question on winterizing basjoo

lwabirds · 07-18-2007, 11:25 PM

hey all,
I've been think of how I will "winterize" my basjoo's this fall. I wanted to get some of your thoughts on my idea:
1. cut the psuedostem down to 12"
2. Place dry much around it.
3. Place a large lawn bag (plastic) full of dried leaves over the 12" making sure that the bag covers the ground well.

Do you think this would work? I'm not wanting to build cages for them b/c I have so many of them.
Any ideas/suggestions would be great!

sandy0225 · 07-19-2007, 12:55 AM

I forgot to look what zone you're in, but I do that exact same thing. One difference, I use 5 bags of leaves per plant. N,s,e,w, of the stem and one over the top. It covers a lot more area around the roots of the plant which I think helps in zone 5a.
Sincerely,
Sandy

lwabirds · 07-19-2007, 11:41 AM

i'm in zone 6a (southern OHio). I planted my bananas in flower beds surrounded by landscaping blocks. I don't think there is enough room for multiple bags of leaves. Do you mulch the psuedostems at all before covering with bagged leaves? If so, with what? have you ever grown the red tigers or wintered them out side?

ryanmarc · 08-11-2007, 11:57 PM

Hi, i live in the uk and although i only have a few plants i place wooden pallets (which you can get almost anywhere for free) around them and cut the leaves off and fill with straw and cover with a waterproof sheet. it does require a bit of work but if you want your banana plants to grow larger than they were the previous year its well worth it.

I hope this helps.

Marc

Tangy · 08-13-2007, 07:50 AM

Has anyone ever tried to protect the psuedostem with a high R-factor fiberglass insulation? I may try this in conjunction with bags of leaves.

I have been thinking about where to store the plants I dig up for the winter. This may be overkill but I am considering digging a small root cellar to place them in?

mudcat25 · 08-13-2007, 08:43 AM

I've had basjoo's for about 3yrs now and have always cut them down to the ground and mulched around them. My p-stems are about 6ft now.

Last year when I got on this site I did hear of the cage method and also the bags of leaves. I'm just wondering if I will get larger plants with these methods or just more work. Has anyone had success with these methods creating larger plants? For 3-4ft it may be woth it!

cactus6103 · 08-13-2007, 12:34 PM

I am considering doing something similar to my Basjoo, Sikkimensis and Zebrina. I want to place rebar stakes around the plant and fill the area with pine straw. Living near Charlotte NC, I don’t think I need too much protection. It will be my first winter for most of these plants.

Also not sure if I need to cut off all the leaves or not? Cut the plant off at a certain height?

I know we are all sweating in this August heat, but it will be winter before you know it. Red

mrbungalow · 08-15-2007, 05:18 AM

12" seems a little on the short side. I would definately try to save more stem for a bigger plant next year. No matter what, part of your plant will be subject to frost. Or to clarify, part of your plant will allways turn to mush after averwintering, no way around it! Why not leave an "insurance policy", by leaving more stem?

Erlend

frankthetank · 08-15-2007, 09:37 PM

What are some of your low temps for you guys and gals???

I've got 2 Basjoos in the ground (7ft for one, 4 ft for the other) and i'm thinking of either digging them and leaving them in my cold basement (no heat) or in the ground. I could actually pot them up and put them in the kitchen, but am not sure if i would gain next spring by doing that (the goal here is more height next year)>>>???

The past 7 winters, these have been my yearly lows. It doesn't stay cold like this for long, but once a storm moves through and the clear skies come in along with Canadian high pressure, the temp likes to drop way off...especially with fresh snowcover. All temps in Fahrenheit.
-19F
-21F
-19F
-19F
-9F
-6F
-24F

D_&_T · 08-15-2007, 10:31 PM

Hey Frank,

where do you live and what zone?

