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stormwatcher
07-09-2009, 11:19 AM
Ignorance is bliss. I need a book " Growing Bananas for Dummy's". Now that I am learning about banana trees, I will probably kill it somehow:ha:.
Anyway, I had a friend that was splitting and getting some nanna trees ready for winter and he gave me one that was about 12 inch tall.
This was in the fall of 07. I took it in for the winters and it stayed green, with a little yellowing and a couple leaves died. It came back healthy in the summer.
We moved when we sold our house last March and I had to cut it off to move it. I thought it would start to grow again. it looked like it was going to die. It looked rather peeked. It is doing real well now. It has always been in a pot.
I cut it when it was about 6-7 foot tall, I didn't want to but had to.
It is now about 4 foot tall with 6 leaves and another coming.
Can anyone tell what kind it is? Are there any traits to look for?
Do all nanna trees fruit, or do some just flower.
Here are a few pics [if I do it right].

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/007-1.jpg

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/009-1.jpg

2 pups
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/010-1.jpg

I wish they would bear like my Mators. 23 on one and 18 on the other. Picked 5 so far.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/001-1.jpg

Thanks all
Earl

fergus banana
07-09-2009, 11:32 AM
very nice looking plant.
i think it is an ice cream/blue java.

stormwatcher
07-09-2009, 11:41 AM
Thanks Jon. I don't have a clue. I am waiting on an email from the guy I got it from to see if he knows.

fergus banana
07-09-2009, 11:45 AM
no problem.

also, if it is an ice cream, then it will grow up to 12 feet and fruit in about a year or so. those guys get big.

stormwatcher
07-09-2009, 12:06 PM
I hope it is Jon. Maybe I will find out later today. I know he said it was for cooler climates. That is all I know.

sandy0225
07-11-2009, 04:00 PM
it does look like an ice cream to me too. Especially the pup!

mskitty38583
07-11-2009, 11:09 PM
lovely nanas!

cowboyup4christ
07-12-2009, 12:37 PM
Looks good the leaves look somewhat like my Orinocos but I am no expert. hope you find out.

stormwatcher
07-15-2009, 07:55 AM
it does look like an ice cream to me too. Especially the pup!

Thanks Sandy, I hope it is.

stormwatcher
07-15-2009, 07:57 AM
lovely nanas!

Thank you Mskitty.

stormwatcher
07-15-2009, 08:02 AM
Looks good the leaves look somewhat like my Orinocos but I am no expert. hope you find out.

Thanks Jim.
The pups have a red edge on the leaves.
I used to live down your way. I was raised in Southern Pines. Been to the county fair there in Carthage many times, especially way back in the day they had a hootchie cootchie show:02:, but I was to young to get in.

Earl

Jack Daw
07-15-2009, 08:53 AM
Ice Cream according to me. But I've only seen the pictures of this lovely nana, never owned my own. :(

cowboyup4christ
07-16-2009, 10:51 AM
if the leaves have a red outline it could be a dwarf Orinoco.
CFF - Musa Dwarf Orinoco Banana Plant! - Rare & Exotic Alocasia, Bananas, (http://www.centralfloridafarms.com/banana-dorinoco.htm)

Remember those days myself. New to this banana thing but rasie many fruit trees on our farm so its just another addition to our nursery, still haven't got those pesky Paw Paws to grow yet may have to give up on them.
Jim

Patty in Wisc
07-16-2009, 11:21 AM
Don't give up on the Paw Paws!!! Mine are 7 -8 yrs old & they started very slow & really took off since last year:):)
Maybe too warm there to get the chill hours it needs?

cowboyup4christ
07-16-2009, 11:32 AM
I can't get any real good plants to start, they grow wild here so it seems they would do well. but most of the wild ones have been killed off by timber cutting and development, so I thought I would try to start a patch on my farm, and just let them bunch.

Patty in Wisc
07-16-2009, 11:46 AM
How come I faint when I run!!:)
Oh, I see you are from NC so they should do well there (Paw Paws)

stormwatcher
07-18-2009, 11:44 AM
if the leaves have a red outline it could be a dwarf Orinoco.
CFF - Musa Dwarf Orinoco Banana Plant! - Rare & Exotic Alocasia, Bananas, (http://www.centralfloridafarms.com/banana-dorinoco.htm)

Remember those days myself. New to this banana thing but rasie many fruit trees on our farm so its just another addition to our nursery, still haven't got those pesky Paw Paws to grow yet may have to give up on them.
Jim

Thanks for the replies guys and gals.
How big do dwarfs get? This thing was 6'-7' when I cut it off to move it. It is right at 4' now.
Got a new leaf last week and another started yesterday with about 1/2" showing, this morn it was up about 18"-20". At this rate it will be full of leaves soon. 8 leaves now. Leaves are 27" long and 15" wide
Here is the latest pics taken at noon today.

