Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

This is mainly a question for other south Floridians but what has been your experience with these 2 varieties? I am moving in about a month and will take on the task of planting bananas at my new house. My current house has Sigatoka infested D. Cavendish and I wouldn't wish the issues(cigar end rot, battles with black sigatoka and severe choking) I've had with them on anyone else let alone myself. I am thinking about planting all three varieties to see how they do, but I have seen and read some disconcerting comments about all of those varieties.

Fhia-2 is supposedly a Williams cross and I imagine it would look similar to other cavendish varieties but all the pictures of the fruit I have seen are really small (2"-4"). A plus with this variety is that I can get a large quantity of it from Agristarts.

Fhia-17 is Highgate cross and the idea of growing this variety intrigues me. All the bunches I have seen of it are enormous and I think it would be a good compliment to the Gran Nains that I have in the field a few miles up the road. I read that it was susceptible to choking which would be a bad deal for me.

Fhia-23 is another Highgate cross but I have seen poorer reviews of it. I guess it just doesn't grow very quickly, furthermore it seems to be a lot harder to come by.


So if you have pictures of the bunches from South Florida I'd like to see them and I'd also like to know how big the fruits get.

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

Not from Florida but...... I have heard nothing good here about the FHIA 23, even Going Bananas has discontinued it I believe. Maybe they like a more temperate climate (kidding) but mine here in Jersey have reached 6' this year from small 6" choked stubbs last fall and growing like crazy. They were bred to be resistant to sigatoka so I am interested to hear how yours do.

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

well I haven't had a chance to call Don yet to ask about FHIA-23, if he doesn't have it, I might really have to shake the bushes to even get 4-5 of them. I see pictures of greenie's fhia-17s and they pretty much look the same as thos gigantic bunches that are reported from latin america and africa. I am suspicious of the FHIA-2s so I am hoping I can get some input.

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

You should consider growing sh-3640, 8-10', large tasty fruit, good disease resistance, and stout plants that rarely require propping even with large bunches!





You can try the sweetheart, but I didn't care for it! Didn't like the taste as much as most of the other varieties I've grown, and the texture was a little soft for my taste! here's a pic of the fruit though.



For taste and good size fruit bunches, it's hard to beat a D. Namwah.



It pups quite a bit though as you can see

I also like the FIHA-18 a lot, don't have any fruit pics though. hope that helps and good luck!

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

Fhia-1, 2, 3 are winners. I have not been impressed with 17, 19, 23 for either poor growth or poor taste. 3640 is a winner, as well.

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

I've got enough D. Namwah to choke several horses, but I'll have to check out SH-3640

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

FHIA17


...Here ya go.I grew the FHIA 17 for a couple years and never had a problem with chocking.I was very impressed by the huge bunches.The taste is better the than a store bought nana and alot sweeter but nothing to go (bananas over)lol! It will get to about 10-11' or so.
I am currently growing the FHIA 18 and just love it!.Its a Beautiful stout plant with big bunches and sub acid flavor with nice sweetness.It has a Manzano taste to it.
On the 3640,Nanaman just gave me a hand of these,they are on the kitchen counter and I cant wait to try one.I have seen the plant in person and its a stout plant with a good bunch also,I heard its better the the Goldfinger.

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

I have read that 23 is very tasty, must be the slow grower. I am looking forward to trying some different bananas... Manzanos are a little too acid, / not banana-y as I would like. Especially want to taste Gros Michel. (Got one in the ground, but don't want to wait.) I prefer cavendish with a tinge of green on a yellow spot free peel. Where can I find these 3? (The 17, 23 and 3640)

Re: Fhia-2 and FHIA-17, FHIA,23
 

Replying to your 13 year old post. I'd like to hear an update on if you tried them and how they did. I also have sigatoka. I've had a FHIA 2 Mona Lisa for a few years. I bought it from a nursery that looked like it had various infections in all the plants, so I cut it way back and scraped down the corm and treated it with lots of things to make sure I didn't bring in anything, and had it in a pot for a while. Anyway, it got started from a very small plant and is in a spot that doesn't get a lot of direct sun. It does not appear close to fruiting yet, but seems healthy. It is not displaying much impact from the sigatoka. It is taking a long time to fruit, but that may be because of the conditions.

I'm interested in trying a 23 and finding out if it is resistant to sigatoka. I guess the name means someone thought it tasted similar to the original Gros Michel? I don't think anyone is growing that one any more.

replying to other suggestions: I have tried SH 3640 and they are good. They are a big thick banana and good producer. However, I read that they are not resistant to sigatoka, so I have not planted any.

I tried to grow dwarf namwa. They are a wonderful banana but would not grow in my yard. Their baby fruits are just destroyed by sigatoka.