Oblofusc

My banana plants have a leaf deformation issue that seemed to come up as they got larger, occurring with my misi luki mat late last year and happening again now with them and now my ice cream. It only happens with the largest plants in the mat. The pups (most large now) seem unaffected. I'm not sure whether this deformation is caused by underwatering, overwatering, underfertilizing, overfertilizing, is the result of some mineral deficiency, or is caused by a fungus or worm.

I will try to post some pics but until then I'll try to describe it.

The deformation is apparent as the "tubes" of the emerging new leaf are coming out. There will be a whitish band or bands along the tube where the leaf seems real thin, like tissue paper, and when the leaf opens these areas manifest as splits in the leaf and sometimes turn into areas where there is no leaf material at all in that band. In severe examples the leaf looks shredded as it is coming out, and when it opens it looks like it went through a windstorm and it is not as broad. But it otherwise stays green, and new leaves emerge, usually deformed to some degree or another.

I live in north Florida and this had happened last year to my misi luki mat and this year too, and is now also happening to my ice cream. I thought it might have been peculiar to my misi lukis, but now I know it must be something else external.

The plants otherwise appear to be vibrant and healthy.

Tips, suggestions and comments much appreciated.

MediaHound

Are you otherwise successful with other types of bananas?
What else do you grow and how far apart are they?
Welcome aboard, by the way!

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Oblofusc

Thanks for the welcome.

My other bananas seem fine.

In looking at some pictures on the web, it looks like it's possibly boron deficiency, calcium deficiency, or both. But is this possible when I've been fertilizing?

Another thing I thought of was that my neighbor may have fertilized his yard with a weed killer fertilizer (containing the weed killer atrazine). My plants are close to the fence between our properties and maybe the root systems of the larger plants is picking some up?

Velutina

I have had banana plants in the past that would get the exact same deformation on every leaf at the same spot. The exactness of the deformation led me to believe it was genetic. I've seen the same sort of thing on bird of paradise.

Your deformation sounds different from mine, however.

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Oblofusc

Update--the last fertilizer I had been using did not have boron or calcium listed in the ingredients. I bought some that did and applied it. Already I can see that the deformation of the emerging leaves is gone! I guess my soil is really low in calcium and or boron and the tiny amount in the fertilizer was all that it took. For what it's worth, I thought it might be a genetic problem too, but when it started happening with other plants I knew it was probably something else.

Lagniappe

My Ice Creams and Rajapuri's did that last year . I fixed it with a massive dose of tea . This year it's happening again but I am too busy to make tea so I bought some fertilizer.
It happens to the larger plants in the mat just like you said.

Oblofusc

I spoke too soon below. This weird deformation has not stopped, though I think it may have lessened after the fertilizing. Some leaves have it more than others, even in the same plant. The only thing that's consistent is that it does appear to be only the biggest plants in the mat that have it--usually only the original plant. But there is one large pup that appears to have a bit of the problem with the last leaf.

The plants otherwise seem fine. The leaves are as green as the others after emerging. They just look ugly.

Bananaman88

You very well could be having issues related to translocation of your neighbor's herbicide application. I've seen this happen, most recently in my own yard when my Super Dw. Cavendish had some leaf deformation problems and even some splotches that looked variegated after I applied glyphosate (Round Up) nearby. The plant grew out of it in a few weeks and is doing great now.
I see that you realized that your fertilizer did not contain micronutrients and got one that did. This is always an important thing to pay attention to as many fertilizers only have N-P-K and no micros. Micronutrients, as the name implies, are needed in very small amounts but they sure do make a huge difference when they are lacking, as you may be seeing in you plant's leaves. You might consider getting a soil test done through your local Cooperative Extension Service as applying fertilizer when it isn't needed is just as bad, or worse, than not fertilizing at all.

turtile

Boron is easily leeched from sandy soil which is common in Florida. After heavy rains, it leeches out of the soil.

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