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Sep 20, 2013 10:14 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
Last week I decided to grow Musa velutina from seed. I also started a variety called cheesmanii from seed Wednesday. I have a Blood banana and an Ice Cream banana (possibly Namwah) This year it hardly grew, even though I kept it well watered. Does anyone do anything special to get their bananas to grow? In Spring, I added plenty of composted cow manure. I've been giving it Miracle Gro tomato fertilizer because it has the highest amount of potassium I could find.

Musa cheesmanii seeds


Musa Ice Cream or Namwah
Thumb of 2013-09-20/TexasPlumeria87/f27607


Musa zebrina in its healthier days
Thumb of 2013-09-20/TexasPlumeria87/0183e4
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Sep 21, 2013 8:12 PM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
Hm, I'd have to guess, but I think all the competition from the Cannas growing around it might be what's holding it back.

Bananas are heavy feeders and like a lot of water. So do Cannas, so they are definitely robbing water and nutrients from the banana. It needs a big space all to itself next year. Roust out the Cannas and move them at least 4ft. away from the Nanner.
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Sep 22, 2013 5:37 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
Thanks Elaine that definitely makes sense. I planted the cannas around the banana to keep a little humidity in the area since mid to late Summer here can be very dry. The cannas were more robust than I anticipated lol. Is it too late to move them now? Last year my banana was by itself but the ground kept dried out quickly despite mulch so I decided to plant cannas around it this year, now I see that it was a mistake. If it lives through the Winter, I'll let it have the flowerbed to itself next year.
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Sep 22, 2013 12:59 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
I removed my cannas Elaine. I think the banana plant looks happier already lol.
Thumb of 2013-09-22/TexasPlumeria87/a8c825
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Sep 22, 2013 2:51 PM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
Well done, Cameron. Just so you know, you can't kill a Canna. Plant them somewhere else and they will bloom into November as long as you give 'em water.

Give the nanner a big dose of fert - couple of handfuls of timed release pellets should carry it into winter - and make sure it gets watered every day until the weather gets cold. Since you disturbed the soil digging up the Cannas, it might be susceptible to drying out until the soil compacts again. In fact, I'd be inclined to give it a bag of Black Cow or something as a 'treat' - you really can't over feed or over water bananas. They make a huge matted root system underground, and if they're happy they'll jump up, and make pups and generally make a really nice clump of big lush plants.

Keep us posted how it goes?
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Sep 22, 2013 7:03 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
I'm glad you gave me that advice. I wonder how much growth it will produce between now and October? I'll give it another dose of fertilizer. I'll make sure the soil stays moist too. Next year I may invest in some high nitrogen fertilizer, and alternate with some Sul-Po-Mag fertilizer. Black Kow is the only brand I use and I've had good results. Hopefully next year I'll have a nice clump. I'll definitely keep everyone posted on its progress. Thumbs up
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Sep 22, 2013 7:50 PM CST
Plants Admin Emeritus
Name: Evan
Pioneer Valley south, MA, USA (Zone 6a)
Charter ATP Member Aroids Irises I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Tropicals Vermiculture
Foliage Fan Bulbs Hummingbirder Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Composter Plant Identifier
Good luck! Thumbs up Just out of curiosity I looked up the Miracle-Gro Tomato fertilizer, it's 18-18-21. Like you Cameron, my understanding is a high P number is good for bananas. I looked up Sul-Po-Mag fertilizer as well because I haven't heard of it. Looks like a good product. Now to try and find it locally. I have to admit I usually apply 2 to 3 times the recommended dose of fertilizer for bananas.
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Sep 23, 2013 4:43 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
Thanks Evan Thumbs up I bought my Sul-Po-Mag from a local feed store. Do you have good results using 2-3 times the recommended dose of fertilizer? I need to try that, I also added a few banana peels in the soil around my banana.
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Sep 23, 2013 8:42 AM CST
Plants Admin Emeritus
Name: Evan
Pioneer Valley south, MA, USA (Zone 6a)
Charter ATP Member Aroids Irises I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Tropicals Vermiculture
Foliage Fan Bulbs Hummingbirder Lover of wildlife (Black bear badge) Composter Plant Identifier
I do Cameron but would sure like the more experienced growers here to chime in.
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Sep 23, 2013 11:28 AM CST
Name: Jonna
Mérida, Yucatán, México (Zone 13a)
The WITWIT Badge Region: Mexico Garden Procrastinator I was one of the first 300 contributors to the plant database! Ponds Tropicals
Enjoys or suffers hot summers Plumerias Plays in the sandbox Dog Lover Cat Lover
I have my bananas in a bed of their own, I dump lots of organic matter in there and sprinkle fertilizer about once a month in the summer. Because it is so hot and humid here, the organic stuff (clippings and such) breaks down really quickly. I also try and keep it damp in the dry season, winter, but they grow a lot more in the rainy season. I don't think you can give them too much water or too much compost, not sure about the fert. If you are leaving them out in the winter, I'm guessing they are hardy, then piling lots of leaves and clippings on them would be good as it would break down over the winter and be compost by spring. Most people here use the banana bed as a compost bed, they throw all the green stuff from the kitchen and the garden in there, they like egg shells and coffee grounds as well. I run the hose and flood them every week in the dry season, they get the monsoon rains in the summer. Because they need so much water, they lose a lot of nutrients. Think of them as big grass, heavy feeders.
A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.
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Sep 23, 2013 12:20 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
This year I'm going to leave it in the ground and pile leaves and mulch around it. Last year I kept it in a unheated shed and it did well until I planted it, then it rotted. I'll start adding old fruits and vegetables and clippings to the soil around it. The last time I gave it some compost, was early in Spring. I'll see if the local Starbucks has any coffee grounds. Does anyone know if you have to be a customer to take them?
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Sep 23, 2013 6:19 PM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
Cameron, I'd be a little careful about adding too much uncomposted organic material at once, expecially when the plant is growing actively. As the stuff decomposes, it uses some of the nitrogen from the surrounding soil, and could rob that essential element from the plant when it needs it most.

