mm4birds

Any advice on proper planting of a newly arrived dormant banana corm? The corm has no visible fresh roots and no top growth, but the corm itself looks firm and healthy. Any help on planting depth and how long before it shows signs of life? thanks

bigdog

I used to plant corms just a few inches beneath the soil. Then I read a study about planting depths, and that corms planted deeper (around 10-12 in.) yielded bigger bunches and bloomed earlier than those planted just below the surface. Keep in mind here that this was done in a tropical environment at a banana plantation though! It was also with sword suckers, so not just a corm. I don't know what zone you are in. I did plant all of my bananas this past spring about a foot deep, and they all did great.

If I were you, I would root the corm and get it growing really well before planting it out. And I would wait until spring to plant it, but you may be in zone 11 for all I know so it wouldn't matter when you planted it.

mm4birds

Unfortunately I'm in NY City so I started the corms inside in pots. I left the very top exposed above the soil line because my worst fear is rotting the corm. If it starts growing by the south facing window I'll move it into my greenhouse until spring and the move it outdoors for the summer.