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cannaman
05-31-2013, 04:45 PM
I live in a northern climate and am not interested in gathering fruit but love the tropical look of banana trees. I am looking for suggestions as to the fastest growing banana trees out there to add that tropical look to my yard. I will cut them back in the fall and store them in a greenhouse for the winter. Also, an idea where to find those plants would be helpful. They do not need to be cold hardy. Thank you

pmurphy
05-31-2013, 05:08 PM
What zone are you in? - there just might be something you can leave in ground....it would also help to provide you with info on where to get :)

sunfish
05-31-2013, 05:52 PM
http://www.bananas.org/f2/fastest-growing-banana-variety-439.html

Whats the fastest growing banana? - Banana Forum - GardenWeb (http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/banana/msg0300254518358.html)

LilRaverBoi
06-01-2013, 12:42 PM
I would recommend Ensetes. They don't pup, but from my experience are very strong growers, esecially in the ground. My best one last year was glaucum, but maurelii is a monster that is commonly available at nurseries in most areas (sold as an annual, but will overwinter indoors, greenhouse, dormant, etc).

Worm_Farmer
06-01-2013, 02:09 PM
Basjoo is suppose to be good for colder weather.

cannaman
06-01-2013, 08:08 PM
Thank you for your welcomes and replies. I live in Wisconsin and in an area that is technically called zone 5 but really consider myself more accurately zone 4. I just love the look of bananas. The greenhouse where I store my plants for winter has one member that has a banana plant which has been kept there for 10 years and is huge. It must be 2 feet across at the main stem and I am told will hit 40 feet by the end of the summer.:woohoonaner: I asked the type and simply was told "Red" banana. That, although awesome, is to big for me to move alone. I am told it takes 6 big guys to move it by spring when it is already well on its way to 40'.

I just want a few trees that will hit 12' with a similar canopy in a 3.5 month season. Currently, I have a couple basjoo, one dwarf chinese yellow, which I suppose will never flower in my short season, an abyssinian red ensente, a couple Mysore, and two more that are unidentified.:nanadrink:

I ordered most of my plants from TYTy, which seems to have quite a negative following. I ordered from them because first, I did not know any better, and second, because they seem to offer some older plants/corms, which I wanted. A better supplier would be appreciated.

That is enough for now. Thanks for your previous and future replies. I can add more info later.