View Full Version : 2018 Banana Patch: Pensacola, Florida
Akula
08-10-2018, 03:13 PM
This is my patch in Pensacola, Florida which was originally planted in March of 2017. The original plants consisted of three ice cream (blue java) and two raja puri ordered from an online nursery. The original plants died in the winter of 2017-2018 or showed slow/stunted growth in Spring 2018 and were removed to make way for the first generation of pups which emerged in July of 2017.
My area experienced overnight lows below freezing on three occasions during the past winter with an extreme low of 21F which persisted until about noon on the following i.e. about 18 hours below freezing. My plants were protected during the winter which is documented elsewhere on the site.
One of my RPs is now close to 13' and has been tentatively identified as a tall Orinoco. Confirmation by flower and fruit is expected this year.
My other RPs pups appear to be a slow growing dwarf of some type which suffer from curved, hooked leaves most likely due to excessive rainfall and light direction. The planting location of these plants is primarily West facing due light being blocked from the East by a fence and foliage so the plants lean to the West causing cigar leaf bending in that direction. Confirmation by flower is expected this year with luck. These pups were dry root stored in the garage for about three months during the winter and replanted into the patch at the end of February 2018.
My three Ice Cream bananas face South and receive more than six hours of direct sun each day both summer and winter. Mid-summer sun is blocked after about 7 pm due to tall foliage on the West side.
Average rainfall in my area is 68 inches per year with the majority of rain between April and September. Winter is the "dry season". My location is rather high for Florida at about 50' above sea level, drains quickly, and is not far from Escambia Bay.
I fertilize monthly alternating between with potassium sulfate and urea applied separately and a complex palm fertilizer containing micro nutrients. The plants are watered by hose directly during dry stretches when soil is determined to be dry by sticking a finger in the ground. The soil in the patch was prepped for the plants by digging up the area to a depth of 4' and mixing the natural soil with composted cow manure (about 2,000+ lbs). All competing roots were removed in the areas of the patch. The patch is continuously mulched during the growing season with St. Augustine grass clippings from the yard.
At the time of this post my ice cream bananas are approximately 13' of pstem, my "orinoco" is 13' of pstem, and my rp's are about 6' of pstem. All are July 2017 pups.
Hoping to get a couple flowers and maybe eat some bananas this year!!
Bonus info!!!
I made a side trip to visit Don at Going Bananas prior to picking some friends up at the Miami Airport August 5. My sister who lives in West Palm Beach and I arrived about 30 minutes prior to closing time due to an error in my judgment in the amount of time necessary to get to Homestead from WP and I-95 traffic. Uhhgg! Even though we were 30 minutes from closing, Don was super polite, friendly, and gave us a nice tour of his beautiful gardens with enthusiasm. It was amazing! I love how Going Bananas is really more like a garden than a farm. Very lovely grassy paths between the rows of bananas, numerous tropical flowers and fruits, and just really thoughtful landscaping that appeals to the eye while allowing for operations, maintenance, etc. I did mention that I found out about his nursery from bananas.org which might explain his enthusiasm or maybe it was my supermodel sister who accompanied me but even though I arrived late and could only spend a brief amount of time I really feel like he gave us a great tour and was really enthusiastic about tropicals, bananas and what he and his family have built in Homestead. A real gem!
I was embarrassed that my only banana plant purchase to date was from another company and since I was flying on to DC after WP could not take any plants back to Pensacola on this trip. Next time I will drive down and get a few plants from Don.
Photos of my patch and plants as of August 10, 2018:
General view of the patch from my back patio. Along the back fence left to right are the ice creams with the big orinoco the last big one in the corner when going left to right (fourth grouping from the left) The four dwarfs (RPs???) are along the right side fence from the corner with one ice cream mixed in near the corner. Yeah, yeah I know its just a big wall of green!!! Haha.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63382&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63382)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63381&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63381)
Possible pre-flag on 13' Orinoco??? The five cigar leaves before this one were extremely tight with a hook on the end. This one is a bit loose and not curved:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63380&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63380)
Should be a flower soon!!! Ice Cream on far left edge has a nice crown:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63383&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63383)
Bonus pic!!! Me with Don at Going Bananas:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63385&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63385)
37.667910
08-10-2018, 09:25 PM
Awesome patch!
