Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Hello new to the forums and very excited to learn about these amazing plants.

Today I purchased two banana plants which I thought were Basjoo. When I got them home I noticed that the tag says Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa.

The leaves look a bit different than my other Basjoo's. Hmm...

The back of the tag says that it is a cold hardy banana and will eventually grow 15-20 feet.

Is this some sort of crossbreed?

Any help would be appreciated.

Sam

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Hi Sam, welcome on the forum, what a strange tag, but it must be a basjoo
according to the height and cold hardiness mentioned.
A lasiocarpa is a bit cold hardy but not as basjoo and is a dwarf plant compared with Basjoo. A cross between those does not exist, as the words say, Basjoo is a 'Musa' and 'Lasiocarpa' the only 'Musella'. Maybe there
are 2 bananas in one pot?

Ron

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

welcome to the forums sam! now for your plant, a picture is worth a thousand words!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Sunsetsammy....shopping at canadian tire were you....check out the picture in my photo gallery.Im sure you will reconise them there.What part of the island are you from? Im in Burnaby.

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Hello again!

I'll try my luck at posting some pictures.

Inonear, yes the bananas were purchased at Can Tire lol! That's funny that you picked up on that so quickly. By the way I'm here in tropical Comox :)

I must say I'm VERY impressed with this forum. The layout, user options, and overall knowledge base is so great! Good work everyone!

Anyhow here are the pics.

Here is the confusing tag



And here is the banana which I'm doubting is a Basjoo...



Hope this worked :)

Sam

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

looks like a Musella lasiocarpa to me. The base is kinda to thick/swollen to be a basjoo.:weightliftingnaner:

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

I agree on that with steelviper but on the other hand it should have had
more leafs in my believe. I see one chopped off. But than again, i am
not a specialist , we have better specialists on the forum that will determine
this one. I could be all wrong.

Two pix of a younger lasiocarpa of mine.

The markings on the leafs look more curved aswell.





Ron

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

100% Musella lasiocarpa.

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Looks like one to me too.
I have a very small one here that is showing a lot of pink and red , perhaps it will fade back with age but it seems to have strong colour to me.
There was supposed to by a very red form coming out of a tissue culture lab last year but it never happened . Perhaps this is the direction they were going.






Later
Steve

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Thank you everyone!!

I thought that something was up. :)

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

It's definitely musella lasiocarpa!

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Sunset Sammy
I'm from Campbell River but I'm currently living in Sacramento.
Good to see another northerner on the forum.

Jay

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Hello Jay! Small world isn't it?

We've had spring come late around here this year. Could be a short growing season.

How is Sacramento?

Sam

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Sacramento is too hot for me already.....But considering it took me a few months to dry out from working on Van. Island I won't complain too loudly.
Good luck with your Musella, I have two growing here myself. You should also try some ornamentals up there.....I have many Violacea that seem very tough. I also couldn't do without my ensete species even though they aren't edible.
Jay

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

15-20 feet wide once it starts pupping perhaps! 6ft to tops of leaves more likely for the height.

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

Here is a Basjoo from about 18-20 feet or do you mean the lasiocarpa?

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

I mean't the Musella Lasiocarpa. Mine always flower close to 6 ft to top of leaf.

Mind you, my Basjoo never gets like yours. Basjoo doesn't seem to like my garden. It grows, but not like yours - Wow! I think mine give up after about 5severe wind shreddings and try another shoot instead and the regularly shredded stalk dies leaving masses of pups. The pups then do the same at about 7ft when they are high enough to get the full brunt of the wind, being then higher than the wall.

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

It is not mine, just an example. Too bad your main stem dies all the time.

Ron

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

I have given up on Basjoo due to the winds here, but other types take the wind far better - in fact almost everything does better here than basjoo! Ensete Ventricosum takes hell of a wind without damage, and just scrapes through our winters 2 years out of three without protection. Musa Itinerans (yunnan) gets shredded, but recovers faster than M Basjoo. Musella flowers here nicely:-

Re: Musa Basjoo/Musella lasiocarpa
 

A good looking lasiocarpa, mine is not that far

Ron