wheelman1976

Hi all, I've been lurking for some time now trying to learn as much as I can. Over the last winter I managed to kill 4 musa basjoo that I had in pots and a couple of dwarf cavendish as well. Needless to say I'm about to throw in the towel when it comes to pots.... long story short, I made nice with a local technical skills center greenhouse guy and managed to procure about 25 dwarf red and dwarf Brazilians in 8 inch pots and about 16-20 inches tall. I decided to plant all of them in the ground and see what happens.

Here's a photo of what I'm working with.


Being that I'm in zone 5b/6a.... what am I looking at doing with these things to overwinter? Is the only option to dig them up?

Abnshrek

Hello, Welcome, and Happy Growing.. If you don't dig them up add them to the body count. :^)

__________________


I'm a Nannerhead :^)

wheelman1976

I plan on digging them up, after that is where I'm looking for guidance. I don't like the idea of potting them up b/c I had a terrible time with spider mites in my house during the winter, hence why my container pots died. Is my other option simply digging them up, getting as much dirt off the roots and keeping them in a cool place? Warmer place? I'm looking and learning as fast as I can so that I can have a game plan in place. 30 odd bananas is a lot to dig up, and that's not to mention all the cannas I have going as well.

Jezebel

Hello, Welcome...

__________________
I cultivate my garden, and my garden cultivates me.

natej740

Yeah that's a little overkill when winter hits if you don't have a large greenhouse. When late fall comes, If I were you I'd put a few on here for sale then pot a few for safe keeping then dig the rest and put in a dark basement...I have no experience with either banana you're growing and don't know if they will overwinter dormant in a basement or not. By potting a few would be backup in case the overwintering fails in the basement. I deal with mites Evey winter too and they can be a pain in the ass but you can get rid of them if you stay on top of it...good luck keep us updated would love to see how they progress in "That state up north" lol

wheelman1976

What is your solution for mites indoors over winter?

natej740

You have a few options...one that I used with success last winter was spraying my plants with a mixture of 1tbs each of olive oil and suave shampoo mixed with water in a spray bottle. Mist your plants a few times a week and if possible pur under the shower and rinse them off of the leaves. Sandy the owner of northern tropics was the one who told everyone about the mixture. I've also heard putting them in a room with a humidifier will get rid of them after a while...good luck and welcome to the forums