grinflask

I have recently had a discussion on this topic with people selling this kind of variegated Musa Aeae and the argument for the high price of these plants was the difficulties in propagation. As mentioned before, the fact is that it is not more difficult to propagate than any other similar Musa. The problem itself was said to be difficult to mantain the variegated display in the new plants, since only a small portion of them will look like a typical Aeae.

Aeae seems to be a chimera; in other words, they have a mixture of cell in which part of them lack the ability to produce chlorophyll. So, if the new shoot arises from a group of "green" cells, you end up with a fully green plant; if from a "white" group ... a white plant; and if from a mixed "green" and "white" cells ... a true Aeae.

I am surprised to read in your comments that you normally dont find problems to produce variegated pups. This does not fit with the above.

It is perfectly normal that white plants die once they loose their connection with the mother plant, since they are not able themselves to photosynthesize carbohydrates to survive. In theory, the only way to keep them alive would therefore be to give them sugar, and the only way to do so would be under sterile conditions in tissue culture (otherwise all kind of fungus and bacteria will overgrow and kill the plant).

Could be really nice to see a fully white plant in vitro ... and why not, to try also to TC your variegated plants and see if you can keep variegation in the new shoots.