Overwintering Basjoo - Page 3

Denverian · 08-26-2016, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sputinc7

Denver is dry, I am surprised you had moisture problems.
Anyway, I think, from everything I have heard, if you get a good strong plant before frost, you should be able to use a layer of mulch around the base and not even worry about the pstem. Also, since moisture is the biggest killer, I would make certain I have plenty of sand in the hole before planting. I look to nature to get an idea what keeps them alive in the wild. Apparently it's simply the natural mulch on the forest floor and the protective wrapping of dead banana leaves hanging around the pstem.
I could be wrong, and thankfully, I don't live in the cold north anymore so I can't try it out, but this is my theory.

Well, dry air, but it still snows in winter now and then. The one I have growing now is around 6' tall... these things do grow fast! I think I just need a breathable layer around the p-stem and then the plastic. I mulched ground up leaves and grass from the lawnmower around the base, and that obviously kept it alive below ground all winter.

I get lots of questions about my banana, being in Denver. Plus I have a jungle of elephant ears. It would probably be easier if I'd just move back to SoCal, where anything tropical would grow in my yard lol!

drobbins · 09-02-2016, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Denverian

Well, dry air, but it still snows in winter now and then. The one I have growing now is around 6' tall... these things do grow fast! I think I just need a breathable layer around the p-stem and then the plastic. I mulched ground up leaves and grass from the lawnmower around the base, and that obviously kept it alive below ground all winter.

I get lots of questions about my banana, being in Denver. Plus I have a jungle of elephant ears. It would probably be easier if I'd just move back to SoCal, where anything tropical would grow in my yard lol!

I'm curious, do your elephant ears do well?
I've had a little trouble getting mine through the winter
the soil here sux so getting them established is a problem
guess I could dig a bigger hole and amend the soil better (rolling eyes icon here)
anyway, plans for basjoo for the winter
I think I'm going to give mine a good dose of fertilizer about now to build the corms up
plants look awesome, will post pics in a couple of days, we're getting remnants of TS Hermine right now, not bad, just wet and windy
I think fertilizer sound like a good plan, thoughts?

Dave

Denverian · 09-07-2016, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drobbins

I'm curious, do your elephant ears do well?
I've had a little trouble getting mine through the winter
the soil here sux so getting them established is a problem
guess I could dig a bigger hole and amend the soil better (rolling eyes icon here)
anyway, plans for basjoo for the winter
I think I'm going to give mine a good dose of fertilizer about now to build the corms up
plants look awesome, will post pics in a couple of days, we're getting remnants of TS Hermine right now, not bad, just wet and windy
I think fertilizer sound like a good plan, thoughts?

Dave

My elephant ears do well, and keep expanding. But I have to dig the bulbs up after they freeze. I just dry them in the garage for a while, then toss them in trash bags and leave them in a cool, dark storage room in the basement for the winter.

I didn't do anything to the soil, but I fertilize them a lot in spring and summer. They're probably 4' tall now.

burris · 09-17-2016, 03:42 PM

I'm in Arkansas, Zone 7b and I've been keeping basjoo 4 years now. The first couple of years i kept them in pots. It's fall now and I've had 2 summers with them in the ground. Last winter i decided to try leaving one stem 6 feet tall and wrapping it with clear plastic wrap. The others were in the back out of site and i did not trim the leaves on them nor touch them. Plus i let them sucker and some of them have like 6 to 10 stems. This summer, the one i wrapped, was slower to take off and only grew to about 7 - 8 feet. The untouched ones in the back are much better. We had good rain all summer and they are 12 - 14 feet. I had 5 different clumps of them back there. One was shaded badly by the bamboo and it only got about waist high.

cincinnana · 09-17-2016, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by burris

I'm in Arkansas, Zone 7b and I've been keeping basjoo 4 years now. The first couple of years i kept them in pots. It's fall now and I've had 2 summers with them in the ground. Last winter i decided to try leaving one stem 6 feet tall and wrapping it with clear plastic wrap. The others were in the back out of site and i did not trim the leaves on them nor touch them. Plus i let them sucker and some of them have like 6 to 10 stems. This summer, the one i wrapped, was slower to take off and only grew to about 7 - 8 feet. The untouched ones in the back are much better. We had good rain all summer and they are 12 - 14 feet. I had 5 different clumps of them back there. One was shaded badly by the bamboo and it only got about waist high.

Sounds like a great garden...

drobbins · 10-16-2016, 02:51 PM

YIKES!!
I've never had a bloom before and look what I saw while pokin around the yard this afternoon

[IMG]

[/IMG]

Denverian · 10-17-2016, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drobbins

YIKES!!
I've never had a bloom before and look what I saw while pokin around the yard this afternoon

[IMG]

[/IMG]

Do these die after they bloom? I had a huge red banana (of some sort) in California. After a few years, it shot out a HUGE black flower, then died! Of course new ones shot up around it.

drobbins · 10-18-2016, 04:51 PM

yea, it's my understanding they'll die but like you said there's lots of pups, some of em pretty big.
they're musa basjoo

cincinnana · 10-18-2016, 09:42 PM

Do you have to protect musa basjoo?

09-17-2016, 03:42 PM	#44 (permalink)
burris Location: Arkansas Zone: 7A Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 28 BananaBucks : 15,656 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 41 Times Was Thanked 26 Times in 13 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Overwintering Basjoo I'm in Arkansas, Zone 7b and I've been keeping basjoo 4 years now. The first couple of years i kept them in pots. It's fall now and I've had 2 summers with them in the ground. Last winter i decided to try leaving one stem 6 feet tall and wrapping it with clear plastic wrap. The others were in the back out of site and i did not trim the leaves on them nor touch them. Plus i let them sucker and some of them have like 6 to 10 stems. This summer, the one i wrapped, was slower to take off and only grew to about 7 - 8 feet. The untouched ones in the back are much better. We had good rain all summer and they are 12 - 14 feet. I had 5 different clumps of them back there. One was shaded badly by the bamboo and it only got about waist high.

10-16-2016, 02:51 PM	#46 (permalink)
drobbins Location: Central NC Zone: 7b-8a Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 96 BananaBucks : 16,672 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 11 Times Was Thanked 147 Times in 60 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Overwintering Basjoo YIKES!! I've never had a bloom before and look what I saw while pokin around the yard this afternoon [IMG][/IMG] __________________ Central North Carolina zone 7b-8a Find me on the map!

10-18-2016, 04:51 PM	#48 (permalink)
drobbins Location: Central NC Zone: 7b-8a Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 96 BananaBucks : 16,672 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 11 Times Was Thanked 147 Times in 60 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Overwintering Basjoo yea, it's my understanding they'll die but like you said there's lots of pups, some of em pretty big. they're musa basjoo __________________ Central North Carolina zone 7b-8a Find me on the map!

10-18-2016, 09:42 PM	#49 (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: 8,782 BananaBucks : 501 Feedback: 7 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3,865 Times Was Thanked 11,705 Times in 4,870 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1,943 Times	Re: Overwintering Basjoo Do you have to protect musa basjoo? __________________ Cincinnana/Hostafarians Photo Gallery 🌴

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