tjsplace

Hello. I am beginning to look in the overwintering section of this site but thought I would ask this anyway: Can I simply bring in my two small potted dwarf Orinoco banana plants from the outdoors to the indoors as the temperatures dip? I have a large grow light in a spare bedroom and/or bright south-facing windows. The pots are about 2-gallon size... Or should I allow the plants to go dormant altogether? My goal is to keep them growing over the winter for an uninterrupted time. Zone 7a.

sirdoofus

Full disclosure - I almost killed my two garaged dwarf orinoco plants last year from over watering, but here are my 2 cents anyway.

If it were me I would bring plants that size indoors to overwinter in either of the locations you mentioned. The main things you will want to watch out for, in my opinion, are spider mites and over watering.

They won't grow like they do in the summer outside, they will grow like most other tropical, sub-tropical houseplants do in the winter, slowly. Bananas seem to be particularly sensitive to over watering, so if you figure that recipe out for your plants you should be fine. Usually I let them dry out between lite waterings to the point the pot is lite and the leaves start to droop just a bit, which can be a long time with a banana. A moisture meter that can reach the bottom of the pot is not a bad idea to help with assessment.

As for the spider mites, as soon as you bring them inside I would thoroughly spray the entire plant and top of the soil with a mixture of water, soap and oil. Just a little bit of oil, any food grade or agricultural oil should do, and a little bit of soap in a spray bottle filled with water and then watch them carefully.

Because I am assuming you are going to put them outside again next year, I don't think complete eradication of the mites is necessary, as long as they are controlled and you don't spread them to your other houseplants. You can of course repeat the spray treatment as needed.

I am sure others with more over wintering experience will chime in as well.

Good luck!

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Who keeps calling me nuts??

cincinnana

I will doing the same soon.
Your plants are still small and manageable so do what is easiest for you.
You going to have to make a home for them for the next six months.
Try the window first and if that is not enough to maintain them then transition to grow lights or use both for 15+hours a day.
Your plants growth activity will slow down a bit so your care will be at a minimum.

Once the plants are larger you might revisit letting them go somewhat dormant.
The bigger the plants the more challenging they are indoors.

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