hyper36

Is it necessary to mulch around Bananas, the Organization that I bought mine from said to mulch real heavy with "HAY", but looking through all of the galleries I do not see any. Can anyone help me out.

CookieCows

This is my first year growing bananas but I spent most of last winter on this site asking questions and absorbing as much knowlege as possible getting ready. If you type in 'mulch' in the search box it'll take you to old posts and I bet the wiki has information on it too. I topped my bed with composted cow and horse manure and then bought a some bags of cypress chips.. which I know I didn't need to get that extravagent but .... it's my first bed! For the rest of our yard... flower beds and vegetables we just get shredded bark by the truck load real cheap from a small local lumber mill.

I would worry about seeds producing weeds with using hay. Unless you mean straw.

Deb

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Randy4ut

Michael,
I mulch all my beds with 3-4" of cypress mulch with very good success. Many others on this board use a variety of different types, but the main advantages for using mulch is the moisture retention in the summer, added insulation in winter, and weed suppression. The reason I use cypress is alot of my beds are around my pool area and the cypress does not "float" like other mulches, it is a bit more bug resistant, cypress does not need replacing as often, and I personally like the look of it. Mulch in general has many advantages, but I also think it really dresses up a bed better than not using any... IMHO...

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AltadenaGarden

I don't mulch. I actual have had very good success growing St. Augustine grass around the bananas. I just make sure to feed my bananas every month during the growing season. The ground is mostly shaded around the bananas and the dedication sprinkler waters them every other day.

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mskitty38583

when i mulch i use hardwood mulch( i love the color) but i think that next spring i will be using ceder mulch( bugs dont like ceder). mulch will help keep the water from evaporating, when you water your trees.

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Kylie2x

I mulch everything...When I cut the pampas back I shred it as well as the leaves small limbs that are around.. I also use the grass clippings and composted manure (we have cows..).. All of these things provide protection and give back to the earth... It may not sound as aesthetically pleasing as some of the commercial mulches but it darkens with age and seems to dissapear as the plantings mature..
Kylie

mskitty38583

kylie that is exactly right. i put grass clippings in my compost buckets along with my veggie scraps so they go back too.

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Iunepeace

To answer your question, it is not necessary to mulch; however, good mulching techniques can be very beneficial to bananas and plants in general. In my own garden I make extensive use of mulching with seaweed as it's excellent at moisture retention and keeps the soil cooler, along with adding lots of micro-nutrients and growth hormones to the soil (breaks down fairly quickly too). I have a tamarind tree in the yard that I got to start growing (after it hadn't done anything for years) by mulching with lots of seaweed

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pitangadiego

I add 6-12" compost on each mat every year, throw the fertilizer on top, and water through it.

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Simply Bananas

The healthiest untended banana mats have a thick mulch of old banana leaves and fallen stalks around them. This works as well as anything, unless there is a disease present. There seems to always be a slimy-ness present under all that stuff with roots running all through it. Bananas seem to love it.

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