Welcome aboard, Diane
! Get that basjoo in quick! In fact, any nanners ya have outside! A freeze will kill a nanner quick, especially if it's wet. I've been over-wintering banana plants for 3 years & mine are Very healthy.
You can dig it up, wrap the base in newspaper, & leave it inside for days before you get around to potting it & it will be just fine. The newspaper will absorb the moisture. Bananas need to be as DRY as possible in the winter. Even in a warm house, growth slows down dramatically. They consume almost no water & no food from the soil. If there is water or fertilizer, the water will lead to corm-rot & fertilizer will lead to burn.
So wrap it/them in newspaper or paper towels around the base of the plants. Be sure to dig deep enough to get plenty of roots.
Basjoos are called "cold hardy" only because if you get them inside before a freeze they will be okay. Another reason is that if you cut it down to ground level & cover the corm with dirt & lots of mulch, a basjoo can survive the winter outside. Me, I've already brought all 8 species of mine in (including my basjoo). I did this after we had a 42 degree (F) night. Hope this helps
.
It's a very friendly & info-packed site. If you have any more questions, or questions about using the forum, just ask
!