HMelendez
08-11-2018, 04:13 AM
Congrats Akula!.....
Awesome job!......Very beautiful Nana patch!.....I'm glad that you had an awesome time at Going Bananas!.....Don and Katie are very good people!....
:2723::bananarow::2723:
Akula
08-20-2018, 06:17 PM
Sword sucker or Spear Sucker? This little guy is about a month old. Pretty sure its a sword sucker and not water sucker. The base is really thick compared to the older pup to its right which is about two months old.
The original plant was purchased as a Raja Puri but Gabe has tentatively identified as an Orinoco. Original plant in the background is now 13' and still waiting for a bloom.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63452&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63452)
imclumbi
08-20-2018, 07:08 PM
Great looking banana patch!! Noice pic with Don. We were at his place about a month ago!
Akula
09-05-2018, 06:29 PM
Got some flags!!! Yeah!! First ones!!!
Just made it through tropical storm Gordon and found two pre-flags or flags in my banana patch this afternoon. Both namawas are approximatley 13.5' tall and about 34 inches in circumference.
Photo below shows my biggest namwa with the short pre-flag sticking straight up (about 3/4 the size of the previous leaf) and the flag leaf just to the right. Its a bit beaten up from the storm but is light green.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63580&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63580)
This photo is taken from inside/under the canopy showing the flag leaf with very red rib.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63582&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63582)
This is a photo of the flag leaf on my second namwa which grows immediately to the right of the prior namwa. Photo taken from under the canopy.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63581&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63581)
mackmccaleb
09-05-2018, 08:02 PM
Nice job man! Your plantings are almost exactly a year ahead of mine, and since you're in pcola it's like a glimpse into the future for me! It's got to be super exciting for them to be ready to flower, after waiting so long. Also, to find out for sure what varieties you have. It is definitely inspiring to see a fellow grower in my zone having success. Hit me up if you ever get over to Alabama, I'd be happy to share pups.
crazy banana
09-06-2018, 12:02 AM
Looks great. Congratulations on your flag leaves. Hopefully no freezing temperatures this winter for you being able to enjoy some nice fruits.
slp0100
09-06-2018, 07:43 AM
Looks great... Do you keep the pool heated to help create micro-climate.
Akula
09-06-2018, 11:38 AM
Thanks everybody!
Its really satisfying to achieve forward progress on development of my banana patch. Getting a flower and seeing a green banana bunch hanging from the plant will be awesome. Plus confirmed ID over the next couple months.
I hope with some of the tricks (extra K, bunch pruning, bell pruning, bagging, etc.) I have learned from the more experienced members combined with some old fashioned luck will result in some mature fruit. Now the game is afoot and the clock is ticking! Very exciting!
MackMc thank you for the pup trading and visit offer!
Slp0100, I have a heater on my pool but I don't use it in the heart of winter. I use it on the shoulders (Oct, Nov & March, April) to top the temp up. However the pool probably does help the bananas during the extreme low temps a bit as it doesn't freeze.
slp0100
09-06-2018, 01:40 PM
Thank you for the update...trying to push the zone in 8b. I have a pond to the south, beach house to the north, ocean 700 ft to the east. Hoping to have things survive unprotected.
Akula
09-10-2018, 12:12 PM
I spotted my third namwa pre-flag/flag this morning!
This plant was cutback after the winter due to some pstem rot and was a slow grower. It put out two rabbit ear looking leaves initially and struggled for about a month. I checked it closer and found some internal rot in a middle layer of the pstem (outside two-three layers were okay and core two-three layers were okay too). I peeled the pstem back like an onion in order to remove the rotted layer. It looked pretty odd for a month or two. My efforts were rewarded with "Rabbit Ears" producing a pre-flag/flag leaf.
Due to the hacking and peeling in early Spring the plant is much shorter (11') and skinnier (24" circumference) than my other two flowering Namwas which are about 13.5' and 34".
"Rabbit Ears" early Spring
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=62842&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=62842&ppuser=26197)
Peeled like an onion
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63621 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63620&ppuser=26197)
Pre-flag/flag
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63620&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63620&ppuser=26197)
imclumbi
09-10-2018, 05:34 PM
Nice! Congrats!!
Akula
09-15-2018, 05:06 PM
Namwa flowers are developing nicely! Two flowers have emerged and now waiting for the petals to open. A third flower is in the process of emerging.
