Foreverlad

Let me offer you some harsh advice, just for the sake of saving your plants.

1. Repot all plants in small containers: 2-6 inches would be best

-You have more control over what the plants are subjected to food/water wise.

2. Rely on a simple potting mix.

- Don't rely on manures, composts or anything else just yet. All you want is a simple substrate those hair-thin roots can grow through.

3. Feed them regularly

- A corm is a refrigerator full of leftovers for a banana plant. Currently, your little babies have no refrigerator, so they're living hand-to-mouth through those tiny little roots.


Some folk might argue I'm being overly cautious, but young TCs are very delicate, and as a first time grower, you'll want to err on the side of caution.

Your goal for the first month or two is to nourish these little guys and prep them for the real world. TC plants are totally viable, but when they enter your world, they have A LOT of catching up to do compared to their naturally born brethren. They may seem a bit slow to start, but once that have some corm and the first hints of thick roots, these plants will be skyward-bound.

With warm weather, these TCs should be happy to be consistently moist. Follow a 4 day schedule to start: Monday, water them. Wednesday, feed them a diluted fertilizer. I used Dyna-grow 9-3-6 (at half-strength). Wait 2 days, and water again, wait two days and lightly fertilize again.

Once they're exploding in size, it's time to either up-pot them, or plant them in the soil. I've reached the point where I won't plant a banana in soil until it could (theoretically) survive a weed-whacker. It's a completely arbitrary judgment, but until you have, say, a 3 inch diameter, it's easier to directly feed the plants than broadcasting fertilizer around them.