bananaspry
07-03-2016, 07:58 AM
Hi everyone!
So glad to find this forum... Live in Central FL and picked up a Blue Java (ice cream) banana plant, my first banana ever, about 3 months ag... have become truly hooked! Would love to pop a few questions to those who have far more knowledge than I do in this arena...
1. If I planted a 3.5' potted plant in April, is there any hope for a harvest this year or should I just dash those hopes and expect to wait until 2017?
2. Does everyone cut *all* the pups off straight away or do is it generally ok to leave 2 pseudostems? Right now the original plant has two similarly-sized (about 4 foot tall) pseudostems, and I'm leaving the 2nd one because the 1st tends to get a little sunburned and I figured having the other one would at least provide a little bit of shade for the original. Am I nuts, and is this going to kill my chances for a banana harvest this year? Should I cut off p-stem #2 and just leave the original one to grow?
3. So far I've just been dumping regular time-release Miracle-Gro on my bananas... is there a better fertilizer I should be using that is relatively cheap and widely available at Home Depot or Lowes? Don't want to break the bank with these pricey banana-specific fertilizers I'm seeing online.
4. My original banana is in full sun, and as I mentioned, tends to get a bit sunburned. So the three pups I've removed I've replanted in partial sun. I'd say they get a good 4-6 hours of sun each day... is that enough to expect the pups to produce, or should I just write those off as ornamentals in that part of the yard? I didn't really pay attention whether they were sword or water suckers... I'm guessing they're all water suckers, though, since my plant is relatively new.
5. When a big bunch does come in (knock on wood!), should I expect to have some "prop-up poles" ready to keep the tree from bending/breaking? And if so what do most folks use for this sort of thing?
6. Any Central FL specific tips and tricks I should know about? Our land is kind of schizophrenic... some parts are very clayish, others sandy, other parts rich with dark black soil. We have sprinklers just about everywhere so water isn't a problem.
Thrilled to find this forum, and thanks to everyone for your help!!
:2223:
So glad to find this forum... Live in Central FL and picked up a Blue Java (ice cream) banana plant, my first banana ever, about 3 months ag... have become truly hooked! Would love to pop a few questions to those who have far more knowledge than I do in this arena...
1. If I planted a 3.5' potted plant in April, is there any hope for a harvest this year or should I just dash those hopes and expect to wait until 2017?
2. Does everyone cut *all* the pups off straight away or do is it generally ok to leave 2 pseudostems? Right now the original plant has two similarly-sized (about 4 foot tall) pseudostems, and I'm leaving the 2nd one because the 1st tends to get a little sunburned and I figured having the other one would at least provide a little bit of shade for the original. Am I nuts, and is this going to kill my chances for a banana harvest this year? Should I cut off p-stem #2 and just leave the original one to grow?
3. So far I've just been dumping regular time-release Miracle-Gro on my bananas... is there a better fertilizer I should be using that is relatively cheap and widely available at Home Depot or Lowes? Don't want to break the bank with these pricey banana-specific fertilizers I'm seeing online.
4. My original banana is in full sun, and as I mentioned, tends to get a bit sunburned. So the three pups I've removed I've replanted in partial sun. I'd say they get a good 4-6 hours of sun each day... is that enough to expect the pups to produce, or should I just write those off as ornamentals in that part of the yard? I didn't really pay attention whether they were sword or water suckers... I'm guessing they're all water suckers, though, since my plant is relatively new.
5. When a big bunch does come in (knock on wood!), should I expect to have some "prop-up poles" ready to keep the tree from bending/breaking? And if so what do most folks use for this sort of thing?
6. Any Central FL specific tips and tricks I should know about? Our land is kind of schizophrenic... some parts are very clayish, others sandy, other parts rich with dark black soil. We have sprinklers just about everywhere so water isn't a problem.
Thrilled to find this forum, and thanks to everyone for your help!!
:2223: