Sk

Can an area be too hot for Basjoo? Out of 10 types of bananas, the Basjoo is by far our worst grower (it’s been in the ground for 5 years and is still struggling):





However, I have to give it credit for tenacity (the p-stem has set fruit months after it snapped):



I don’t think it is the location, necessarily, as this banana has the identical growing conditions, same fertilizing schedule, and is subjected to the same amount of wind:



As a side note, it is only shaded during the last hour or so in the late afternoon/early evening - the dwarf Orinocos with the same lighting have formed thickets):



So, I was wondering... can our area just be too hot for the Basjoo? Does it prefer cooler climates or?

wstrickland1

It's the slowest thing growing in my HOT backyard. I may move it to the north side of my house

Sk

I’m sorry to hear that you are having the same issue but relieved that I am not the only one.... Thank you for the feedback!

sirdoofus

I certainly appreciate basjoos don't get me wrong, but I am just curious what the attraction is for you with so many options in your climate zone?

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Who keeps calling me nuts??

Sk

At the time I purchased it, I didn’t know anything about bananas- I was just adding some to landscape the yard (I’m slowly converting it to a tropical feel as there are many palms on the property). The Basjoo fit my requirements in terms of height, etc. and was touted as hardy so I bought it along with some other varieties.

Unfortunately, my first experience with homegrown edible bananas were with what I was led to believe were dwarf cavendish (Ty was kind enough to identify them as dwarf orinocos) which I don’t care for due to the core issues (though I am going to take his suggestion and start ripening the fruit in a brown paper bag with apples to see if that cures the problem). So, I haven’t been real sold on edibles either until recently.

This summer, my “blue java” (which has been identified as a tall Namwa), set 2 nice bunches so I’m now wanting to compost the Basjoo and some of the orinocos, but I am just not sure what to replace them with. Also, I have had terrible luck in terms of purchasing mislabeled plants....

sirdoofus

Makes perfect sense, thanks for the info

Larry from bananatreesforsale.com has a great selection and a platinum reputation as a seller. He is also a moderator/member of the forum and very knowledgable.

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Who keeps calling me nuts??

Sk

Thank you for suggesting him -I’m actually on his wait list.

cincinnana

The plant seems normal in size and shape for a basjoo.

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Sk

I just realized my post wasn’t too clear. The Basjoo are the top 3 photos... the next photo is another cultivar (praying hands?) under the same conditions and the last is a dwarf Orinoco in the same sun exposure. I apologize I wasn’t too clear.

I’m concerned that, after 5 years, I have 1 thin, broken p-stem and 2 gangly pups. I don’t think it’s very happy.....

cincinnana

Here is my take for this plant.

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wstrickland1

The Banana Forum is unlike any I have ever seen

cincinnana

I just saw my last post.....none of the content and dirty pictures loaded.
Amazing!

Also notice in POST #10....... SK's quote was modified to contain a Spam link.

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wstrickland1

Sheesh

cincinnana

In zone 6 this plant is treated as a perennial.
An in different zones this plant presents different growth habits
Sounds like the plant does not like where it is sited.
Some ideas you may consider.

To encourage more growth you might root prune the plant and add a top layer of mulch to cool the roots.
Add a tablespoon of epson salt disolved in a gallon of water and pour it around the plant.....this will promote a deeper green and additional root growth.
You might want to freshen up/amend the soil and do a replant.....we have to do this to
ccasionally becaused the soil gets used up.

Your basjoo loves extra nitrogen and water also....probably more than your other plants.


Locally when some landscapers/gardeners plant basjoo they will switch out the native soil and replace it with a high quality commercial processed soil.

This plant will not do well in heavier clay soils and seems to prefer loose highly amended soil.

Check out these two photos of basjoo mats about mile apart in zone 6.
One mat was installed in a hot parking lot in poor soil with landscape cloth and rock mulch .......which acts as a heatsink.
These plants need to be rescued.

The other is a a pro maintained irrigated landscape that has my fingerprint.

You can see the slight difference in both grows.


Basjoo by
Hostafarian,
on Flickr

Mature plants
by
Hostafarian,
on Flickr
...


Yes....move your plant.....

But do it slowly........

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Sk

Thank you for the suggestions and photos (definitely an impressive difference between the two mats).

I’ll go ahead and root prune when I move the plant as well as amend the soil. I just was curious as to if Basjoo is more heat sensitive than other types of bananas as the mat of dwarf Orinoco (which was planted at the same time and is about 8-10 feet away from the Basjoo) seems happy enough:



Again, thank you for the advice.

cincinnana

Move the plant......

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Sk

Will do

Colin Wright

Here in Oregon we had some seriously hot days last summer -- including a 113 fluke. My bananas are in full sun, too.

That one visibly damaged the growing leaves on my Musa Basjoos -- but in general, they did fine. Ninety-plus is pretty routine here, so that wouldn't be a problem. I suppose the story might be different if temperatures went over a hundred and stayed there for weeks, but short of that...

Sk

Thanks for the reply about 113°- you just may have solved the mystery!

Just about every summer, we have a heatwave which lasts 2- 3 weeks. Temps exceed 115° (typically a high of 117° or 118° with nighttime lows in the mid 90’s); so, perhaps that really is it’s issue.

Again, thank you for sharing your experience!

Colin Wright

Sounds like that might be your problem. That one day of 113 really did clearly damage part of the growing leaf -- so 2-3 weeks of 115-plus sounds like it could be a killer.