I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

I wintered a Mekong Giant banana pup inside in a 2 gallon pot. It was placed in a cool basement, under a light bulb, and only fertilized lightly.

It looked healthy and happy, though it only put out 2 new leaves. The plant was a good shade of green.

One week ago I moved the banana plant outside on the South side of the house. Yesterday I noticed the older leaves were starting to yellow and so I put some Job's plant spikes in it (13-4-5), and I watered them in with 2 quarts of water, but today the leaves are more yellow than they were. And, when I looked closely at the 2 leaves the plant produced this winter I can tell that they are slightly faded around the edge.

The weather has been from the upper 30's to 80, but MOSTLY it has been in the 40's to 60's.

Can you folks give me advice on what my plant needs? In 1 months time I would like to plant it in the ground, but there is still a risk of frost where I live.

Re: I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

Your plant is fine.
The yellowing of the oldest leaves just means they will soon be replaced by new ones. This is a normal occurrence in fall(lack of light) and early spring growth. They will continue to turn yellow just cut them off when they become too unsightly. In a few weeks or more a new leaf will eventually brighten your day.

Right now keep your water and fertilizer in check.....your plant is not in rapid growth mode yet, still a little cool. Now is the likely time you can overwater and damage/kill your plant.
I took some of mine outside also and they look beat.

Re: I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

Re: I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

Almost all my bananas of a number of species and cultivars look pretty rough when first taken outside after winter, sunburn can be an issue. Especially Super Dwarf Cavendish, looks terrible and needs gradual acclimation for like 2 weeks or it gets toasted.

Re: I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

Your plant just got a little shocked, is all. From indoors to outdoor sun must be done in stages. I brought mine outside on sunny days as it warmed, and at first, the leaves were a little droopy after several hours. After a few times of doing this, they got used to it and they have been in the ground (in full sun) for almost a month now; no wilting, no yellowing of the leaves or anything.

Re: I moved my banana plant outside, and now the leaves are yellowing!
 

Here is a photo of what to expect in early spring.....
As summer progresses your plants will thrive.....
And your plants will show yellow leaves as your plants mature.


Trainwreck by Hostafarian, on Flickr
.Mid summer photo..
Untitled by Hostafarian, on Flickr