crab

I planted three banana trees in my yard a few months ago. One is doing great. It has lots of great big leaves and towers over me. The other two have been disappointing. They both follow the same pattern:

1. Start as a pup, grow vigorously
2. Grow to about 1.5-2' tall
3. Leaves fold at midrib (like they do when it's very hot)
4. Leaves yellow and bend at midrib
5. Growth stops completely

Zone: 9b
Species: Dwarf Cavendish
Fert: 0.5lb 10-10-10 once a month
Water: ~2 gallons a day. Our soil is very sandy and it has been unusually dry this year.
Sun: The healthy palm gets full sun half of the day. The other two are in full sun all day.

I thought maybe they were getting too much sun, but people online say bananas love sun. Perhaps they are getting too hot?

Should I just give up on trying to grow banana trees in full Florida summer sun?

Pics: https://imgur.com/a/OsVh40l
These pictures were taken this morning. Temp was about 80F, Humidity ~75%. Normally if the leaves fold, it is in the afternoon when the heat and sun are very oppressive, not in the morning.

beam2050

howdy neighbor.

yes, they are too small for so much sun.

50% shade cloth will help the immensely. or you can use a white bed sheet, like this.

click on the thumb nail

Attached Images

P1010502.JPG (922.2 KB, 14 views)

__________________
...................................................

npk of wood ash 0/1/3 to 0/3/7

npk of banana leaf ash 1.75/0.75/0.5

Janelle525

I have some that were stunted by the full sun, one is a manzano that just won't get bigger! I moved it to east side of the house. See how it does, once they get a bigger corm the sun doesn't seem to bother the growth too much. I like to water from overhead during the hottest part of the day if rain isn't coming.

__________________
Super Dwarf Cavendish, Tall Namwah, Goldfinger, Praying Hands, Raja Pisang, Manzano.

crab

What I don't understand is the pups don't seem to be affected by the sun/heat. It's only when the plants get older they die.