badman62

Hi all
i am looking to buy 2 plants for my yard.
I want a sweeter type
i hear the best are Namwa, goldfinger and Ice cream
i also like the idea of Raja Puri, for the color
and also the berry flavor i heard it has ?

I am actually allergic top bananas unless they are almost black.
or, are completely black.
so, if someone can direct me to the better choice for me
i would appreciate it.

I am in New Orleans
(Zone 9b) - we freeze here, but, not very often.
twice this year it got down to 28, which is a little colder than most winters.
it will be somewhat protected as well.

thanks
Brad

crazy banana

Welcome to bananas.org.
Wow, that is interesting: someone actually allergic to bananas. I am no expert in what might cause those allergies, I suspect it is the latex in it.
In regards of best tasting varieties: difficult to say. I do like my (Dwarf) Namwah. They are very sweet and I usually get nice bunches with some good sized fruits. Blue Java/Ice Cream is very similar.
Other varieties I like for a more fruitier flavor are Pisang Klotek, Dwarf Brazilian and Pisang Ceylon. All the above mentioned varieties will survive the occasional cold spell as described by you.

badman62

I suspect it is the latex also, since i am the same way with Kiwi
very ripe kiwi are no problem, but, if it is just a little hard or under-ripe
it makes my stomach hurt
papaya, mango and other fruits dont bother me,so, it must be a particular type of latex.
and , as long as the banana is very ripe, im fine with it.
maybe the fruitier ones would have less latex ?

interesting that Ice cream and Namwa are similar.
so, since i am getting 2 plants, i will pick just one between those 2...

of the 3 fruity ones, which one would you pick ?

what do you think of Raja Puri ?

thanks much
Brad

robguz24

I don't find Namwah and Ice Cream all that similar. Odds are Ice Cream would end up being Namwah anyway from most sources. I prefer Dwarf Brazilian over Raja Puri. Any of the Mysore types that crazy banana suggested are great options too. If limited to only 2, I'd grow Mysore and Dwarf Brazilian.

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crazy banana

Difficult to say which one I would pick. Besides the flavor there are other aspects to consider especially if you live in a marginal climate. You can always try to deal with soil issues, amending and fertilizing, but for example if someone has to deal with high winds, a dwarf sized plant or a Raja Puri (average fruiting height around 7') might be the better choice.
If you only have limited space available for planting bananas, you might want to consider the yield and bunch sizes: for example Orinoco might be very common and popular in your area, but personally I am not that crazy about the taste or the amount of bananas that variety produces. On the other hand ( and that is the reason of its popularity in certain regions), it is more cold resistant than a banana plant with a AA genome like the Cavendish varieties.
Sorry, did not mean to confuse you even more. Just start growing bananas and "learn by doing" with the help of this great banana forum.

BlueJava79

The flavors others have mentioned are definitely among the best, raja, dwarf brazil, and namwah. Blue Java (actual) is a fast grower but slow to ripen. Namwah here in zone 10 is also slow to ripen. It is very cold hardy, even surviving brief frost, and considering that at the height of 14-16ft of p-stem.

A dwarf variety will probably give you more cold tolerance because it will cut down wind exposure. Planting on a south facing garden with protection from northern winds will also make a huge difference.

Maybe a good variety for dessert quality and quick to ripen might be one of the FHA types? I don't grow any but that's what the commercial growers do well with. But than, they're also not worrying about frost either lol.

Good luck with your garden.

sunfish

You could take the raja puri and cross with the blue java and grow a berry ice cream plant

badman62

thanks for the replioes
i actually picked up an ice-cream from ebay
but, its very small.
like 6 inches, and , it cant have much in the way of roots ?
i ordered other plants from the same guy, so i saved on shipping
but, ice cream is all he had.

so now, i need one more
hopefully, something a little bigger maybe ?
i know they grow fast, but, would a plant like 2ft grow much faster ?

so now, im thinking of dwarf Brazilian , or , Raja Puri ?
make sense ?

BlueJava79

Congrats on your new Blue java! Keep the forums updated with your progress. Ebay can uncover great resources I've found through trial and error.

Also keep in mind that here on Bananas you also have access to nearly every musa variety from members that likely live close to you and sometimes will give bananas away for nearly nothing. It's also great to see full grown stands in person. Albeit, summer is usually a much better time of year for finding local resources.

Btw, I think a 2ft plants would establish more quickly since it has had more time to develop its roots.

badman62

actually, my neighbor was throwing one away
i have no idea what it is, of, if it flowered
but, i planted it in hopes of something to grow from it.
also planted a small pup i cut from it.

I had posted a new thread about this a week or so ago.



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Snarkie

Hi Brad-

I don't know which plants are the best tasting, as I typically eat the fruit, but "ice cream" is said to be one of the most flavorful bananas out there. I'm still new at this myself, so I still have much to learn from the Banana Masters on here!

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