In winter when the plant is essentially dormant it doesn't matter so much.

Well decomposed compost is a great soil conditioner and adds a little nutrient value, but it's not a substitute for fertilizer.
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Sep 24, 2013 8:51 AM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
Ok I'll hold off on the uncomposted material and add some composted cow manure. I have really bad clay soil so I need as much soil conditioner as possible lol.
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Sep 25, 2013 1:45 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
The newest leaf opened up today.
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Sep 25, 2013 2:19 PM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
Looking good, Cameron, but what's that big plant against the house behind it?

If it's not something you really value, I'd remove it, too. It definitely will have roots long enough to rob nutrients from your banana. It really needs a big space all to itself.
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill
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Sep 25, 2013 2:34 PM CST
Kentucky 😔 (Zone 6a)
Cactus and Succulents Region: Kentucky Moon Gardener Plant and/or Seed Trader Tropicals Plant Identifier
Garden Ideas: Level 2
All good advice above!
The cannas are way too much completion!
They and the banana looked burned in one pic, sun I assume?
It's tough to burn those 2 if they are established! Unless they get way too dry, if that happened it didn't help!

As mentioned, easy on tossing it scraps, they are hungry but they can't eat that stuff! And it'll attract baddies..

I'd dump a big load of wood ash and old charcoal on it, not kings ford briquets if you can help it.
And like Evan said, lots of fert!
If you don't mind paying for it, it's hard to argue with the results if banana fuel, but there's cheaper options too!

I might suggest some other types too, none you mentioned ate super tough, veluntina is a pretty good grower but not always dependable...ice creams are wimpy outta the tropics, namwa is better but still not the best, as you know yours is probably namwa...

I'd go for some dwarf cavendish or some non fruiting ones like basjoo, both are pretty durable, aside from high winds and drought...
Please tree mail me for trades, I'm ALWAYS actively looking for more new plants, and love to trade!
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Sep 25, 2013 3:58 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
Elaine the large plants behind it are candlebushes. They finally have flowerbuds on them. I think they are annuals in my climate, so if the freeze doesn't kill them I'll remove them. I'll just designate that bed for my banana plant. I also have a Pride of Barbados, white butterfly ginger, and two grand crinums. Next year I'll remove the Pride of Barbados, and plant it in another spot. This Summer just like the last two Summers have been very brutal, with low humidity and no rain for over a month. Most of Summer has been 100 or above. I wish I could find a source for wood ash. Someone on another site recommended some soluble potassium its cheap and it has free shipping. I've heard so many good things about banana fuel, but I can't afford anything like that.
I have some velutina seeds that I'm trying to germinate. I'm also growing cheesmanii from seed too. I had basjoo but it fried to a crisp 2 Summer ago. Hilarious! I had it in a partial shade area too. Do you think Orinoco would be good for my climate? Its almost like a desert here lol.
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Sep 25, 2013 4:01 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Cameron Allen
Plano, TX (Zone 8a)
Amaryllis Hummingbirder Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers Orchids Plumerias
Salvias Enjoys or suffers hot summers Tender Perennials Region: Texas Tropicals Winter Sowing
I forgot to thank everyone for their knowledge and tips. I've killed several bananas in the past, so I'm really surprised the two I have are still alive. Thumbs up
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Sep 25, 2013 8:17 PM CST
Kentucky 😔 (Zone 6a)
Cactus and Succulents Region: Kentucky Moon Gardener Plant and/or Seed Trader Tropicals Plant Identifier
Garden Ideas: Level 2
You just credit the climate for killing them?
They just fry in the dry sun I guess huh...

Texas sure seems to have had it rough weather wise lately...
I guess it unforgiving territory...

Orinoco might be a good choice for you...

Have you tried growing any in big pots?

Atleast when the ground is so super dry that it wicks all your watering away, you could keep a pot wetter easier, and if it got so hot you could possibly move then to some shade...
Please tree mail me for trades, I'm ALWAYS actively looking for more new plants, and love to trade!
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Sep 25, 2013 8:37 PM CST
Name: Elaine
Sarasota, Fl
The one constant in life is change
Amaryllis Tropicals Multi-Region Gardener Orchids Master Gardener: Florida Irises
Herbs Region: Florida Vegetable Grower Daylilies Birds Cat Lover
With your tough summer weather, it takes a lot to get nanners going! Once the banana plant is established, making pups and has a big root system of its own, it will be able to hold on amongst other plants. They'll have trouble getting anywhere near. If you want them to produce fruit, you really REALLY have to feed 'em and water 'em and give them a whole big space all to themselves.

Yep, my Pride of Barbados is 12ft. tall and wide. This pic was taken in June. Thumb of 2013-09-26/dyzzypyxxy/3482e2

Yours needs to be in a big space all its own, too. Hate to say it but the gingers will spread towards all the water and fert you'll be giving that banana, too. They're nearly as hungry and thirsty as Cannas! If you can find somewhere else for them, that would help, too. The candlebushes are perennials here and make large shrubs. Nice plants, but you need to move them. They're too close to the house anyway.

Cameron, I think we know your problem. Space. You need to visualize what a plant will be when it's full grown, and that can be hard when you're planting a new little thing in a 1gal. pot. When a plant is 12ft. tall and wide, it also has roots 12ft. wide. Or more! Give them the space they need or the more vigorous plant will survive and starve the other. This may be why the nanners you've planted before didn't make it.
Elaine

"Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." –Winston Churchill

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