Newbie in S Fl
 

Greetings,
I recently purchased a home in south Central Fl and as a nana addict was thrilled to see it had a clump of banana trees. In Mid March one began to flower and about 4 hands formed. The bananas were real tiny, about 4 to 5 inches and never plumped up or anything. I waited for them to look more nana like but they shriveled up instead.
So now I have a second flower shooting out with its first hand and I am hoping to find out what I have and what I need to do to get some edible fruit from them.
Where do I go for the basics?
Thanks for any pointers.
I have posted picts in my gallery. The trees are about 10 to 15 feet tall when they flower.
Dan

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

i am wast of tamps myself...tall clump??? with out seeing them i would guess orinoco banana...sometimes you get a week one

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

well after looking at the photo in your profile i would say not orinoco but basjoo..orinamentl not edible...anyone eles agree???

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Not a basjoo but might be ornamental, like balbisiana maybe. Check the fruits, are they seeded?

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

I am away from the house but will check on that tomorrow.
That would be sad fr me if they are not edible.
Dan

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

So I have uploaded a few more pictures.
It looks like they may be seeded. Does this mean they are inedible and for decoration only?
Any further ideas on the variety
Anyone in South Fl want to trade for an edible variety?
Dan

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Hello, Welcome, and Happy Growing... I had some of those.. had to dig them out and replace with something hopeful in eating.. :^)

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

I talked to a neighbor of mine and told her I had bananas and didn't think they were edible(I think I have Basjoo) even if they are seeded and the big male fruit they eat like a vegetable. I just thought I would share since everyone says Basjoos are not edible.:lurk:

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Welcome Danny! Your clump certainly looks Orinoco-ish in my opinion. One thing I would like to point out is that there's a ton of pseudostems in that one clump. I'm not sure whether you feed them or not/they're growing in good soil/etc., but this may be accounting for the sub-standard fruit being produced since the flowering bananas might not get enough nutrients to make good fruit either because the clump is too big or the surrounding soil is poor. Maybe you could clear it up a bit and only leave a couple stems and see if that helps?

Re: Newbie in S Fl help ID
 

So its a year later, I got them separated an now have a pretty hedge of huge nana trees along the back of my property. I have a few with some good sized fruits. They never yellow. When I open them up they are more pithy than fleshy and not sweet at all.
Dan

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

go for a manzano, dwarf brazilian or maybe a raji puri, they thrive and produce good tasty fruit. Good growing and stay healthy.

Re: Newbie in S Fl help ID
 

HI Danny,

If they are Orinoco they will produce a banana that will be tasty only if you let it get very ripe. I mean when it looks like you missed it and should have thrown it out yesterday it is at its peak and will be good. They take about four months to turn yellow. When they are at their best they will have black spots on them and not be appealing. Don't let that bother you. Peel it and you will find the flesh is not bruised or soft. I have at least six mats with hanging bunches right now. If you have the room they are worth growing. Depending on your climate you may be able to grow others that are better but for now let them ripen, eat what you have and be patient. Let them get ugly!

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Do they turn yellow on the tree? Mine seem to go from green to shriveled black.

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Mine do. Many people pick the bunch when all hands have filled out and before they start to turn yellow. If the bunch hangs low enough I will cut just what I want, even a single fruit sometimes.

Although I am no expert I would say that they are blackening from the blossom end. Is that correct? Do you deflower the banana hands?

If not you should.

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Do the fruit have seed ?

Re: Newbie in S Fl
 

Looks like