Re: Unknown Musa
That's similar to Mandeville, LA, those temperatures in Pensacola (got down to 7 here for 3 nights in a row back in 1989 - 11 in New Orleans). Except in my back yard it got down to 26 three times this past winter and all of my bananas - orinoco, saba, ornata, bordelon, zebrina - came back. Some orinoco did die all the way to the ground (I usually wait until May to do any total cutting - I don't like to cut them down). I do nothing to protect them except water heavily before a freeze.
In my front yard, however, which faces the SW and has a giant live oak providing a canopy of, I would think, some insulation, the lowest it got down to was 31 on two of the three 26 degree mornings in the back and 30 on the other. My bananas in the front did freeze but only enough to damage the fronds.
The one that Gustav broke that came back that froze did die. But a pup came up and it's doing OK. With the live oak shading so much the fronds, when the plants get tall enough, get really long and droopy. They don't grow very good (fast) because it's very heavily filtered sunlight. But they do grow and they are more of a conversation piece than any attempt to get fruit.
I have a musella in the front that I don't know what to do with. It's been in total sun and did nothing. In fact, I think it actually shrunk as opposed to grew. It's in total shade and has THREE tiny fronds on it. I might pull it out and shove it in a pot with Miracle Gro soil and see what happens. I've only ever seen one do well and that is at a friend's in New Orleans.
I am convinced they are NOT cold hardy and need to be zone 9A or higher.
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