New leaf
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/Bananatree7-18-092.jpg

Pup growing well
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/Bananatree7-18-09.jpg

Next to my Fig tree I got over the winter. It has grown real well also.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/tomatoes7-18-093.jpg

fergus banana
07-18-2009, 12:02 PM
that is one healthy banana plant.

it is not a dwarf - at least i really dont think so.
dwarves get up to 8 feet.
if it is an ice cream, it can get up to 12+ feet.

stormwatcher
07-18-2009, 01:50 PM
Thanks Jon.
It gets 1 gallon of water each day between 7pm and 8pm sometimes 2 gallons if I put 2 drippers on it. It is on an automatic water system. It also gets 2 scoops of Miracle Grow in 1 gallon of water each week. Seems to be working well.
I have my mators, fig tree, and a couple other plants on the automatic waterer also at 1 gallon a day.
We go camping a lot and visiting for a week or so at a time, with no one here to water. So I needed to get an auto waterer. I highly recommend them.
Trying to root some Azaleas from cuttings now. Hope they take.

Earl:bananas_b

fergus banana
07-18-2009, 03:37 PM
Kewl!

stormwatcher
07-21-2009, 12:27 PM
OK, my buddy said it was a basjoo. So I don't reckon It will get bananas, From what I have read.
I will probably plant it in the yard and let it go or give it to someone, and find me one that will produce some fruit.
What is your opinion on the kind of tree with the best fruit for my area.

Thanks all
Earl

7-21-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/Basjoo7-21-09.jpg

Jack Daw
07-21-2009, 01:00 PM
I would recommend all the Orinoco variants and probably some other, more exclusive and more tim demanding in spring, autumn and winter. ;)

fergus banana
07-21-2009, 01:38 PM
Thats not an ice cream? That sux.

I grow my bananas indoors, so i am not sure what is best for your area.
Get urself an ice cream banana. i mean, what the heck, might as well give it a try and see how it does. You can always bring them indoors during the winter.

Your plant looks amazing!

cowboyup4christ
07-21-2009, 02:33 PM
dwarf Orinoco will work well here in NC. as well as Ice cream, Gold Finger.

sirmoebly
07-21-2009, 07:34 PM
that don't look like a bassjoo to me.....

stormwatcher
07-22-2009, 06:24 AM
Moe. I hope you are right. The guy I got it from bought it as a Bassjoo, however, it could have been labeled wrong like I read on another thread about the big box stores selling miss labeled plants because they had no idea what it was, like finding a tag on the floor and just sticking it in a plant. I have had that happen with tomato plants in the past, when a Better Boy turned out to be a Cherry tomato.
If there are any particular parts or places to get pics of the plant to help ID it, let me know, and I will try and get them.
Another thing is that the pup does not look like the ones I have seen on here.

Thanks all & God Bless
Earl

New leaf in all it's glory. 7-22-09, 7am
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/7-22-09.jpg

sirmoebly
07-22-2009, 08:10 PM
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=16253&size=1 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=16253&ppuser=4702)

did your pup look like this? (Note the red...)

stormwatcher
07-28-2009, 06:34 AM
Hello Moe. Sorry it took so long to get back with you, we have been gone for awhile.
Any way, I do not recall what the pups looked like when they were small. I really did not pay attention to them. All I knew is that I had a banana tree.
Here are a few pics I took yesterday, along with one that appears to be another pup about 3/4" tall.
There is red up the center stalk of the leaves on the pups. Also the tree itself has red along the edges for awhile then turn brown

7-27-09 small pup
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/pups7-27-09.jpg

7-27-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/pups7-27-092.jpg

pup 7-28-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/pups7-28-09.jpg

pup 7-28-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/pups27-28-09.jpg

pup 7-28-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/smallestpup7-28-09.jpg

New Leaf #9, 7-27-09
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/leaf97-27-09.jpg

what appears to be a new pup about 3/4", 7-27-09, I will keep an eye on this one.
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e59/bbqcook/newpup7-27-09.jpg

Thanks, Earl

sirmoebly
08-01-2009, 12:07 PM
Can't say for sure....because the leaves look kinda wide.. on the main plant for a orinico. You might have to wait for the plant to get a little larger.