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Old 08-29-2006, 08:33 PM   #1 (permalink)
 
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Exclamation Last California Gold of the year!!!

I would hate to see someone unworthy end up with this Banana!!! Get it while it lasts, LAST ONE OF THE SEASON!!! Whoever gets it, let me know how it does! Equal hardiness as Basjoo??? I don't think so. But who knows, still a GREAT plant.

http://cgi.ebay.com/California-Gold-...QQcmdZViewItem

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Old 08-29-2006, 08:50 PM   #2 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Why would you say that?? I really don't think they say it's as cold hardy as a Basjoo?...."Unworthy" .....I don't understand what you mean by that? How many different Varieties of Bananas have you Raised?


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Old 08-29-2006, 09:10 PM   #3 (permalink)
 
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Not unworthy of having it, just not able to take care of it. I want it to be taken care of (sounds so stupid). I think all the people on Bananas.org are worthy, definately! But me, I don't know...I don't have any space to put it during the winter, or I might overwater, butall yall experts would have space, and probably would do great with the CG. On the page, it says has equal hardiness as the Basjoo .... PLMK what you think about that statement.
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Old 08-29-2006, 09:35 PM   #4 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Hmmm, let me reword this as the previous attempt I made came across as a bit rude. I'm a skeptic when it comes to undocumented claims - too many people are taken advantage of and lose a lot of money in hopes of finding their personal holy grail - in this case a cold hardy nanner - and the internet just magnifies that dilemna . The only documentation on CG that I've been able to find, even here: http://webebananas.com/bvar-C-D.html - is basically the seller's words. Except, of course, for other CG owners here on the forum kindly piping in with personal experiences with it, which indicates that it does have a decent level of cold hardiness - tho for Zone 8, jury is still out unless someone from that zone would please mention their experience with this nanner. So, lack of documentation excepting sales pitch and conflicting kinda threw a wrench in the works for me and raised a red flag, especially since it's such an obscure nanner. Indeed, "Texas Star" also claims extraordinary stem hardiness here in Texas - yet everyone I talked to that owned one indicated that it dies down to the ground every winter, contradicting the claim. So, on the internet, it pays to take things with a big grain of salt...

Nevetheless, Hass avocado's was a sport discovered by a man, as was the original sweet nanner which was a sport from a plantain field south of the border, IIRC. So, it's not unreasonable for this too to be a sport off a known cultivar that's a bit hardier and this fella got lucky and got the last one before the source dried up (I wonder how many others are out there growing). It's just that on face value, it meets the criteria of caution for me. Now that I've seen testamony from others who have purchased this nanner and experienced it's cold hardiness, that caution is a bit... lessened. As a Zone 8 resident, I'd like to hear from others in my zone about their experiences with this nanner vs perhaps the likes of orinoco, rajapuri and other cold resistant nanners... More hardiness means less effort for protecting in this zone, which here is always a win-win scenario and worth the $30+ or so... His is growing in a very protected area tho - which makes me wonder what micro-climates I can create here to increase some of my nanner's hardiness. I'm impressed by his macadamia nut tree!!!! Mine doesn't like the Texas heat so much, unfortunately, but now that it's cooling down there's finally more growth coming out.

Cheers,
Mike

Quote:
Originally Posted by taylor_loves_bananas View Post
Not unworthy of having it, just not able to take care of it. I want it to be taken care of (sounds so stupid). I think all the people on Bananas.org are worthy, definately! But me, I don't know...I don't have any space to put it during the winter, or I might overwater, butall yall experts would have space, and probably would do great with the CG. On the page, it says has equal hardiness as the Basjoo .... PLMK what you think about that statement.

