Impatient!
 

:drum::drum:I admire all those of you who are seeing buds on your banana plants and harvesting fruit. I have yet to get my first bunch of bananas, and I find myself constantly sitting outside watching my oldest Dwarf Cavendish. I even use the step stool to see if I can find signs of the pre-flag leaf or the flag leaf. I've got it bad. If only I could get her to fruit soon. I'm afraid she'll wait until fall. I can't get her back into my house if she fruits that late because I put her in a trash can which makes her entirely too tall. The pictures show the plant on April 8, 2012 and June 14, 2012.



P.S. Yes, I drilled holes for drainage. No, I didn't want to spend money for a really large pot. Yes, she needed transplanting because she was extremely root bound. Yes, the trash can is anchored to the ground.

Re: Impatient!
 

A watched 'nanner never blooms...

Re: Impatient!
 

One thing to remember when potting bananas: Width of a pot is better than depth. Their roots only go 2 feet deep.

Re: Impatient!
 

The problem with some people is that they grow impatient with what they want to grow which does not always work to their advantage with the lot of other things that are being planted and dealt with just like that. But in fairness to what they are doing, a lot of the more important components are being utilized to their maximum which means that they are left with something more important in any case.

Re: Impatient!
 

Tiffany, I know how you feel -- I've been there. Now that some of my bananas are blooming, I still feel that way about varieties that haven't bloomed yet.

It looks to me like your beautiful plant (BTW, you've done a great job taking care of it) still has a ways to go before it flowers. On DC, I'd expect the leaves to be more "stacked up" on a plant that is about to flower, i.e., closer spacing between each leaf. Bananas are on their own schedule and there's only so much you can to do speed them up (good soil, nutrition, water, temperature, and sunlight). Looks like you are giving it everything it needs. Keep at it! Eventually you will be rewarded. Then you might have to figure out how to build a greenhouse to get it through the winter!

Re: Impatient!
 

Thanks for your kind words. I guess I just needed some assurance.

Re: Impatient!
 

You are still a few months away. Bananas require patience. I'm still waiting on my FHIA-17s in my backyard and I planted them in October 2010, and my backyard doesn't freeze.