Photo below is flower on my monster namwa measuring 13.5' with 34" circumference and 22" long flower. The photo shows a 2 liter coke bottle alongside the flower as a size reference. Its big!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63641&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63641)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63642&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63642)
This following is a photo of my other namwa that was the first to emerge. The flower is a bit smaller at about 18" long.
I spy...
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63640&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63640)
imclumbi
09-15-2018, 06:59 PM
Beautiful! Monsters!!
Akula
09-17-2018, 10:32 AM
Update
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63652&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63652)
beam2050
09-17-2018, 11:48 AM
fantastic, lookin good keep em rollin.
Akula
09-17-2018, 12:26 PM
Thanks Beam!
Is a "hand" created each time the flower petal lifts? One hand per flower petal? First one contains about fourteen fingers. Is that pretty good?
My fourteen foot raja puri (most likely orinoco) threw out a flower today. Total of four flowers in my patch now.
edwmax
09-17-2018, 12:42 PM
Y es ... congratulations!
mackmccaleb
09-17-2018, 06:58 PM
It's been plenty hot lately. Heat advisory a few days in a row now. Your banana's proximity to the pool is probably creating a nice microclimate. I'm rooting for you man, if you can get a ripe banana, it gives me a lot more confidence in my quest to taste my own homegrown. Keep updating, I'll keep checking in
Akula
09-22-2018, 07:15 PM
Update:
"Namwa twins activate! Form of big bunches!"
Getting about 18 fingers per hand since the first hand which was 12 or 14 fingers. Twelve hands so far. I propped up both bunches with 14' of schedule 40 pvc pipe.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63689&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63689)
Tall Orinoco has a lot of fingers on the first hand.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63688&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63688)
beam2050
09-23-2018, 04:29 AM
:nanadrink:
had two 6 week periods of no rain. and am another one now. irrigation cant quite get them satisfied, wish those folks in south florida would share the wealth. maybe next year I will be able to get something growing. congradulations.
Akula
09-24-2018, 10:01 AM
My medium size namwa bunch produced its 13th hand which contained male flowers and one normal banana. All previous hands contained female flowers. I will let it run until the end of the month and then cut the bell and prune half the nanners in order to concentrate resources in the remaining bananas due to limited season left. I will get a final banana count prior to pruning.
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63716&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63716)
My monster namwa is still producing female flowers and is up to 15 hands as of this morning. This bad boy is huge with a Foster's beer can thick peduncle! Hope he can squeeze out a couple more hands!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63717&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63717)
JCA433
09-24-2018, 05:43 PM
I have a Namwa bunch that filled out after only three months. You have a good chance to get mature bananas before frost is a problem.
Akula
09-24-2018, 07:01 PM
I have a Namwa bunch that filled out after only three months. You have a good chance to get mature bananas before frost is a problem.
That would be excellent but if I was picking three months for the bananas to ripen I would not pick Oct - Dec! Haha. We will see.
December temps range from about mid 40's to mid 70's but our first frost usually hits around the second week of December. Sort of an overnight spike low type of thing. Maybe I will get lucky and the frost will be delayed to early January which is very possible.
I'm happy to get the plants to fruit this year. My family and friends are pretty impressed so that works for me. Next step is to get some fruit to eat. For my area I need to complete 60-65% of vegetative growth in year 1 to insure that I have fruit in year 2 taking into account a three month pause for winter.
I expected my namwas to flower somewhere between 12' and 14' based on the experience of members and estimated which month to take a pup in year 1 to achieve 12' - 14' by July of year 2 however I expected the plant to hit somewhere between 12' - 14' and then "Boom! Flower!" But the plant actually gets within the target zone and then makes tons of leaves within a 1 1/2' growth area after chugging along at 20" of growth per month. I didn't appreciate the "crowning" time. Now I know!
Thanks for your comment!
Akula
09-25-2018, 11:03 AM
Monster namwa is up to eighteen hands as of this morning. I was worried it would blow down in an overnight storm but its still hanging!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63725&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63725)
HMelendez
09-26-2018, 06:23 AM
Monster namwa is up to eighteen hands as of this morning. I was worried it would blow down in an overnight storm but its still hanging!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63725&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63725)
Congrats Donald!.....
Wooohoooo!.....WOW!......18 hands Namwah monster!.....That's insane!......You should enter it in the Namwah contest thread/post!.......Start counting!.......LOL!...........http://www.bananas.org/f211/2015-06-namwa-count-contest-22180.html......:08:
:2723::bananarow::2723:
Akula
09-26-2018, 10:39 AM
Thanks Hector!
Is the namwa count contest based on before or after pruning of the bunch? I think I will only have 150 or so fingers after pruning the bunch 50%. Maybe 160.
HMelendez
09-26-2018, 10:44 AM
Thanks Hector!
Is the namwa count contest based on before or after pruning of the bunch? I think I will only have 150 or so fingers after pruning the bunch 50%. Maybe 160.
Donald,
I would enter the Namwah fingers count before and after pruning separately with pictures!.....
:2723::bananarow::2723:
Akula
09-28-2018, 05:29 PM
Final photos before I prune the bunches back 50% in the hope the remaining fingers will develop into mature fruit before our first freeze. I will not prune the "unknown" plant in the hope that it can be identified by its male flowers.
Interestingly the "unknown" plant's first hand contained the most fingers (25) with subsequent hands fewer fingers while the Namwas first and last hand was always the smallest.
Final photo and tally:
Small Namwa "Rabbit Ears"
10 hands/147 fingers
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63778&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63778&ppuser=26197)
Medium Namwa
13 hands/202 fingers
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63776&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63776&ppuser=26197)
Monster Namwa
19 hands/331 fingers!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63777&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63777&ppuser=26197)
Unknown Plant
9 hands/141 fingers
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=63775&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63775&ppuser=26197)
beam2050
09-28-2018, 06:53 PM
woe dang you the man #&^%$^&&…..**&^^%*())_&%
mackmccaleb
10-11-2018, 03:26 PM
How'd those bunches hang through Hurricane Michael? My bananas were leaning one way from TS Gordon, now Michael has them leaning a different direction. Ground is too dry to straighten them now. Hope everything is good for you!
Akula
10-11-2018, 04:51 PM
How'd those bunches hang through Hurricane Michael? My bananas were leaning one way from TS Gordon, now Michael has them leaning a different direction. Ground is too dry to straighten them now. Hope everything is good for you!
Same thing happened here. Gordon brought wind from the S and some of the more vulnerable tilted to the N. Michael brought wind from the N since we were on the west side and pushed the same plants back to the S. Basically back where they started!! Except I did lose one that snapped off at the ground level which is not a big deal. Chopped him up into mulch today. Two bunches were propped (2" PVC) on the S side with wind on the N so they were okay. Two bunches were without prop but they did fine. The wind was not very strong here. We were very fortunate.
Hard to believe the storm rolled into Georgia as a CAT 3.
Tytaylor77
10-15-2018, 12:27 AM
Wow nice namwa! Very smart pruning! My experience with namwa shows the respond very well to pruning! So good luck and let us know how it ended up! Good or bad!!!
Very interesting mystery bunch!! Any info or history on it? Also pics of the plant and bunch backed off further will help a lot! Also pics of the 3rd leaf down from the flower. A picture from above looking down where the pedicle connects to the pstem! Also a picture from the front looking horizontal at the same spot!
Has the plant ever showed any color on the roller leaf? Is there dark brown/black splotches on the pstem?
Amazing bunches! Excellent work!
Good luck pruning! I’m a big time believer in pruning bunches for several beneficial reasons!
Akula
10-15-2018, 01:00 PM
Thanks for the kind words Ty!
All my bunches bagged and filling out pretty good. I'll be sure to post up the final results.
I noticed on the first day that condensation was collecting inside the bags which were closed on both the top and bottom. I am a bit worried about mildew, fungus, etc. so opened the bottom of the bags so that excess water can out. Once temps turn decidedly cooler both day and night I will probably close up the bottom.
Tytaylor77
10-15-2018, 01:11 PM
Thanks for the kind words Ty!
All my bunches bagged and filling out pretty good. I'll be sure to post up the final results.
I noticed on the first day that condensation was collecting inside the bags which were closed on both the top and bottom. I am a bit worried about mildew, fungus, etc. so opened the bottom of the bags so that excess water can out. Once temps turn decidedly cooler both day and night I will probably close up the bottom.
