Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

Hi all,
I am very interested in knowing if by now anybody had any success with growing M. ingens? At least to sprout them and grow them awhile.
I read so many people tried for years and nothing happened.
Also would be interested if there is any new knowledge of successfully growing them in lowland tropics?
I am living in Thailand and would love to try them anyway, even though I have heard they don't do good in the lowland tropics.
But trying makes smarter.
Have ordered some seeds now and see if I can get them to sprout.

Alternatively, which other banana could I try that growsto 40ft upwards?
I have got some M. itinerans Blue Burmese that I have dug out from a mountain and so far they are growing fine here. Last week we had 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
So if they can grow here maybe I can also get others to grow.
Trachycarpus fortunei also doing ok but growing slower than in Europe.

Thanks for any answers.

Cheers,
Martin

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

You must be referring to M. itinerans, not M. ingens, for the plants you dug from the mountain. They are totally different species. Some varieties can get quite large, but they can also run underground and make suckers very far away, so be careful where you plant it.

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

Hi Gabe,
you're right of course. Thanks for pointing out.
It was M. itinerans with the violet fruit and stems.
Yes they are running like Bamboo, but I have a lot of space, so no problem there.
They get close to 40ft in the forest. The more shady they are, the higher they can get.
So I plan to grow them in a coconut grove under a 100ft coconut canopy, so I assume they will grow taller that way too.
Will get my M. ingens seeds next month and if I ever get any seedlings, I will try to grow them in a shady condition too.

Cheers, Martin

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

would love to see some pictures!

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

Wow, wonder how they would do in the states, and if you could put a barrier down like bamboo?

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

I tried to upload some pictures from my mobile phone but unfortunately it didn't work yet.
i will try again from a PC later.
Cheers, Martin

Re: Musa ingens and other large bananas
 

Here are some pictures of the green fruit Musa itinerans from the North of Thailand. Another banana could be Musa acuminata, the willd form.
And the third banana was unknown to me.

I will try to find the violet fruited Musa itinerans pictures again and upload later.

Cheers, Martin

Banana Gallery - Wild Bananas Thailand