Dan & Tara

frankthetank · 08-15-2007, 10:50 PM

I consider myself more of a zone 5, but its probably zone 4 with those temps i listed. The thing that gets me is just one or 2 nights out of the winter where the possibility exists for a -20F. Heck, the winter with the -6F came in MARCH..up to that point it never went below 0F (First time ever). The late 90's were pretty mild too.

My location is almost right on the Mississippi River @ about 600ft elevation.

D_&_T · 08-15-2007, 11:02 PM

think "sandy0225" could answer you best, she has some cold weather too, she has a nursery

Dan & Tara

mrbungalow · 08-16-2007, 12:32 AM

It doesn't matter how cold it gets, what matters is how deep the frosts penetrate. Offcourse, there is a co-relation, but sometimes frosts don't penetrate too deep.

After many trials, I would discourage anyone trying to overwinter basjoo "under the house" or "in the basement". This may work for dwarf orinocos/ regular orinocos and a few others, but temperate bananas just start growing at these rather cold temperatures, turn yellow, and die on you. They are in my opinion bets treated as perrenials.

Erlend

frankthetank · 08-16-2007, 08:20 AM

Bungalow-

I brought in my D Cavendish last year and set it in one of the bedrooms and while it didn't grow @ all, it didn't die either...just sat there. So maybe i'll toss out the basement route and either pot them up and sit them in the kitchen or leave them in the ground outside.

Snowcover is not a given thing around here, and thats what leads to deep/shallow frosts. I'm just guessing, but i bet the frost is pretty deep around here some winters. We have had instances, where the temp will go below 0F and have no snow on the ground... That would surely kill a Basjoo i'm suspecting.

BGreen · 08-16-2007, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mudcat25

Last year when I got on this site I did hear of the cage method and also the bags of leaves. I'm just wondering if I will get larger plants with these methods or just more work. Has anyone had success with these methods creating larger plants? For 3-4ft it may be woth it!

Last winter a friend and I tried the cage method.
We cut the pseudostems down to 36" and built a 32" diameter chicken wire cage around the plants and filled them with straw. We then covered the cage with a tarp and tied it down with twine. We ended up losing all the main pseudostems, but all the pups survied. Granted this was a wet winter for us and the bananas are located in a lower spot. I'm not sure what we are going to do this year yet.

frankthetank · 08-16-2007, 06:31 PM

Hmmm... Still no real idea of what to do. I can pretty much rule out leaving them in the ground...i don't trust our winters.

lwabirds · 08-16-2007, 06:51 PM

i'm in southern ohio, zone 6. When is a good time to cut them back and mulch them in the fall? October? November?

mudcat25 · 08-16-2007, 07:29 PM

In zone 6 I'm going to leave mine in as long as they look good. I am going to try the cage method on one mat and see what difference comes of that. So that one a may start a little early, but for the others I will mulch heavily before the first frost and cut it down when it freezes. I believe if you are going to just cut them down to ground level the tree itself does not have to be cut before the first frost.

frankthetank · 08-16-2007, 07:48 PM

lwabirds...

If its a "normal" fall we usually see one hard frost and then another warm up afterwards. Last year it looks like here in La Crosse, the 3rd week of October would pretty much freeze my plants (22F) with highs in the low 40's. I might pot mine up earlier and then move in and out of the garage until it gets too cold. I've got my doly.

It would be interesting to know...if a person was looking for size (height/girth) the FOLLOWING summer...would

A. cutting back and leaving in the ground
B. digging up and leaving inside warm house (leaves intact)
C. digging up corm and leaving in cold area

be the best method if all plants were equal size before experiment...say 6ft Basjoos???

My guess would be B even if neglected in a cooler room with little light (my d Cavendish did just fine in this situation.)

mudcat25 · 08-16-2007, 07:57 PM

Frank

I have dug one up and potted it for the winter, about a 3ft plant. I kept it in a basement with temps of about 55, 4ft plant lights (cheap shop lights), not much water. Ended up with maybe 2-3 new leaves. My mats that I cut to ground level this year outgrew that tree by far. Not sure if it is because of the larger mats in the ground compared to the smaller corm of the indoor plant or the methods used.