Are you just using clear bags? Blue banana bunch bags? Or something special like the green/silver ones from Australia. I’ve heard they do great but never tried them.
Good luck man! Hope we get a late winter this year.
Akula
10-15-2018, 01:20 PM
I'm using HDX 50 gallon 1.1 mil thick clear trash bags I got at HD. SKU 677 856. 50 bags per box for $15 or so. They look pretty legit hanging on the plant!!!! Neighbors probably think they are Halloween decorations (ghosts). Haha.
Extra: I've got them them upside down i.e. cut a hole in the bottom and pulled over the bunch so the wide open area is down which helps with air circulation a bit.
louis14
11-02-2018, 07:59 PM
Nice bunches, looking fantastic Akula. Congrats!
Akula
11-04-2018, 03:36 PM
Thanks Louis!!
Namwa Update! Not sure how big the bananas usually get but they seem to be coming along. Our temps are starting to cool but hoping they will get filled out over the next month or so even at cool temps (low to mid 50's at night and upper 60's to low 70's during the day). Gonna be close!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64066&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64066&ppuser=26197)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64067&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64067&ppuser=26197)
imclumbi
11-04-2018, 03:40 PM
Looking awesome!
John
zfallon84
11-06-2018, 10:24 AM
I love seeing success like this from someone who is in a colder zone than I. As a new grower, this gives me hope for usda zone 9a. congrats!
Akula
11-07-2018, 01:33 AM
You can have huge success in Jacksonville!
Southern California has an advantage because they don't get the winter freeze but they also don't get rain!! Play to your strength!! Rain plus Summer heat = Turbo Growth!!
beam2050
11-07-2018, 08:11 AM
You can have huge success in Jacksonville!
Southern California has an advantage because they don't get the winter freeze but they also don't get rain!! Play to your strength!! Rain plus Summer heat = Turbo Growth!!
get your winter hats out fellas, its supposed to be in the mid 30's middle of next week here. wonder if flood lights will help save your bunches. one of these on a pole pointed straight up.
https://www.bing.com/th?id=OIP.DBpDxn52zrpb7-Ls5DKRqwHaHL&w=204&h=198&c=7&o=5&pid=1.7
JCA433
11-18-2018, 10:40 PM
Those bunches are almost filled out! Congratulations!
zfallon84
11-19-2018, 09:27 AM
get your winter hats out fellas, its supposed to be in the mid 30's middle of next week here. wonder if flood lights will help save your bunches. one of these on a pole pointed straight up.
https://www.bing.com/th?id=OIP.DBpDxn52zrpb7-Ls5DKRqwHaHL&w=204&h=198&c=7&o=5&pid=1.7
I took no action, and had little damage. My dwarf red, and a "mystery Blue Java" (looks like cavendish type) had a little bit of leaf-edge wilt. Everything else did fine. In fact, I believe my "mystery red" is more likely to be a Rhino Horn Plantain since it did not wilt like my dwarf red. But, I'll have to wait until it blooms next summer. How'd you do?
beam2050
11-19-2018, 09:53 AM
I took no action, and had little damage. My dwarf red, and a "mystery Blue Java" (looks like cavendish type) had a little bit of leaf-edge wilt. Everything else did fine. In fact, I believe my "mystery red" is more likely to be a Rhino Horn Plantain since it did not wilt like my dwarf red. But, I'll have to wait until it blooms next summer. How'd you do?
just lower 40's here everybody looks good. just all this draught, should have had more than a few fruiting. it affected my dwarf reds more than any, they look terrible. I dug up my variegated florida and she had no roots and the ground below was dry dry dry, despite the irrigation.
how big did your mystery dr get this year? got any pics.
Akula
11-19-2018, 11:27 AM
Thanks JCA!
I had back to back overnight lows in the mid 30's this past week and everybody looks fine with the exception of a couple six foot pups showing some very minor leaf spotting. No protection.
The lower temps are effecting the nanners growth or lack thereof. I had a new flower bud emerge about a week ago and it hasn't done much. Stuck in the "ear of corn" phase. My earlier buds busted out really fast going from bud to bananas in about a week. Leaves have faded in color too from a deep green to a light dusty green. No leaf damage other than color fade.
