Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

Hello!

I am so glad I found this site! :woohoonaner:

My boyfriend gave my a banana plant and after finally repotting it late last summer, it put out a pup. Both are in a pot, inside. I have no intentions of planting in the ground in my rental house. I think it is a Dwarf Cavendish, but I am not sure.

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Some questions I have about my mother and pup:


What kind of banana do I have?

Does the mother look healthy? :nanaruns:

Should I put them outside for the summer? I live in Portland, Oregon... zone 8 I think?

Is it still way too early to seperate the pup? :bebe:

Is the pup a sword pup?

How often should I fertilize, and with what?

Will they need to be re-potted again soon? Or do mother and pup have enough space until next spring?

ANY OTHER ADVICE WILL BE MUCH APPRECIATED, AS WELL! :03:

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

Welcome aboard. I'll let the 'elder statesmen' here answer your questions since I have no experience outside of zone 10a.

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

Welcome Karina!

Looks like Super Dwarf Cavendish. And it does look healthy, although it probably could use a little more light. The pup looks healthy, too. Don't worry about whether it's a sword or water pup right now because it really doesn't matter at this stage. Water profusely, making sure that the bottom soil does not dry out, but do not water too often. Water when the top 1/2" to 1" of the soil is dry. Make sure though that the pot has very good drainage.

I hesitate to suggest a fertilizing schedule because when I water my bananas, the water I use is mixed with fertilizer already. If you follow the directions of the fertilizer that you are using, you most probably won't go wrong with that. For soluble fertilizers, most manufacturers recommend fertilizing every 2 weeks.

Happy banana growing!

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

First off...welcome to the site! I'm sure you'll learn a lot here, as the members are quite knowledgeable and very helpful! To answer a few of your questions....based on the fact that you've had the plant at least a year and it's still so small, I would guess it's a 'Little Prince.' I'm no real expert on banana identification, but it looks much too small for that age to be a dwarf cavendish (or even a super dwarf cavendish). I could be wrong, but that's my view on it. As for the pup, I'd just leave it on there. You can separate it later, if you like or just leave it growing there. It won't really affect the growth of the mother plant. Definitely put it out during the summer. Optimally plant it in the ground...and if you chose not to do that, put it in a nice sunny place. But ease it into being in full light so it doesn't get sunburnt. If you keep it in the pot outdoors during the summer, just be sure it gets watered often enough. The smaller the pot, the sooner it will dry up. It very well could require daily watering, but just kinda play it by 'touch.'

I hope that helps! Best of luck and enjoy the site!

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

what a beautiful nana! welcome to the org.

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

Thanks for the advice so far. We have a nice week of 70-80 degree weather this week, so I am going to ask my green-thumbed roommate where a nice partial sunned outdoor spot would be in one of the yards.

It is in an 8.5 in pot, by the way. I am leaning towards thinking Super Dwarf now, too. Little Prince looks too small. It has only grown 3-5 inches since I got it 1.5 years ago, though, and it is leafing much slower than it did last spring.
My boyfriend was told by the plant-shop owner that it would be 4-5 feet tall, so that's what I've been hoping for, but I guess not if it's a Super Dwarf?

Should I worry about humidity, as here in Portland we have very little?

Re: Hello! Clueless Mother of 1 (and recent grandmother)
 

Hi pdx_karina and welcome to the board of friendly 'naner folks! :goteam:

I am pretty sure and I agree with Chong, it's a SDC. Lovely plant you have there! I have a couple of them under the full tropical sun in the ground and they are very undemanding little fellas. I feed them weekly with pellets made from sterilized chicken dung. If your mother plant is well fed, the pup can be left as it is unless you want it to have its own space. Best is to let it get bigger before you separate it. Since it is a compact growing cultivar, they can be left together till the pup is 1/3 mommy's size. These guys really love water. All the best and do keep us posted of it's progress.