07-18-2007, 11:25 PM	#1 (permalink)
lwabirds Junior Member lwabirds's Photo Gallery Find me on the map! Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 136 BananaBucks : 100,931 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3 Times Was Thanked 68 Times in 23 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1 Times	question on winterizing basjoo hey all, I've been think of how I will "winterize" my basjoo's this fall. I wanted to get some of your thoughts on my idea: 1. cut the psuedostem down to 12" 2. Place dry much around it. 3. Place a large lawn bag (plastic) full of dried leaves over the 12" making sure that the bag covers the ground well. Do you think this would work? I'm not wanting to build cages for them b/c I have so many of them. Any ideas/suggestions would be great! __________________ May you be in heaven a half an hour before the devil knows you're dead

07-19-2007, 12:55 AM	#2 (permalink)
sandy0225 Northern Tropics sandy0225's Photo Gallery Location: Muncie, Indiana zone 5 Find me on the map! Zone: zone 5 Name: Sandy Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,718 BananaBucks : 384,932 Feedback: 31 / 97% Said "Thanks" 38 Times Was Thanked 1,801 Times in 682 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 9 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo I forgot to look what zone you're in, but I do that exact same thing. One difference, I use 5 bags of leaves per plant. N,s,e,w, of the stem and one over the top. It covers a lot more area around the roots of the plant which I think helps in zone 5a. Sincerely, Sandy __________________ Sandy Burrell Northern Tropics Greenhouse 1501 East Fuson Road Muncie, IN 47302 www.northerntropics.com specializing in bananas, heirloom tomatoes and water gardening plants~ check out our new online store at our website!

07-19-2007, 11:41 AM	#3 (permalink)
lwabirds Junior Member lwabirds's Photo Gallery Find me on the map! Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 136 BananaBucks : 100,931 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3 Times Was Thanked 68 Times in 23 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo i'm in zone 6a (southern OHio). I planted my bananas in flower beds surrounded by landscaping blocks. I don't think there is enough room for multiple bags of leaves. Do you mulch the psuedostems at all before covering with bagged leaves? If so, with what? have you ever grown the red tigers or wintered them out side? __________________ May you be in heaven a half an hour before the devil knows you're dead

08-11-2007, 11:57 PM	#4 (permalink)
ryanmarc marc ryanmarc's Photo Gallery Location: Reading England Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 21 BananaBucks : 22,122 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Hi, i live in the uk and although i only have a few plants i place wooden pallets (which you can get almost anywhere for free) around them and cut the leaves off and fill with straw and cover with a waterproof sheet. it does require a bit of work but if you want your banana plants to grow larger than they were the previous year its well worth it. I hope this helps. Marc

08-13-2007, 07:50 AM	#5 (permalink)
Tangy Member Location: Asheville NC Find me on the map! Zone: 7A Name: Michael Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 77 BananaBucks : 6,579 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 6 Times Was Thanked 9 Times in 8 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Has anyone ever tried to protect the psuedostem with a high R-factor fiberglass insulation? I may try this in conjunction with bags of leaves. I have been thinking about where to store the plants I dig up for the winter. This may be overkill but I am considering digging a small root cellar to place them in?

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08-13-2007, 08:43 AM	#6 (permalink)
mudcat25 Senior Member mudcat25's Photo Gallery Location: Missouri Find me on the map! Zone: 6 Name: Bob Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 106 BananaBucks : 24,300 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 1 Times Was Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo I've had basjoo's for about 3yrs now and have always cut them down to the ground and mulched around them. My p-stems are about 6ft now. Last year when I got on this site I did hear of the cage method and also the bags of leaves. I'm just wondering if I will get larger plants with these methods or just more work. Has anyone had success with these methods creating larger plants? For 3-4ft it may be woth it!

