Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

Hi guys I’m new to the site and new to growing banana plants. I’ve recently purchased a musa Basjoo that I plan on growing in a big pot and keeping by my pool for a tropical look and bringing inside for the winter. I recently (this week) re potted it into a big pot and mixed my own soil consisting of potting soil, compost, mature cow manure, perlite and some milorganite. I’m getting new leaves but my only concern is that the soil may not be draining as well as it should. It was planted in just potting soil up until this re pot and the potting soil was very well draining. My concern is that I just noticed some pink coloring at the bottom of the stem at where the dirt is. Is this normal? Or is the soil too wet causing root rot or something. Your input it greatly appreciated. Thanks guys

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

This is what I’m talking about

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

And here’s what the plant looks like

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

that color is fine but your soil does look wet.
Wet for too long can cause rot. but that pink looks ok to me.

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

Your soilless mixture is too heavy for the plant.

You can do a repot using lighter ingredients. A miraclegrow type mix with 30% added perlite makes a light mix the plant will thrive in.

There are some great recipes for inexpensive soilless mix's on the internet and youtube which have great takeaways.


Soilless mix
by
Hostafarian,
on Flickr

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

Are there any recipes that you use/prefer in particular? Thanks for your input.

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

I use miracle grow POTTING soil. and NOT the moisture control.
I also add a lot of perlite for drainage.

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

I re worked the mix. I used miracle grow cactus/citrus potting mix. I’ve heard it is very well draining and mixed in a couple shovels of my original mix into that. Seems to be better so I guess we’ll see how that goes

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

@Musaman2901

see how much perlite is in this mix. this is what is needed.

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

Hello !

J'utilise un mélange de terreau, de terre végétale, et de sable (pour le drainage).

Au fond du pot, je place de la "pouzzolane", ensuite un feutre (pour séparer le susbtrat de la pouzzolane").

Ca fonctionne parfaitement.


I use a mix of potting soil, topsoil, and sand (for drainage).

At the bottom of the pot, I place "pozzolan", then a felt (to separate the substrate from the pozzolan").

It works perfectly.

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

can you plant it directly in the ground?
i find they are finicky over the winter in a pot indoors
outside they die back but come back with a vengeance in the spring and get bigger than ones in pots

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

I would agree. Although I don't seem to have the same challenges overwintering them indoors (I have challenges overwintering other bananas to be sure), they are, in my opinion, much more striking in the ground, and with adequate protection they will survive and attain decent size in all but the coldest climates.

And, if you are going to be lugging plants in and out anyway, why not try one or two of the really interesting ones?

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

I don’t really have an area that I would want to plant them in the ground just yet. I really wanted it around the pool area for a more tropical vibe but possibly in the future. Any advise on overwintering?

Re: Musa Basjoo growing ok?
 

Nothing at all wrong with growing basjoo in a container, if properly done you will definitely get that desired tropical accent around your pool.

Lots of very knowledgeable container growers in this group and a dedicated forum for just that with tons of information to help you achieve your goals. Start your research here:

Container Grown Banana Plants - Bananas.org

As far as overwintering:

http://www.bananas.org/f15/time-put-...inter-310.html

...and then expand your research with search terms such as overwintering, winter storage, etc and you will get all the advice you need to come up with a plan for yourself.

Happy reading :)