Kostas

Hello

I would like your advise on how to successfully overwinter my potted bananas. I currently keep them outside,at the North side of my house Melissia,Athens,which is a 9a zone.This is the only outdoor area i can keep them as its the only outdoor part of the property i own. The area received few hours of noon sun and shade for the rest of the day. They also get the cold north winds first hand which keeps them cool. I am having rot problems with some as the weather cools down to 20degrees or a little lower,even though i have them planted in peaty medium with 20-50% sand. Their soil doesnt dry out fast enough after watering. They get water every 3days and i am going to increase it to 4days.

My overwintering options are the following:
1. Move them to my basement under fluorescent lighting with temperatures of 22-25C and water about once per week,when the soil dries out well. The minus of this choice is that they wont all fit in there and that they will lose all their leafs when i get them out next spring and be set back.
2. Move them to Pyrgos,zone 10a where they will pass the winter outdoors,unprotected. Pyrgos is very rainy in winter they will be moist to wet by rainfall alone,all the time. Pyrgos gets 1m of rain per year spread through 9 months with the 3 summer months almost completely dry. In Pyrgos,i can easily keep them at the North side of my property with mostly shade and some morning/noon sun. I can also keep them at a southward facing location with some arrangement made for watering or pretty much anywhere if i leave them grow on rainfall alone till next spring. From October or November,rainfall should easily be adequate for not watering them at all. The minus of this choice is that i wont be there to check on how they are doing and make adjustments if needed and also the amount of rainfall.

Which of the above options do you think is the best for my bananas and what can i do to make it work ok for them? The banana cultivars i want to overwinter are:
Brazilian Tall,Mysore,Pisang Klotek,Monkey fingers,White Iholene,Red Iholene,Pisang Ceylon,Misi Luki(Namwah Tall),Orinoco Tall,Hua Moa,Red,African Rhino Horn,Meko(AAA),Bluefields(AAA),Chini Champa.

Thank you very much in advance!

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tommyg

Hi.
I am very new to growing bananas but ill share the little i know.
If you are overwintering them due to the cold weather you should not be watering them that much.
Try once a week to once a week and a half and give them half the water that you are used to giving them.

I believe they start to go somewhat dormant and at that point need minimal water.

In addition some of the leaves may start to weaken, but it is the pseudostem and roots that really matter. As long as the roots and corm are fine and not frozen the plant should wake up refreshed when season comes back around.

But for now try once every 7 ton10 days watering half as much as you were before.

From the sounds of it you have a lot if plants and im jealous. I only have two and one more coming soon.

Option one is better. Even if you lose the leaves thats ok as the plant will still be healthy when the new season comes around. Make sure they dont freeze of course. If you need to cover them or put mulch all around the base that might help.

Good luck!

Hope my limited knowledge helps.

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Worcester, MA

sunfish

I think you can leave them where they are and just keep them dry.When you water don't flood the pot just mist the surface.The iholena are the most cold sensitive for me,keep them dry.

Maybe move the more cold sensitive to the basement.

Kostas

Thank you very much for your replies!

When i water less than every 4 days,my bananas show water stress and their leafs start drooping too much and the lower ones folding at their base with the wind so i really need to water that much for now. If i try to overwinter potted in Melissia,in about a month at most,the rains are gonna start and they are gonna keep the bananas wet at all times and the weather is gonna cool too much which cant be good.I really cant keep them dry in Melissia with the frequent rains we are gonna be getting. Also,they are gonna experience temperatures down to -3C if left out all winter and even lower if we have a bad winter(which is not unusual in Melissia)

In Pyrgos,they are gonna get rainned even more but the temperatures will be good for growth till November and it wont really get too cold ever. I could also keep them under the eves of the house and that way i can keep them almost dry from the rains and on auto irrigation about once per week or more.

I have already starting putting a few in the basement as we have been having very strong winds more than a week now and some were starting to lean and get jerked badly by the wind. The Iholene is holding ok so far but i do keep it drier and have placed it in a more exposed location than it was,to dry out faster.

Is there any way i can keep some in Pyrgos exposed to the elements but minimizing the chance of rot? My in ground bananas are not affected negatively by the winter rains and the cool weather but my potted are so i would like to ask if there is any way to keep them potted(maybe in a much bigger pot?) and exposed but in a way that simulates the conditions they experience when ground planted,which save them from rot.

Thank you very much in advance!

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tommyg

If the plants are big enough then putting them in a larger pot might be fine.
Yes in the winter if they start going dormant and its cold their leaves may shrivel or fall off, but the plant itself is fine.

Also from reading other posts you should allow your plant to go dormant and not give it excessive sun light and water during the cold season. This way they can rest and be strong for the following season.

If you continue to give them a lot of light (potted plants) and don't let them go somewhat dormant and relax, they will be weaker the following season as they had "no rest".

I know it might not make sense, but allow them to rest in the cold season, when they are dormant they won't grow.

Good luck! I hope some of this is useful, but don't despair if it starts looking tired once it goes dormant.

Please, don't overwater, and allow it to rot. Its better that it be a little thirsty then to rot. You might try to spray some mist over it instead of fully watering and see how that goes.

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Worcester, MA

sunfish

Why can't you build a shelter with plastic to keep them dry,too much wind ?

oakshadows

It might be a good idea to cover around the stem out to the edge of the pot with a film plastic and seal to keep out the excess rain if you move them. We have had to do this sometimes when the rain just won't stop. Easy to water when needed, just make a small hole in the cover and add the water. Good luck, we are in almost the same situation as our zone, 9b, is the same as yours.

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sunfish

I think it's better on some to keep the whole plant from getting wet.Water down around the cigar leaf isn't good in cold weather

Kostas

Thank you very much both of you for your replies and helpful comments!

Storing dormant does is a way to overwinter them(the only feasible for some and more or less,the bananas of all of us in temperate climates get in some kind of dormancy during the winter unfortunately) but its not something they want or need. Although bananas are fast growing,when they lose all their leafs,they are set back and grow much slower,especially when the weather is still cool and they are asked to recover(spring). Bananas dont need any dormancy and they are far better if they dont see any cold or drought in their life,ever! But in our climates,that cant be the case unfortunately! So they do will get in some kind of dormancy but this dormancy isnt without problems and that includes the dreadful rot...If i put them in me basement,they do will actually be in some kind of dormancy as they will be kept pretty dry but with plenty humidity and some growth light and they will grow some but they will loose all leafs come spring.
If i keep them outside,they will get in some kind of dormancy from the cold but they probably wont lose their leafs from the winter if i keep them in Pyrgos.

Tony,
Yes,i can only keep them at the north side of the property and the wind gets extreme too often in Melissia. Actually,there are only a couple of very narrow spots that get somewhat broken wind at the whole of Melissia property,the wind is very strong and annoying here.I couldnt even keep a nylon cover over my firewood last year, no matter how tight i tied it always ended up flapping around within a couple of hours in strong wind....No temporary shelter can last and i unfortunately dont have the space for something permanent of appropriate dimensions for them to fit.

Noah,
Thats a very good idea to try if it works well but i wont be in Pyrgos to water when needed and that would prevent any drying of the soil. If i begin with a lightly moist soil,i will still be risking rot and if i begin with dry soil,the plant will probably not do too well after a while. It would be great i think if i was there to inspect weekly but for my situation,is difficult to work.

Thank you very much in advance for your help!

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