Looks like low 50's to mid 60's for the next two weeks here.
zfallon84
11-19-2018, 12:41 PM
Beam,
My mystery banana has a four feet tall psuedo stem. I have it potted since we rent, so it looks 2’ taller. I’ll try to post later.
zfallon84
11-20-2018, 09:23 AM
just lower 40's here everybody looks good. just all this draught, should have had more than a few fruiting. it affected my dwarf reds more than any, they look terrible. I dug up my variegated florida and she had no roots and the ground below was dry dry dry, despite the irrigation.
how big did your mystery dr get this year? got any pics.
https://imgur.com/Lsdj2Cn
https://imgur.com/KY2Ym34
https://imgur.com/Ov3lmaY
It was sold to me as a "Red" corm. But it appears to have some red, with a majority of it being dark green. I've to wait until next season to see a bloom if it is ARH or Dwarf red. Otherwise, I won't get anything here. Heck, if it is a red, it might melt when we get into the low thirties/high twenties (in my hoophouse).
beam2050
11-20-2018, 03:16 PM
I got mine from a member who has had them fruit, mine have yet to do that.
so going by your pics I would say it is not a dwarf red. for the length of the leaf it should be much wider, in other words the leaf should be shorter and wider. also the p-stem should be pretty much all red. so will have to get her to fruit so you can get a positive id. it could also be a Puerto rican morado going by the pics in the wiki, it kind of looks like that.
my dwarf reds are prolific puppers, so if you want one you can have one now or one in the spring.
zfallon84
11-20-2018, 03:48 PM
I got mine from a member who has had them fruit, mine have yet to do that.
so going by your pics I would say it is not a dwarf red. for the length of the leaf it should be much wider, in other words the leaf should be shorter and wider. also the p-stem should be pretty much all red. so will have to get her to fruit so you can get a positive id. it could also be a Puerto rican morado going by the pics in the wiki, it kind of looks like that.
my dwarf reds are prolific puppers, so if you want one you can have one now or one in the spring.
I wouldn’t be upset if it was a plantain. Do your Reds grow back after our freezes?
beam2050
11-20-2018, 04:21 PM
after last year one of my mats had 10 pups but the mother corm died. slow grower hates draught. very pretty plant.
Akula
12-04-2018, 03:06 PM
Update!
Banana patch is in winter decline which is always sad! Temps have dropped with daytime highs in low 60's and overnight lows in the high 40's with some +/- 10F outliers. So far four overnight lows low 30's.
Development of the bunches has slowed dramatically since my last pics on November 4. The quality of the leaves specifically and the plants in general has declined so even when we get some warm sunny days the plants' ability to capture the benefit is reduced signficiantly vs. earlier months. I did have a an Unknown banana plant push a flower out over the last few days warm weather after being in suspended animation for a couple weeks so there is activity in the patch.
The finger sizes in the bunches ranges from about 1" to an 1.5" wide which is close to
the size of 1 and 3/8" that N. Narange's harvests his in S. Florida. I harvested three fingers off of "Rabbit Ears" namwa today to see if they will turn yellow and if so how long the ripening process takes at this stage. This plant has the smallest fingers. I'm excited to see what happens and hopefully to eat my first banana from my patch! If all goes well I plan to put a bow on a few hands and give them out as Christmas presents to friends and family.
I would like to get the bananas as mature and fat as possible under the conditions but I'm not sure that anything much is happening at these low temperatures and at some point we will have a hard freeze. I think cutting them down and giving some away at Christmas would be memorable.
The condition of the patch:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64148&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64148&ppuser=26197)
Monster namwa after pruning:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64146&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64146&ppuser=26197)
Mediume namwa after pruning:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64147&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64147&ppuser=26197)
Small nawma "rabbit ears" after pruning:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64149&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64149&ppuser=26197)
Unknown banana plant showing some spotting (maybe mildew). This one isn't gonna make it:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64150&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64150&ppuser=26197)
Test harvest from Rabbit Ears with comparison to store bought. My bananas on my other two namwas are bit larger:
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64151&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64151&ppuser=26197)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64152&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64152&ppuser=26197)
zfallon84
12-04-2018, 03:13 PM
What do you mean by “Rabbit Ears” Namwa? Is that a special cultivar?
Akula
12-04-2018, 03:19 PM
What do you mean by “Rabbit Ears” Namwa? Is that a special cultivar?