Last edited by mikevan : 08-31-2006 at 02:36 PM.
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Old 08-29-2006, 09:46 PM   #5 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

I have basjoo and California Gold growing in pots and left them outside for the winter about three years ago. Potted plants are more susceptible to cold than when planted inground. Musa Basjoo died to the ground level and never came back while California Gold's stem remained intact and was among the first ones to sprout leaves during the late winter. Non-scientific tests. I bought about 85 known cultivars of bananas, spent around $2000 to collect them all, and when my wife booted me out of the third car garage, I left them all out in the cold winter, still potted. Only 24 plants survived that single non-replicated episode of non-scientific experiment. So without much ado, here's the result of my $2,000.00 worth of information:

Here's the listing of cold hardy bananas at their pseudostem during the winter. Arranged from the most reliable producer or cold hardiest to the milder ones, but all should be cold hardy at their pseudostems in most winters in zone 9. WARNING: Your mileage could vary depending on your microclimate arrangement in your yard.

•California Gold
•Thousand Fingers
•Monkey Fingers
•Orinoco
•Brazilian
•Golden Rhinohorn
•Dwarf Orinoco
•Dwarf Brazilian
•Misi Luki
•Mysore
•Namwah
•Rajah Puri (best tasting but often chokes)

•Manzano
•Ice Cream
•Gold Finger
•Dwarf Namwah
•Sweetheart (FHIA 3, best tasting cavendish, cold hadiest among the cavendish types)
•Namwah Pearl
•Praying Hands
•Saba
•Cardaba
•Williams
•Belle
•Valery
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Old 08-29-2006, 09:49 PM   #6 (permalink)
 
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Woah JoeReal,
That is VERY impressive. Ever gotten any fruit from CG? If so, was it as good as they claim?
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Old 08-29-2006, 10:04 PM   #7 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by taylor_loves_bananas View Post
Woah JoeReal,
That is VERY impressive. Ever gotten any fruit from CG? If so, was it as good as they claim?
Not one is as good as the cold sensitive Lakatan banana. But California Gold tasted better than Orinoco when eaten with the same skin peel color. The Claifornia Gold seems to be a hybrid of Senorita and Saba when it comes to taste but less sweeter and firmer than an overripe saba, a property that I like. Raja Puri tasted a lot better than CG, but that's just my taste buds.

I have 1.5 gallons of California Gold Wine Sherry aging. I can already see that it will be one awesome sherry wine. After all the filtering perhaps in two more months, I should net out about 4 bottles of California Gold Sherry wine.
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Old 08-29-2006, 10:04 PM   #8 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Thanks JOE!! Very good Information!! I am still a Beginner Myself and love to read about Information by people like youself, who have "Real" experience raising our favorite Fruit!!

T H A N K S !!!

Frank
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Old 08-29-2006, 10:08 PM   #9 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Cool. I have most of those, but would not dream of leaving them unprotected here in Zone 8. Tho surplus pups may be sacrificed just for curiosity's sake... I have an unidentified - perhaps a mysore - that took a 20F freeze in the greenhouse over the winter when the heater failed with nothing more than browned leaves. Lost all my vanilla to that failure tho my taro, cacao and coffee survived with little damage too, surprisingly. All free water was a solid block of ice in there that morning - I was horrified. But in the greenhouse you have a bit of latitude. A whole lot, as it turns out. Last year the same nanner resided in an unheated leanto greenhouse down in a pit that I'm converting into another greenhouse and it survived rather well down there too - just some leaf-edge damage, tho the winter was rather mild. I'm reticent about leaving it outside tho - greenhouses really add a lot to a plant's survivability by keeping air-flow down and humidity up...

And dang! That's horrible about all those nanners you lost! I hope you're able to regain your collection!

Be well,
Mike

Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeReal View Post
I have basjoo and California Gold growing in pots and left them outside for the winter about three years ago. Potted plants are more susceptible to cold than when planted inground. Musa Basjoo died to the ground level and never came back while California Gold's stem remained intact and was among the first ones to sprout leaves during the late winter. Non-scientific tests. I bought about 85 known cultivars of bananas, spent around $2000 to collect them all, and when my wife booted me out of the third car garage, I left them all out in the cold winter, still potted. Only 24 plants survived that single non-replicated episode of non-scientific experiment. So without much ado, here's the result of my $2,000.00 worth of information:

Here's the listing of cold hardy bananas at their pseudostem during the winter. Arranged from the most reliable producer or cold hardiest to the milder ones, but all should be cold hardy at their pseudostems in most winters in zone 9. WARNING: Your mileage could vary depending on your microclimate arrangement in your yard.

