The insanity begins...
 

I've lived in several climates that were just short of producing plants that can produce fruit to maturity. I just moved into a house in South Florida. I'm about to empty out Going Bananas to fill my property! Here is an existing unknown variety of "plantain". More to follow...

Climate
 

Awesome, climate trumps everything! Waiting for updates! Please say hello to Don and Katie from Chris!!

Re: Climate
 

I seriously think the most memorable thread on this site was the one when I saw your Sabas!! When I saw that thread I was living in Las Vegas where I couldn't get anything to thrive with the intense heat during the summer and cold freezing nights of winter. I recall you used shrimp shells or something to combat nematodes.

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Looks good. Wished I had more property to fill with more plants....
And apparently you have some nice organic fertilizers running around there, too. It is a symbiotic relationship: the chicken manure is great for the banana plants and the chickens love the banana fruits.

Re: Climate
 

Adam,
Wow..awesome memory! Those plants were epic. Thank you for the nice words!
Chris

http://www.bananas.org/f2/if-youve-s...tml#post237565

Re: The insanity begins...
 

[quote=Velutina;298348]I've lived in several climates that were just short of producing plants that can produce fruit to maturity. I just moved into a house in South Florida. I'm about to empty out Going Bananas to fill my property! Here is an existing unknown variety of "plantain". More to follow...

Hi Adam

Must be great to move to a climate zone where you can basically grow in banana variety you want, which variety's will you be planting.Going bananas on your door step you must feel like kid, having keys to a sweet shop :ha:

Re: Climate
 

Chris those Saba are huge lol, what were you really feeding them :ha:

Re: Climate
 

Thanks Mushtaq!

Horse poo, shrimp shells & mulch..mulch!

Re: The insanity begins...
 

I made some progress today, but not with the bananas. I planted 6 varieties of papaya (very close I know). Half are Hawaiian varieties that apparently succumb to disease quickly.


Here are the bananas I'll be working on tomorrow. I don't know the variety, but they look like dwarf and/or super-dwarf cavendish. They are currently growing in pretty much 100% sand. There is very little organic matter in the soil.

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Great garden..:nanadrink:

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Nice dark soil.....

Re: The insanity begins...
 

I've been ordering plants from them and having them shipped 2000 miles since the 90s. It will be nice to just pick them up same day. I have a pretty long list. Hopefully will have 30-40 species in ground by the end of the year.

Brazilian
Cardaba
Dwarf Namwa
Dwarf Orinoco
Dwarf Red
Double
Ele Ele
FHIA 03
FHIA 17
FHIA 21
FHIA 18, 25
French Horn
Giant Plantain
Grand Nain
Hookerii
HuaMoa
Ice Cream
Jamaican Lacatan
Kru
Manzano
Misi Luki
Monkey Fingers
Mysore
Pisang Raja
Pitogo
Praying Hands
Raja Puri
Red Tall
Red Iholena
Saba
Siam Ruby
Thai Black
Thousand Fingers
Velutina
White Iholena
Williams
X

Re: The insanity begins...
 

I need to do whatever you did. I was already trying to find a source for shrimp shells with no luck lol. All I added was compost created from wood chips/yard clippings. I need to get some manure and mulch... and shrimp shells.

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Awesome!! I remember the first time (1993) I acquired and read the Going Bananas paper catalog Bill Lessard produced. I was fascinated with the diversity and descriptions of all of the different bananas. The bananas at the plant shows hosted by the Fruit & Spice Park in the Redlands. You are living the dream!!!

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Try and locate a local shrimp/seafood processing plant.
Florida Seafood and Aquaculture Overview and Statistics

Look for a local stable. Their is a stable one mile from our house that used to deliver huge loads of horse poo.

The tree services...visit Gene Joyner’s Unbelievable Acres. Gene had a location for tree services to drop loads (with a big sign “No Black Olive Mulch”.
Unbelievable Acres Botanic Gardens - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Check out this video:
SeeThrough Tree Gene Joyner Unbelievable Acres Palm Beach Rare Fruit Council - YouTube
Gene Joyner Unbelievable Acres Rare Fruit Council - YouTube
A Botanical Hidden Gem: Gene Joyner's Unbelievable Acres

If you're in West Palm Beach and craving a relaxing afternoon walk through a quiet, secluded botanical rainforest, then Gene Joyner's Unbelievable Acres Botanic Garden is for you. Located at 470 63rd Trail North, this private, non-profit, man-made reproduction of a rainforest is a wonderfully "hands on" way to learn about and experience a real rainforest.

Gene Joyner began the Garden from an empty pasture containing only two pine trees and all plants currently seen in Unbelievable Acres were planted since July, 1970. No trees were over 6 feet tall when first planted and Gene personally wheelbarrows in mulch and new plant specimens because the paths are too narrow for a tractor. You can sense and appreciate this personal touch as your guide describes the natural wonders found here, Unbelievable Acres is truly an accomplishment.

During the tour our friendly guide pointed out countless species of plants, trees and fruits while sharing a sometimes amusing history of them along with ways some species can be used in food preparation. Praying bananas trees, angel trumpets, sausage trees, starfruit… the sights and smells are sure to please the senses. If you are interested in a rainforest experience where you can nibble on lemony hibiscus flowers or spicy allspice leaves while taking in the beauty and wonder of nature, Unbelievable Acres is the place to go.

The tour runs every second Saturday of the month in groups of ten and the cost per person is $10. For more information please call 561-242-1686.
A Botanical Hidden Gem: Gene Joyner's Unbelievable Acres - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com

Re: The insanity begins...
 

Never heard of Unbelievable Acres. I'll need to check it out! It's not too far.

First up for planting will be this Ice Cream. That's the variety I had the best success with in Las Vegas.

I planted around the plantain with super-hot peppers. I added 8 wheelbarrows full of compost to this section. It was nearly 100% sand. It drains very well at least.

Re: The insanity begins...
 

When the rains come you will be thankful for the drainage. I remember visiting banana growers in California that used post hole diggers to dig drainage holes through the thick layer of clay. Soil is looking good!!!

Re: The insanity begins...
 

The sandy soil is surprisingly easy to dig, something i've never experienced. I'm used to working clay soil that you would need to soak with water overnight in order to dig even a small hole. My area has a deep layer of "Hallandale sand". I feel fortunate I don't need to hire somebody with an auger to drill through limestone.

Re: The insanity begins...
 

I find that piling green grass clippings around the plants works well...As it rots, the bananas send out roots into it and it soon becomes a mesh of roots and before you know it there are no discernible clippings left. Which is why I keep piling them on. In winter it's tough to keep them from turning to straw, though as it rarely rains here in winter. I compost it a few weeks first then so it holds moisture better.
I also add some of this when no fresh can be found. It is at walmart for around $2 and is supposed to be the same as black kow ($5) at .5-.5-.5

Re: The insanity begins...
 

There are a lot of horse stables in my area that offer free manure. Would I need to compost it before use? I saw the black kow at HD the other day and was tempted to buy some. I will definitely check out walmart to see if they have the Earthgro!