I have 2 newly acquired banana plants. One is a ~2 foot tall NOID, and the other is about 8" and described as a "NOID Fruiting Banana". I will post pictures later.
I have a few questions about feeding. I have searched the forum, as well as the articles here on Dave's and have gained alot of knowledge on this topic. I am still stuck with a few qestions.
Can bananas be fed Fish Emulsion? I use it on pretty much everything, but just wanted to make sure it is OK. What about Messenger? Would they rather foliar feedings with fertilizer, or normal?
I read that banana peels are good to place in the soil around the plants, but what about cut up whole bananas? We always seem to have 1-2 that do not get eaten, and I hate to let them go to waste.
Also, can I pot these together in a pot? I have a large 20-24" pot that they are in for now. I know once (if) they get larger they will need to be transplanted, but I figure they will not grow that much this year.
Thanks, Jennifer
Feeding Bananas
I don't grow bananas, but I wanted to clarify that Messenger is not a fertilizer--it is a hormone that stimulates a plant's immune system to help it fight off insects and diseases more easily. No idea if it's OK for bananas or not, but if you use it you will definitely need to give it fertilizer too.
Jennifer
Why don’t you plant them in the ground?
Oldude
ECrane, yes, I should have been more clear. I intend to fertilize along with Messenger. Thanks for pointing that out so that others done use it in place of fertilizer : ) Jennifer
Oldude, a neighbor of mine pretty much threatened to cut them down if I put them in the ground, because he swears they will take over the neighborhood. It's not too big of a deal, I am partial to containers and have a fairly small yard.
I never heard of bananas taking over anything, I think he probably has them mixed up with something else. But if you think he's at all serious about his threat I'd opt for containers too! Glad you knew already about the Messenger, there are lots of people who are confused about what it really does.
I use it. I haven't noticed a huge difference, but some. I am not one of these people that will argue someone down about the great benefits of Messenger. I figure if it helps a little it's worth it.
I also use the SprayNGrow perfect formula (or whatever it's called) that includes the SprayNGrow, Bill's Perfect Fertilizer and Cocowet. You can get a small kit for about $25.00. I LOVE these products. One of my Epis hadn't grown in about 2-3 months, and it sprouted new growth in 2-3 days of using the formula. Love it.
I get their catalog, and every time I get it I think about ordering, but then I wonder if it's one of those too-good-to-be-true scam sorts of things. But if you've had good experience with it maybe I should give it a try!
It really is awesome. Plus they have a bunch of other cool products like sprayers and soil amendments. Plus they sell Messenger which I use too.
Oh, and go check out the SprayNGrow entry I added on the Garden Watchdog page.
Jennifer
Tell your neighbor to take a chill pill. Bananas are easily controlled and are definitely
Not invasive. You can easily separate Mom from the pups with a shovel and they will stay put. They have a shallow root system so you can keep a border around them. I have had Orinoco’s for 30 years and have them isolated to a small area near my shop.
We are on the fringe of the banana belt that stretches from approximately the 31st parallel north and south. Bananas do fairly well here and you rarely need to spray them. They are fertilizer hogs so do give them what they want. 13-13-13 works great for me.
A few years ago I purchased some Dwarf Orinoco’s, dwarf Brazil, Grand Naim and ice cream bananas, I separated the pups and planted them in 25-gallon containers so that they would have a good start the following spring. This was done in May and to my astonishment in October they had grown roots through the drain holes and anchored in the ground. The container was a ball of roots, so I never tried containers again.
If you want to produce bananas, don’t cut them to the ground in the spring. Just find the point on the pseudostem where the damage from frost ends and cut there. You will have a good chance of producing bananas the following year. Once the banana flowers then the pseudostem will die and the pups take over the Mother position.
Fertilize, water and you can have bananas like this Orinoco.
Oldude
Here’s a picture of the Dwarf Orinoco.
Sorry, I got my pictures mixed up. This is a Dwarf Brazil, not a Dwarf Orinoco.
This message was edited Jun 21, 2008 8:12 PM
Wow, that is a beautiful picture. I can't wait for my babies to start growing! If it wasn't raining, I would take a picture.
oldude, great advice and bananas!
Bump.
I'm bumping to try to get a reply without starting a new thread. I'm in southeast Arky, zone 8a, and I'd like to know if it is okay to plant hardy banana trees at this time of the year?? I have brugs & Uppees that die back in the winter, return in the spring, I've never lost one & I actually thing the cold makes for bigger summer plants. I always keep a Upee or two in a pot, in the attic and I bubbler a few brugs, and put them in the ground for early start plants, but the ones in the ground always outgrow them. If it is okay to plant banana trees at this time, might you have special instructions??? I will mulch them heavily - what kind of fert should I use?? TIA!!!!!!!!!