tropical plant soil. It was living on my front porch in Indiana and doing very well, with new growth pretty regularly.
By the end of October I brought the container inside because it was getting cold at night. I don't have a south-facing window but I put it in my living room which gets the most light in my house from a west and a north facing window. The plant was still producing new growth for about a month and seemed like it was doing well. I overwatered it once and then did not water it for a while until the soil dried out. I would say that water is not the problem now. However, over the past month it has rapidly declined. The only new center leaf I got at that time was bare of all red markings and thinner than previous leaves. Now it is looking like it could give up the ghost at any second:
Banana Gallery - dying and sad! (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=51806&cat=500&ppuser=15155)
From reading other posts it seems like maybe I should cut off the remaining leaf, pull the root ball up from the soil and let it hang out in my basement until I can replant it in the spring. If this is correct, what is the best way to go about this? Is there something else I should be doing instead?
Thanks for your help, this is my first banana and I would really like it to survive the winter! It was so pretty and really cheered up my porch!