08-13-2007, 12:34 PM	#7 (permalink)
cactus6103 NASCAR Banana Racer cactus6103's Photo Gallery Location: Denver NC. Find me on the map! Zone: 7b Name: Red Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 180 BananaBucks : 23,560 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 9 Times Was Thanked 57 Times in 31 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo I am considering doing something similar to my Basjoo, Sikkimensis and Zebrina. I want to place rebar stakes around the plant and fill the area with pine straw. Living near Charlotte NC, I don’t think I need too much protection. It will be my first winter for most of these plants. Also not sure if I need to cut off all the leaves or not? Cut the plant off at a certain height? I know we are all sweating in this August heat, but it will be winter before you know it. Red __________________ Family, Friends and Bananas

08-15-2007, 05:18 AM	#8 (permalink)
mrbungalow Freezing member mrbungalow's Photo Gallery Location: Bergen, Norway Find me on the map! Zone: 8 Name: Erlend Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 598 BananaBucks : 69,732 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 14 Times Was Thanked 165 Times in 78 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo 12" seems a little on the short side. I would definately try to save more stem for a bigger plant next year. No matter what, part of your plant will be subject to frost. Or to clarify, part of your plant will allways turn to mush after averwintering, no way around it! Why not leave an "insurance policy", by leaving more stem? Erlend __________________ Last edited by mrbungalow : 08-15-2007 at 05:31 AM. Reason: spelling

08-15-2007, 09:37 PM	#9 (permalink)
frankthetank Member Location: La Crosse, WI Find me on the map! Zone: 4-5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 144 BananaBucks : 46,216 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 119 Times in 41 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo What are some of your low temps for you guys and gals??? I've got 2 Basjoos in the ground (7ft for one, 4 ft for the other) and i'm thinking of either digging them and leaving them in my cold basement (no heat) or in the ground. I could actually pot them up and put them in the kitchen, but am not sure if i would gain next spring by doing that (the goal here is more height next year)>>>??? The past 7 winters, these have been my yearly lows. It doesn't stay cold like this for long, but once a storm moves through and the clear skies come in along with Canadian high pressure, the temp likes to drop way off...especially with fresh snowcover. All temps in Fahrenheit. -19F -21F -19F -19F -9F -6F -24F

08-15-2007, 10:31 PM	#10 (permalink)
D_&_T 3rd winter growing indoor D_&_T's Photo Gallery Location: Northern Indiana Find me on the map! Zone: 5 Name: Dan Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 877 BananaBucks : 33,425 Feedback: 4 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,437 Times Was Thanked 260 Times in 169 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 342 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Hey Frank, where do you live and what zone? Dan & Tara __________________

08-15-2007, 10:50 PM	#11 (permalink)
frankthetank Member Location: La Crosse, WI Find me on the map! Zone: 4-5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 144 BananaBucks : 46,216 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 119 Times in 41 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo I consider myself more of a zone 5, but its probably zone 4 with those temps i listed. The thing that gets me is just one or 2 nights out of the winter where the possibility exists for a -20F. Heck, the winter with the -6F came in MARCH..up to that point it never went below 0F (First time ever). The late 90's were pretty mild too. My location is almost right on the Mississippi River @ about 600ft elevation.

08-15-2007, 11:02 PM	#12 (permalink)
D_&_T 3rd winter growing indoor D_&_T's Photo Gallery Location: Northern Indiana Find me on the map! Zone: 5 Name: Dan Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 877 BananaBucks : 33,425 Feedback: 4 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,437 Times Was Thanked 260 Times in 169 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 342 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo think "sandy0225" could answer you best, she has some cold weather too, she has a nursery Dan & Tara __________________

