help me choose my next plant!:D
 

I live in Portland Oregon in zone 8-9 and winters are really wet here but never too cold and we rarely get snow. I have a Mekong Giant,Sikkimensis and a struggling basjoo and i have one spot left in my yard for another banana plant and i want one that is just awesome!(going to buy seeds and maybe if i really like it i will put it in the front yard so people could see it) the choices are..
Musa itinerans
Musa bauensis
Musa yunnanensi
Musa muluensis
Musa campestris v. limbangensis
Musa balbisiana
Musa paradisiaca
Thanks in advance!:D

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

If I was you I'd get something like a California Gold or Namwah banana - Something truly edible and very tough. But, that's me. Otherwise I'm not so sure most of those will survive an Oregon winter unless well protected. M. balbisiana and itinerans I think are the best bets, but, I really don't know if anyone has successfully grown them in the cold, even zone 9. Musa velutina can handle cold perfectly well and has beautiful pink fruit, but it isn't a giant if you're looking for 6+ footers.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

well im planning on using bubble wrap on the stem and cover it with a tarp and stuff it with hay so im sure that would keep it alive

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Plant an Orinoco you won't have to do anything to it.. Just take the dead leaves off in the spring and watch it grow.. :^)

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Itinerans... Only because that's one of my next bananas...

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Im actually deciding between two plants now
Musa cheesmanii or Musa balbisiana Gigantea

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Like what Abnshrek said ;) Orinoco are another super-hardy edible.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

I will for sure try an Orinoco in the future:) but i already ordered 10 cheesmanii seeds... what do i need to know about this specie?

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

I think most seeded species pretty much need the same care as any other banana, but during times like winter I really would give it protection. Unless and until you research the hardiness of your species you never know. Some are pretty sensitive even to above-freezing temperatures.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Yeah I did a lot of research and its cold tolerant in zones 7-11
I'm not sure how to germinate the seeds once I get them and how long I should keep them in water

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

48hrs in water is plenty.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

I am going to dwarfs simply because they are smaller and easier to cold protect here in zone 8b.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Hmm do you think the Musa Cheesmanii is edible? I read somewhere it is and some other place said its not?

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

It's probably because it is a seeded type, and so it technically is edible but not much to write about.

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

It is edible, my cheesmani produces perfectly good fruit, though they are quite seedy

Re: help me choose my next plant!:D
 

Sweet! Thanks everyone!