Hello from a new member :)

Kittishka · 10-26-2022, 03:10 PM

Hi!

We are trying to homestead in Middle TN, but we rent currently, so for now we just grow things in pots and have laying hens. We got our first banana pups in the spring of '21 from a nursery in FL (Kokopo and Dwarf Namwah), planted them in 3g pots and overwintered them and the couple pups we had split off in our shed. They were near a south-facing window and inside a clear plastic "greenhouse" with a no-freeze heater. The Kokopos did not survive, so we continued on in the spring with the DNs, which are apparently more hardy.

We started with the remaining 2 DN and now have 7 potted up separately, some of which are a pretty good size and one of which is only a foot tall. One of the original two already has two more pups poking their little tips out of the dirt. This year, in an attempt to actually have fruit next year (we haven't seen a flower yet because they were still fairly small when overwintered and lost their leaves too), we just brought them into the house for the winter. Also in the house are 3 grapefruit seedlings that I started in the spring from fruit I bought at the store. I tried to start lemons too, but the seeds rotted. Oh well—I'll try again next year.

Looking at the map, I see there are other members nearby, so maybe we'll make some banana friends.

PR-Giants · 10-26-2022, 06:19 PM

Welcome to the forum

A quick way to understand how cold hardy a banana is probably going to be is to look at it's genotype.

'A' = acuminata
'B' = balbisiana

The balbisiana gene is more cold hardy than the acuminata.

Kokopo is an 'AA'

Dwarf Namwah is an 'ABB'

Here's a link to the USDA catalog

https://www.ars.usda.gov/southeast-a...usda-ars-tars/

Kittishka · 10-27-2022, 05:22 PM

That's pretty nifty—thanks! I've not noticed genotype info before, but now that I know about it, I'll keep an eye out when looking at banana variety descriptions. I don't suppose there are any dwarf BBs or BBBs that fruit, are there? Is that searchable? (Also, weird that there are 2- and 3-gene genotypes!)

cincinnana · 11-06-2022, 12:58 PM

Welcome to the Jungle!!!

10-26-2022, 03:10 PM	#1 (permalink)
Kittishka Location: Middle TN Find me on the map! Zone: 7a Name: Becky Join Date: Oct 2022 Posts: 2 BananaBucks : 1,315 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 3 Times Was Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Hello from a new member :) Hi! We are trying to homestead in Middle TN, but we rent currently, so for now we just grow things in pots and have laying hens. We got our first banana pups in the spring of '21 from a nursery in FL (Kokopo and Dwarf Namwah), planted them in 3g pots and overwintered them and the couple pups we had split off in our shed. They were near a south-facing window and inside a clear plastic "greenhouse" with a no-freeze heater. The Kokopos did not survive, so we continued on in the spring with the DNs, which are apparently more hardy. We started with the remaining 2 DN and now have 7 potted up separately, some of which are a pretty good size and one of which is only a foot tall. One of the original two already has two more pups poking their little tips out of the dirt. This year, in an attempt to actually have fruit next year (we haven't seen a flower yet because they were still fairly small when overwintered and lost their leaves too), we just brought them into the house for the winter. Also in the house are 3 grapefruit seedlings that I started in the spring from fruit I bought at the store. I tried to start lemons too, but the seeds rotted. Oh well—I'll try again next year. Looking at the map, I see there are other members nearby, so maybe we'll make some banana friends. __________________ Banana of choice: Dwarf Namwah (chosen from the smallest and most hardy fruiting varieties for easier indoor overwintering—because we want fruit too, not just tropical foliage)

10-26-2022, 06:19 PM	#2 (permalink)
PR-Giants Commercial Grower Location: Florida & Greater Antilles Find me on the map! Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 4,674 BananaBucks : 1,013 Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,939 Times Was Thanked 12,757 Times in 3,747 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3,216 Times	Re: Hello from a new member :) Welcome to the forum A quick way to understand how cold hardy a banana is probably going to be is to look at it's genotype. 'A' = acuminata 'B' = balbisiana The balbisiana gene is more cold hardy than the acuminata. Kokopo is an 'AA' Dwarf Namwah is an 'ABB' Here's a link to the USDA catalog https://www.ars.usda.gov/southeast-a...usda-ars-tars/ __________________ PR-Giants Photo Gallery 15,000+ Varieties

10-27-2022, 05:22 PM	#3 (permalink)
Kittishka Location: Middle TN Find me on the map! Zone: 7a Name: Becky Join Date: Oct 2022 Posts: 2 BananaBucks : 1,315 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 3 Times Was Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Hello from a new member :) That's pretty nifty—thanks! I've not noticed genotype info before, but now that I know about it, I'll keep an eye out when looking at banana variety descriptions. I don't suppose there are any dwarf BBs or BBBs that fruit, are there? Is that searchable? (Also, weird that there are 2- and 3-gene genotypes!) __________________ Banana of choice: Dwarf Namwah (chosen from the smallest and most hardy fruiting varieties for easier indoor overwintering—because we want fruit too, not just tropical foliage)

11-06-2022, 12:58 PM	#4 (permalink)
cincinnana container grower Location: Southwest Ohio U.S.A.🇺🇸 Find me on the map! Zone: HZ 6/5 Microclimate - Elevation 750 feet- 228.60 meters Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 8,851 BananaBucks : 1,376 Feedback: 7 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3,897 Times Was Thanked 11,750 Times in 4,900 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1,948 Times	Re: Hello from a new member :) Welcome to the Jungle!!! __________________ Cincinnana/Hostafarians Photo Gallery 🌴

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