08-16-2007, 12:32 AM	#13 (permalink)
mrbungalow Freezing member mrbungalow's Photo Gallery Location: Bergen, Norway Find me on the map! Zone: 8 Name: Erlend Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 598 BananaBucks : 69,732 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 14 Times Was Thanked 165 Times in 78 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo It doesn't matter how cold it gets, what matters is how deep the frosts penetrate. Offcourse, there is a co-relation, but sometimes frosts don't penetrate too deep. After many trials, I would discourage anyone trying to overwinter basjoo "under the house" or "in the basement". This may work for dwarf orinocos/ regular orinocos and a few others, but temperate bananas just start growing at these rather cold temperatures, turn yellow, and die on you. They are in my opinion bets treated as perrenials. Erlend __________________

08-16-2007, 08:20 AM	#14 (permalink)
frankthetank Member Location: La Crosse, WI Find me on the map! Zone: 4-5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 144 BananaBucks : 46,216 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 119 Times in 41 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Bungalow- I brought in my D Cavendish last year and set it in one of the bedrooms and while it didn't grow @ all, it didn't die either...just sat there. So maybe i'll toss out the basement route and either pot them up and sit them in the kitchen or leave them in the ground outside. Snowcover is not a given thing around here, and thats what leads to deep/shallow frosts. I'm just guessing, but i bet the frost is pretty deep around here some winters. We have had instances, where the temp will go below 0F and have no snow on the ground... That would surely kill a Basjoo i'm suspecting.

08-16-2007, 06:31 PM	#16 (permalink)
frankthetank Member Location: La Crosse, WI Find me on the map! Zone: 4-5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 144 BananaBucks : 46,216 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 119 Times in 41 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Hmmm... Still no real idea of what to do. I can pretty much rule out leaving them in the ground...i don't trust our winters.

08-16-2007, 06:51 PM	#17 (permalink)
lwabirds Junior Member lwabirds's Photo Gallery Find me on the map! Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 136 BananaBucks : 100,931 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3 Times Was Thanked 68 Times in 23 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo i'm in southern ohio, zone 6. When is a good time to cut them back and mulch them in the fall? October? November? __________________ May you be in heaven a half an hour before the devil knows you're dead

08-16-2007, 07:29 PM	#18 (permalink)
mudcat25 Senior Member mudcat25's Photo Gallery Location: Missouri Find me on the map! Zone: 6 Name: Bob Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 106 BananaBucks : 24,300 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 1 Times Was Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo In zone 6 I'm going to leave mine in as long as they look good. I am going to try the cage method on one mat and see what difference comes of that. So that one a may start a little early, but for the others I will mulch heavily before the first frost and cut it down when it freezes. I believe if you are going to just cut them down to ground level the tree itself does not have to be cut before the first frost.

08-16-2007, 07:48 PM	#19 (permalink)
frankthetank Member Location: La Crosse, WI Find me on the map! Zone: 4-5 Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 144 BananaBucks : 46,216 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 119 Times in 41 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo lwabirds... If its a "normal" fall we usually see one hard frost and then another warm up afterwards. Last year it looks like here in La Crosse, the 3rd week of October would pretty much freeze my plants (22F) with highs in the low 40's. I might pot mine up earlier and then move in and out of the garage until it gets too cold. I've got my doly. It would be interesting to know...if a person was looking for size (height/girth) the FOLLOWING summer...would A. cutting back and leaving in the ground B. digging up and leaving inside warm house (leaves intact) C. digging up corm and leaving in cold area be the best method if all plants were equal size before experiment...say 6ft Basjoos??? My guess would be B even if neglected in a cooler room with little light (my d Cavendish did just fine in this situation.)

08-16-2007, 07:57 PM	#20 (permalink)
mudcat25 Senior Member mudcat25's Photo Gallery Location: Missouri Find me on the map! Zone: 6 Name: Bob Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 106 BananaBucks : 24,300 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 1 Times Was Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: question on winterizing basjoo Frank I have dug one up and potted it for the winter, about a 3ft plant. I kept it in a basement with temps of about 55, 4ft plant lights (cheap shop lights), not much water. Ended up with maybe 2-3 new leaves. My mats that I cut to ground level this year outgrew that tree by far. Not sure if it is because of the larger mats in the ground compared to the smaller corm of the indoor plant or the methods used.

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