Re: Banana disease?
Leaves are generally an indicator of plant health - but you have to understand that they report history, not current situation, in most cases. By the time a leaf emerges from the top of the pseudostem, the problems that it gives evidence of, such as under-watering, stress from a cold winter, over-fertilization, etc. are history, perhaps reporting events of a week, or two previous, or in the case of winter stress/damage, as much as 6 months ago. You may be looking at corms that were severely weakened by winter, and they may not survive, or they may continue to struggle for a while and then fade out. But that doesn't not mean they are diseased, just that they had a hard life. The second stem looks perfectly healthy. In general, there are few if ANY diseases that we experience with our banana plants. More often they suffer from inconsistent care, and the fact that we and they are not in Panama enjoying 90F every day. Betwe3en wind and cold, there is hardly a leaf on any of my banana plants (100+) that is recognizable at this point in the year. The onset of warm weather has caused them to push out their first new leaves in a long time.
The only real issue is with rotten portion of the pseudostem which is caused by a combination of cold and wet. The dark brown mushy portions need to be removed promptly, of they will affect neighboring leaf stems, until nothing is left. Other than that, chill out, sit back, and enjoy the ride.
|