•California Gold
•Thousand Fingers
•Monkey Fingers
•Orinoco
•Brazilian
•Golden Rhinohorn
•Dwarf Orinoco
•Dwarf Brazilian
•Misi Luki
•Mysore
•Namwah
•Rajah Puri (best tasting but often chokes)

•Manzano
•Ice Cream
•Gold Finger
•Dwarf Namwah
•Sweetheart (FHIA 3, best tasting cavendish, cold hadiest among the cavendish types)
•Namwah Pearl
•Praying Hands
•Saba
•Cardaba
•Williams
•Belle
•Valery

Last edited by mikevan : 08-31-2006 at 02:11 PM.
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Old 08-29-2006, 11:13 PM   #10 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Hi Joe- That is a great list and excellent information.

Thanks for sharing,

Richard
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Old 08-30-2006, 07:59 AM   #11 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Hey Joe,

I'm a wine and port lover and never heard about making sherry from bananas. E-mail me if you would wiith some more info unless you want to go into it on here.

Terry
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Old 08-30-2006, 08:01 AM   #12 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Once again, Joe comes through with some excellent info!
Thanks for posting the list!
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Old 08-31-2006, 01:53 PM   #13 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Quote:
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Hey Joe,

I'm a wine and port lover and never heard about making sherry from bananas. E-mail me if you would wiith some more info unless you want to go into it on here.

Terry
Joe posted some banana wine recipies here
http://www.bananas.org/forumdisplay.php?f=6
they're on page 2 at the moment
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Old 08-31-2006, 02:03 PM   #14 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Interesting post.... Especially since I am the one selling the CalGold on ebay.
I have a couple more plants doing some late summer pupping so I have 2 more than originally thought.
First let me echo what Joe Real reported... CalGold may not be the best tasting banana out there it... is in my opinion better than store bought bananas.... but then again the best tasting bananas always die here in my zone 9 climate. So a good tasting banana that does well...is better than an excellent tasting banana that dies :P.
The fact that I am regularly growing bananas for fruit production around here is in its self testament to its hardiness. I , like Joe tend to buy and try most any banana that claims to be hardy.... I also wasted about $2000 bucks on those trials and mostly errors. CalGold still outgrows and produces all of them.... even on those years where are winters are more like zone 8.... which seem to be happening more and more lately.
The truth be known... I don't know the precise hereditary of this banana. It's fruit is generally angular ( but for some reason... not always ) and the tree is smaller than most bananas... though this can vary depending on the health of the plant and growing conditions. I once fruited one at only 4 ft .... some are as tall as 8 ft of trunk.... most are 6 to 7ft of trunk height.

Anyway... In case anyone is interested... I have another for sale on ebay.

Jeff

ebay auction is at... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MESE%3AIT&rd=1
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Old 08-31-2006, 02:09 PM   #15 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by jearl View Post
Interesting post.... Especially since I am the one selling the CalGold on ebay.
I have a couple more plants doing some late summer pupping so I have 2 more than originally thought.
First let me echo what Joe Real reported... CalGold may not be the best tasting banana out there it... is in my opinion better than store bought bananas.... but then again the best tasting bananas always die here in my zone 9 climate. So a good tasting banana that does well...is better than an excellent tasting banana that dies :P.
The fact that I am regularly growing bananas for fruit production around here is in its self testament to its hardiness. I , like Joe tend to buy and try most any banana that claims to be hardy.... I also wasted about $2000 bucks on those trials and mostly errors. CalGold still outgrows and produces all of them.... even on those years where are winters are more like zone 8.... which seem to be happening more and more lately.
The truth be known... I don't know the precise hereditary of this banana. It's fruit is generally angular ( but for some reason... not always ) and the tree is smaller than most bananas... though this can vary depending on the health of the plant and growing conditions. I once fruited one at only 4 ft .... some are as tall as 8 ft of trunk.... most are 6 to 7ft of trunk height.

