Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Hello,

Who has experience with growing ravenala madagascariensis?
I have got a small plant.

Thank you for your response.

Best regards,
Niek Broeders

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

I have two of them. What do you want to know?

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Hello Andrew,

As far as I know, the ravenala madagascariensis is related to the strelitzia reginae and to the musa family.
The strelitzia is not a fast grower, but the musa family grow very fast.

How is de growing rate of the ravenala?
Do you have a picture of the plants?

Best regards,
Niek

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Cold will kill it. It is at best a 10a plant. Wind will kill it as the leaves dessicate easily and the transpiration is not the best. If you keep it outdoors in Zone 8 it will survive during summer but die in the winter. You will need to bring it inside, but the plany gets 40 feet tall with 20 foot leaves; you'll need an aiplane hangar..

Good luck!

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

It is a 10a plant. You are correct about the related plants. A friend had his go down to 28 degrees last winter and it did fine. I can send you pictures if you would like. Go to eBay for pictures (I bought mine on eBay as one gallons). As young plants they are more tender. Aslo try daves garden for information. They are really cool plants! They get very large and would be difficult to take in and out. I hope this helps.

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

I grow them here, but of course once they get taller than my 11' ceiling in the garage - I have to either sell them or try and cut the leaves off for winter (which usually doesn't work so well). They are fast growing buggers though. I bought 10 seedlings last year, in addition to my three larger ones, thinking they'd take forever to grow up - a few of the seedlings moved from 4" pots to 16" pots in a single season, and where they were barely 1.5' tall last year - a few are now close to 5' in height. My largest one is at a good 9-11' already, so I may have to sell it this fall.

Watch out for the fungus in the winter if you keep them indoors. I've lost two to root fugus. Cleary's and/or Daconil seem to do the trick.

Just to humor myself I put two in the ground - I know they'll die, but I figured it was worth a shot. I got a monstera deliciosa (10a) to come back this year - but that's a totally different type of plant (easier to protect).

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Hello John,

In your reaction you mentioned that cutting the leaves off for winter usually doesn't work so well.
What do you mean bij that?
Will the plant die or does the plant get a bad appaerance?

Best regards,
Niek

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

I didn't mention cutting the leaves off, but it seems to me that cutting the leaves of would set it back so hard that it would have problems during the beginning of the growing season.

It is a tremendous plant and I applaud you for giving it a try. It will be quite a challenge.

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

That's the main issue I'm facing with the smaller plants I experimented on this winter - even though they aren't too tall, I chopped all but two leaves off and they have been VERY slow to respond this spring. I wanted to see how they responded, as I'm assuming the larger plant will respond the same way. I guess I could just try smushing the leaves into the ceiling but my halides hang down from the ceiling, so I'm not sure how much light the plant would be getting with the leaves being so high up. And eventually all the leaves will be too tall regardless. I could probably move one into my foyer for a year - it's about 18' - but then I'd have no where to put my Kauai banana (which also gets tall and can't stay out). I have also (ridiculously) considered trying to grow one partially sideways (at a angle in the garage) so I'd have extra height to work with.

The two I put in the ground I am going to try and wrap up and maybe put Christmas lights on. The main problem will be protecting their core - which likely will prove difficult given how exposed it is. Bananas are one thing, but these guys and the Giant BOP's are something else. I'm going to try it and see how it goes - but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Until you have seen one in person, it is hard to imagine how glorious these plants can be:

40 feet in the air, with a 40 foot spread, 20 foot leaves.

The tree will try to achieve these specs, no matter what you do. Cjutting the leaves will delay any look that these trees can achieve.

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

Oh seeing them full grown is how I fell in love with them. I saw my first TPalm in Hawai`i - I have been hooked ever since. They are truly amazing plants.

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

bad idea!!!
u cut those leaves off it will take many years for them to grow back they r the same as the white birds of paradise slow growers
look in my gallery for pictures of them there a few they are super easy to grow for the first few years keep them out of full sun it will make them grow faster and the leaves wont burn up i have grown lots of these from seeds if u got any other questions just pm me when they get about 5-6 feet slowly introduce them into full sun but be care full u burn those leaves it looks like **** there hole life i did this to my 8 foot white bird this year now the newest biggest leaves are nice and goldish silvery looks real nice i had to hide the ugly thing in the back of my house now i dont want to get rid of it cause i had for years i think i might just cut those leaves off and deal with the gap

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

also where u live your gonna have to keep them in smaller pots to try and stunt the growth on them to keep them in your house over winteri would leave them in the house all year they look so much nicer when the leaves dont get all torn up from the wind and it will the leaves are not like the b.o.p. they r alot more delicate

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

The leaves of my plants get brown edges, is this from the full sun they get?

(Sorry for my bad english but you will understand my question i hope)

Re: Ravenala madagascariensis
 

That depends. I think full sun plants that have burnt leaves in full sun is because the heat of the sun is too intense coupled with low humidity. Some plants I grow that have to be put under semi-shade here, because they can't take full sun with very little humidity. The leaves will brown and wilt and then crispy leaves result. But else where like in Florida, they would do fine in full sun.

Another reason is because of too much fertilizer in the soil. And another reason is maybe it isn't getting enough water.

Your English is fine.