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Old 01-28-2011, 04:58 PM   #20 (permalink)
bananarama2
 
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Location: The drier, sunny East Coast of the West Coast, on Vancouver Island
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Default Re: Bananas stored dormant in basement dried out

This is certainly one of the most volatile subjects on the whole site. And, with one read, there are at least half a dozen topics that can be pursued. Botanically speaking, most plants stop active growth at around 14degrees Celsius, about 58 degrees Fahrenheit, so targetting the low 50's for storage is right, which gives a safe temperature range to avoid freezing the root, yet encouraging dormancy. Maintaining enough moisture either in the storage medium or in the air (an evaporating pond plant tub ?) helps maintain a healthy dormancy, without drying out the roots. If the roots still appear healthy, (moist, crisp and uniform texture), then do indeed try to save them by planting up now (spring is not far off for most of us). As Rob (if I recall rightly) mentioned, this is a pretty iffy challenge on a good day, and it takes a lot of thought and planning to create a perfect over-wintering space for bananas, and it seems, a good dash of luck as well. Hope success is the norm for all of the banana storers out there! Good luck all!
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