Anyway... In case anyone is interested... I have another for sale on ebay.

Jeff

ebay auction is at... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MESE%3AIT&rd=1
Welcome to the board, Jeff!
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Old 08-31-2006, 02:10 PM   #16 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Terry,

The pre-fermentation steps are the same as making regular banana wine, but then there is a major difference when it comes to making sherry wine, but let me tell you what I did.

Basically, I have the 6 gallon fermentation bucket, placed about 8 lbs of California Gold (combined from Mike [bananavilla] and my own CG fruits), then enough water to make 2.5 gallons, then 6 lbs of white sugar.

Heat the sugar to near boling with 1 gallon water, 2 tsp citric acid, and pour over peeled and crushed California Gold bananas, wait 10 minutes and pour cool water to make total of 2.5 gallons. When temp has cooled down to 100 deg F or less, add pectic enzyme. When broth cools down to 90 deg F and less, then add the Flor Sherry yeast. cover the bucket and wait overnight.

I then used an aquarium pump to blow tiny bubbles through a submerged stainless steel bubbler. the air is filtered as it comes out of the air pump, and is scrubbed by bubbling through a vodka solution. this is called the submerged method of making sherry wine. I bubble just about 0.2 liters of air per minute through the solution for one week. Of course, I used Sherry Flor yeast, and it makes very good aroma. After that, I transferred everything to glass gallon jugs and seal an airlock. The rest of the steps are done like you would for other wines.
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Old 08-31-2006, 03:40 PM   #17 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

MikeVan in Texas,

You've piqued my curiosity! What kind of protection do you give your bananas in Zone 8? Are there other folks growing in Zone 9a or 9b without any protection?

I have the following that I've planted out this year:

Manzano, Goldfinger, Sweetheart, Raja Puri, Dwarf Orinoco, Dwarf Namwah, Misi Luki. Most are about 5 - 6 ft. tall and I've gotten rather attached to them! I originally was planning to dig them all up and cover with straw inside a tarp outside in the shade. While I'd rather leave them in the ground, I wouldn't want to lose any either.

Our winter temperatures typically get down to 24 deg for about a week in Feb. Once the sun comes out, it'll quickly rise into the low 40's. Last year, it hit 21 deg one morning.

It's true that at Joe's house, seeing is believing, but his situation is a little different than mine. He's got a some overhead cover with his incredible jungle of citrus. Some of his plants are against his house. Mine are out in the open at the bottom of a large hill (but as high up as our property permits).

Any suggestions?
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Old 08-31-2006, 04:22 PM   #18 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Til this year, all I grew were a couple of unidentified dwarfs (or regular nanners that were just stunted by the containers) that resided in my greenhouse quite amicably. They did get a bit big and was a little bit of a squeeze but they didn't seem to mind tho sometimes the edges of their leaves would brown on me during nights that froze the condensation on the glazing.

This season I've gained quite a few more nanners - many that will get pretty tall like the Saba, Brazilian and Orinoco, so this will be the last nanner-greenhouse year for me, excepting for dwarfs and backup pups. I'm even raising the greenhouse up by 4' for a larger nanner of mine - all are still containerized. But I can only go so tall!

This winter I'll be preparing their bed using sheet composting methods. Next Spring, all my babies are going in the ground - even the dwarfs. I'll keep backup pups and dwarfs in the greenhouse after that but I'm leaning to wrapping my trees with bubble-wrap and burlap over the winter. Shorter ones may make use of the hay insulating method too. As to what works and what doesn't - that's something I'll find out here in the next couple of years or so as I experiment... Nevertheless - I will get bananas without having to resort to the greenhouse to do so - running out of room with all my tender tropicals...

The CG has gained my interest with all the glowing reports here and on Gardenweb - one of these years I may end up getting one and see just how it does here in Zone 8.

Here, when an arctic front blows thru and it gets cold - which is infrequent - the nights get down to the low 20's and sometimes high teens. Days are almost always short-sleeve weather with few if any freezing days in the year. Sometimes the only freezing that ocurrs is a few nights. It's so warm during the winter that the few freezing nights really makes growing tropicals here infuriating!