Its a normal namwa. I just named it that for fun. I peeled the pstem like an onion and then had to cut off about a third of the top due to rot after the winter. When it grew back it had two long skinny weird leaves which emerged that looked like rabbit ears coming out of the pstem. I commented about it earlier in my thread.
HMelendez
12-05-2018, 07:21 AM
Donald,
Thank you for the update, for sharing/posting the awesome pictures!.....Job well done!......
You should try this banana solar bags!.....It might help you better with the fruit filling process!.......http://www.bananas.org/f310/banana-solar-bags-bunch-protection-47540.html
:2723::bananarow::2723:
Akula
12-05-2018, 01:14 PM
Hey Hector! Thanks!
The specialized solar bags would probably help getting through November and December with better gains. I'll try them out next season if I have a late September flower.
Deepsleep
12-08-2018, 05:48 AM
Thank you for the update, looks like you will have some Christmas bananas! As you may remember, we both have the same Namwa strain. I harvested a small bunch a few months ago, and have had a couple more flowers with huge bunches since. I also have bunches now on Manzano, Dw Orinoco, Dw Red, 1000 hands, Sweetheart, and Goldfinger. Sadly, I think it's unlikely much of it fills out at this point, although some appear to making progress. I am a decent distance south of you near Lakeland, but I'm learning from some of your experimentation for use in later years. Thanks again for the update, and enjoy those Namwas, they are very tasty.
Akula
12-08-2018, 03:57 PM
Thanks Deepsleep!
Did you get your Manzano from JFE? If so could you post some photos of how the bunch develops? I have an unkown from JFE that I suspect may be a Manzano but who knows.
Deepsleep
12-14-2018, 05:47 AM
Thanks Deepsleep!
Did you get your Manzano from JFE? If so could you post some photos of how the bunch develops? I have an unkown from JFE that I suspect may be a Manzano but who knows.
I got my Manzano from a local place. I would post pictures, but it seems to be a struggle for me on this site.
Akula
01-28-2019, 10:53 AM
Wrapping up this thread with the conclusion to the 2018 growing season result. Harvested a total of four bunches. Three namwa and one unknown. All plants flowered in September. One bunch was harvested before Christmas. My largest bunch from my monster namwa weighed 37 lbs.
Weather reports indicated a hard freeze of 26F from Tuesday to Wednesday morning for my area so I decided to pull the trigger and harvest all my fruit. Todays reports are showing only about 32F. Oh, well there's always next year!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64313&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64313)
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64315&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64315)
Bonus pic: Oranges!
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=64316&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=64316)
zfallon84
01-28-2019, 11:58 AM
That’s Amazing! Glad that you harvested what you could.
HMelendez
01-29-2019, 05:46 AM
Congratulations Donald!.....At least you harvest some awesome Nana fruits, bunches!....Well done buddy!.....
:2723::bananarow::2723:
beam2050
01-29-2019, 08:41 AM
happy to see they made thru. forget mcyd's, steaks,...….. no what you will be eating the next few weeks. :ha:
mackmccaleb
02-09-2019, 08:45 AM
Nice job man. This is your first harvest, right? You'll be getting bunches and bunches from now on. I dont think we actually had a hard freeze here this winter, for the first time since I moved here 8 years ago. Very mild winter and a very wet summer I imagine makes happy bananas. Thanks for posting your experience, it's really helped set my expectations as far as what I can possibly achieve in our zone. I discovered my first flower emerging recently, so as long as we have an early spring, I'll get to experience to joy of backyard bananas too!
Akula
02-09-2019, 02:25 PM
Nice job man. This is your first harvest, right? You'll be getting bunches and bunches from now on. I dont think we actually had a hard freeze here this winter, for the first time since I moved here 8 years ago. Very mild winter and a very wet summer I imagine makes happy bananas. Thanks for posting your experience, it's really helped set my expectations as far as what I can possibly achieve in our zone. I discovered my first flower emerging recently, so as long as we have an early spring, I'll get to experience to joy of backyard bananas too!
Yeah, first harvest. I planted the originals in March of 2017. The bunches were from their children.
I ate the first bananas from these bunches today. Really good. An extra six weeks really helped in both size and flavor compared to the bunch I harvested pre-Christmas.
Congratulations on your flower! The 2019 banana harvest for Gulf Coast Zone 8/9 is looking good so far. Knock on wood! Haha.
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