Richard

Wishful thinking.

__________________
Back in business at plantsthatproduce.com

mari@adams.net

I saw a video of someone preparing plants for winter and they used a 'sheath' cloth on the ground around the plants before putting in the mulch. I assume it is to keep that area of the ground as dry as possible after mulching. What is a 'sheath' cloth?..........Would that be some kind of plastic?.......Such as a plastic tarp?........

mari@adams.net

Can anyone tell me what kind of banana plant these small bananas come from? I found them at a local Walmart store with a sticker that had Dole Guatemala Baby #4234 on it. They are about 3 1/2" long with a custard taste.[IMG][url=http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?[/IMG]

Richard

"Baby" is a produce grade of banana, not a specific cultivar. Even if you were to narrow it down to a cultivar, there is no guarantee you could grow it in your climate.

Good to know that you like the custard texture and taste. There are Musas you can grow to give you the same satisfaction. Check with the usual suspects (TyTaylor, HMelendez, ...) to find out.

__________________
Back in business at plantsthatproduce.com

mari@adams.net

Thanks for your reply...I do like the custard texture. I wonder if they would be good to grill as I do plantains. Like to grill plantains then put a little bit of brown sugar/vinegar/butter glaze on them just before taking off the grill. I have seen these little bananas in my area, but not very often. They are a treat when I find them.

mari@adams.net

Our temperatures here will be in the 70-80's (lows to 50) for another 10 days then will dip to the 60's with possible lows to 30's. Do I wait until a frost knocks down the leaves of the Musa Basjoos before starting to cut back and mulch the plants? I have read a lot of the posts in the "hardy plants" section, but this is the first year I have attempted to leave any of the plants in the ground for the winter. Any suggestions on overwintering the plants outside will greatly help. Can you cut back and mulch these plants too soon?

Richard

Months too soon, yes. A couple weeks, no.

__________________
Back in business at plantsthatproduce.com

mari@adams.net

Thanks for your reply.....Hummm, so I need to wait until it is 'really cold' before mulching, etc. I have 4 non-hardy ones to dig and quite a few potted non-hardy to bring in before winter. Should I start removing some of the leaves now or wait until time to bring them in. Is Neem oil okay to spray the stem and leaves? When do I stop fertilizing and watering.

Richard

I'd do it all now instead of risk an early frost.

__________________
Back in business at plantsthatproduce.com

mari@adams.net

Is the bunching at the top a problem with this Dwarf Cavendish plant? Does it need fertilizing to make the leaves grow up and out? It is time to bring it in here so haven't been fertilizing.[IMG][/IMG]

cincinnana

Great looking plants..

There are so many great opinions just pick and chose what works for you.

For me, I just use a large sharp knife to separate the two and then repot the plants next spring.
This way you have two separate plants in the same container .

Also, I never wash the soil off my plants before I transplant or repot .
A plant does much better and recovers quicker when the roots are not disturbed.

__________________

mari@adams.net

I didn't really put enough soil in the pot to call it 'repotting'. Should I go ahead and repot these now with more soil? I just added enough soil to cover the corm and root. They will get some light from a window and overhead lighting but not all the time.

cincinnana

Stick with your original plan it's a good one.
Many forum members do the same thing(store bare root) for the winter with good predictable results.

I forgot your plants were in the ground and not in pots.
Pots can get kinda heavy too.

__________________

mari@adams.net

That's why I put some of them in the ground this year ..cause the pots were too heavy for me to handle, but now that they have grown larger, just the corm/stem is very heavy without pot and dirt. One person here that has plants, pulls hers up and stores them bare root lying down on her basement floor. But she lost a lot of hers last year because they rotted. I do have some more in pots but they are going to be a challenge to get in because of weight. I envy everyone that can leave their plants out for winter, but that is the problem with people trying to grow plants out of their zone.

mari@adams.net

I've decided to go ahead and pot up the non-hardy banana plants that I have dug up to be in the basement till next spring. Do I cut most of the roots off the corm or leave them on before potting. They have lots of roots.

geissene

What is your basement temperature now? Hopefully it is cooling down or your plants may keep growing....

cincinnana

You can mulch them now while they are in the yard.

It does not have to be cold or freezing just get the mulch in place while you have some free time.
Let the weather determine (a few hard freezes) when you cut the plant.
However it is educational to watch what the cold weather does to them.


Use as much mulch as you want, which is on sale at the big box stores.
Usually it is on end of season sale.
I use free wood chips from a tree service and pile 8-12 inches around the plant.
The commercial garden in some of the photos use generic black mulch for looks.
When spring rolls around your plants will pop right up through the mulch even if it thick

You mentioned straw...looks like 2 bales will cover an 8x8 area.
Leave the mulch in place in the spring it will improve the soil structure.
Mulch looks more as aesthetically pleasing since your plants are in the front landscape though.

Here are some photos of some I care for.
Some are cut and some are left to the elements.
Your plants will not rot if they are in a well draining area such as the gradual slope yours are on.
A tarp is generally not needed to cover them however some forum members use tarps.
Once you get a few seasons under your belt you will get the hang of it and do what is easiest to do.

Basjoo mulching


Spring growth


Summer growth

__________________

cincinnana

Get as many roots as you can and try NOT to disturb the rootball too much.
You could dig around the plant and lift soil ball and roots and place in a big container and backfill with a good soilless mix.

There are a few good Youtube videos which give DYI advice.

Get some good roots in that rootball.

Repotting bordelons
by
Hostafarian,
on Flickr

__________________

mari@adams.net

I have some heat (haven't used it yet) in the basement when it gets cold, probably stays around 60 or so in winter. It's comfortable for me to be down there. I'm sure they will grow a little as I use the lights where they are a lot. I would like to get them to bloom next year, if they continue growing a little this winter will that help them to get to bloom next year faster?

mari@adams.net

Thanks for all the valuable information and pictures of the beautiful banana plants. Are most of these Basjoos? Are they in Ohio? I must be overthinking the mulching as all I have read about mulching these plants in my zone has said to mulch very heavily. Thanks for the suggestion to go ahead and mulch now....I can add more later. Bought 2 large bales of straw today at Walmart ($5.50 a bale). Our leaves haven't started falling yet. Very educational pictures that you have.