vaindioux

I m in a 7b zone in Georgia. I have 5 species of hardy bananas in ground.
I just got a potted ice cream banana.
Best way to keep it alive this winter potted?
My garage is non heated and goes down to 35.
Shall i keep it inside the house and drag it outside on nice days?

Thxs

pitangadiego

Increasing warmth will increase survival chances. Artificial light, if indoors would be good.

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cincinnana

I keep my plants indoors with grow lights for the 7+ month winter.
Growth rate will slow and your water/fertilizer schedule will be reduced.
Smaller plants are less challenging to keep indoors than the 12 footers.

If your weather permits take it outside but remember the plant can sunburn rather quickly.
Good luck with your new addition

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vaindioux

Do you know what low it can take when i will drag it outside? Zone 7b Georgia.

Thxs for the help

Pat

Kingt82

If your bananas are cold hardy then they can withstand overnight temps in the high 40s. My ice cream bananas can take that. The leaves may start yellow after extended time but the stalk survives. So, whenever temps warm up enough in spring that they don't drop below 45F you can take them out. They can take cold but being cold AND wet for several days is a problem.

vaindioux

I really appreciate the help

Thxs

Pat

Logan W

So I got a new ice cream banana as well and one of its leaves broke quite easily and they all burn pretty easily in the sun when it's only 85 degrees out. It did come from a very shaded nursery where it grew up with lots of wind protection and shade, is this why it's acting like this?

sirdoofus

In general plants that have adapted to a shaded environment will go through some shock when moved into direct sun for any length of time. Burning leaves is pretty normal in such a circumstance. It is usually recommended to acclimate them slowly over several days or so before leaving them in full sun all day.

Having said that, going forward the plant will likely be fine and produce new leaves that will thrive in the sunny environment. I would generally suggest making sure the pot itself isn’t transmitting all that heat to the roots. Black poly pots get very hot quite quickly and that heat transmits to the mix and roots so I would double pot it (with air space between the two pots), or wrap the pot with some sort of insulator to minimize that issue.

Of course pictures always help, especially if you think something else might be going on?

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Logan W

No I think that's definitely it. It is in a black poly pot and I was hoping to plant it soon, especially since this variety is particularly cold tolerant. It does have a little pup on it growing new leaves which is unaffected by the sun and thriving while the bigger plant is still recuperating. I also gave it some diluted fish fertilizer.