I'm hoping that by planting a lot of bamboo in my growing area I'll be able to create protected micro-climates to further help with protecting the nanners over the winter. I'm starting with Moso and Henon boo. I have an acre to play with until the wife lets me start playing on her half. "Gee honey, I didn't know that bamboo would spread so fast."

I noticed that Jeff's nanners are up against his house too in a narrow alley twixt his house and his neighbor - a nice little micro-climate for certain. My nanners have both survived 20F in my greenhouse before, one year when the heater went out and last year in a temporary unheated leanto greenhouse in a pit I'm converting into a walipini - so protecting from wind and keeping humidity up is no doubt key to their survival during cold snaps. Both tank when exposed topside to the freezing cold unprotected. He's also, amazingly, growing a macadamia nut tree in his front yard! I have a yearling that's really hating the Texas heat. Sigh...

What zone are you in? 9? You should require even less protection than me - perhaps the burlap-bubblewrap layering would work? When the leaves go, cover the top with a sturdy bag to keep moisture out. Zone 7 seems a popular zone to dig and store over the winter, but I don't think I can keep their storage reliably cool here and am afraid of rot because of that. Some experimentation is certainly in order - thankfully nanners pup fairly prolifically.

Be well,
Mike

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Lee View Post
MikeVan in Texas,

You've piqued my curiosity! What kind of protection do you give your bananas in Zone 8? Are there other folks growing in Zone 9a or 9b without any protection?

I have the following that I've planted out this year:

Manzano, Goldfinger, Sweetheart, Raja Puri, Dwarf Orinoco, Dwarf Namwah, Misi Luki. Most are about 5 - 6 ft. tall and I've gotten rather attached to them! I originally was planning to dig them all up and cover with straw inside a tarp outside in the shade. While I'd rather leave them in the ground, I wouldn't want to lose any either.

Our winter temperatures typically get down to 24 deg for about a week in Feb. Once the sun comes out, it'll quickly rise into the low 40's. Last year, it hit 21 deg one morning.

It's true that at Joe's house, seeing is believing, but his situation is a little different than mine. He's got a some overhead cover with his incredible jungle of citrus. Some of his plants are against his house. Mine are out in the open at the bottom of a large hill (but as high up as our property permits).

Any suggestions?
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Old 08-31-2006, 04:46 PM   #19 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Also, the size of the trunk would really affect survival in our area. Four of my nanners are currently unsheltered by anything except themselves: Dwarf Brazilian, California Gold, Rajah Puri, Manzano, Dwarf Orinoco, Misi Luki, Namwah.

The sheltered ones (just happened to be there) are Goldfinger, Williams Hybrid, Sweetheart, Cocos, Enano Gigante.

And those that go indoors every winter are Mahoi, zebrina, Dwarf Lady Finger, Gran Nain, Namwah pearl (upcoming).

I have more unlisted, and most of my other nanners I have given away to friends and they are on contract to give me a pup should I need one.
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Old 08-31-2006, 04:58 PM   #20 (permalink)
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Default Re: Last California Gold of the year!!!

Joe... Your list on hardiness of bananas here in the valley is pretty much on par with my experiences here in Modesto....( I bet that I have spent at least 2k on experimenting as well.
My thoughts are ...plant a " Good tasting " banana that will fruit year after year... is much better than wasting money on an "excellent tasting" banana- plant that dies to the ground when the temps hit 30f

Mike...
I have the some of my bananas up against the house for wind protection.... much better presentation with out many shredded leaves, However the bulk of my banana growing is out in the open in lot about a mile from my house, where there is no windbreak... and the plants do just fine... though they look ratty in midwinter.... they are fully leafed out by april.

BTW...If anyone is interested...I have another CalGold on ebay.... A couple of my plants are getting ready to blossum... they tend to send out a couple of pups at this time and I now have 2 extras.

Jeff


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MESE%3AIT&rd=1
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