tastyratz

agreed, it definitely needs insulation.

With blue barrels like that though you might try getting some tacky spray on adhesive (car headliner adhesive comes to mind) and spray it on the paper side of some fiberglass insulation. Then glue the insulation to the barrel. If you get the right thickness you can probably fill most of the barrel with insulation and still leave an inch or 2 of space for the pstem not to rot.

I think as long as whatever chemicals were previously stored in there... as long as they are not aromatic like gas etc you don't have to worry about them leeching into the banana because there is no real soil contact to absorb.

bananarama2

Glad to hear you were planning some sort of insulation, although it wasn't stated in your first post. You know what happens when you assume, so I didn't want to take the chance. That being said, yours would seem to be a viable approach to helping the bananas through the winter. Good luck with it!

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If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.

NJ Banana

Hello All,

I have a California Gold that was planted early last year. The stem is about 4-5' tall. I had 4 pups that I cut off about 3 weeks ago and put in planters for indoor overwintering. I planned on keeping the main plant outdoors w/protection for overwintering but I realized yesterday that the p-stem has some pretty good movement to it.. I think that it was probably a stupid idea to remove all of the pups at the same time (Newby-Sorry)... Anyway, what are the thoughts about how that would/would not affect overwintering in the ground?

PS- I cut all of the leaves off, I planned on making a 2' to 3' circle out of bubble wrap and filling with mulch. Then taking a final piece of b-wrap and covering the top.. Completely sealed..

Any thoughts? Adam

Bob

If it's your only one it was probaby a good idea to remove some pups. How was the root developement on them and how big were they? Jeff Earl has said that it is the first to start growing in spring and does so about the same time as musa basjoo but I believe he's in zone 8 and"only" gets down to the mid 20's F in his local. Still I was thinking of taking one of mine and trying to do the same up here just for an experiment but, I have several ( That I'm tired of digging up). Please keep us posted on this.

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bananarama2

I personally like the idea of bubble wrap, since it is waterproof if applied properly, plus will tend to moderate temperatures because of the air pockets, preventing extreme swings on sunny v.s. cooler days. I would also strongly advocate a dry mulch to help keep moisture and rot at bay. My thoughts on the pups and resultant looseness of the rootmass of the parent.....It would have been better to remove the pups earlier in the season, to give the parent time to re-establish some roots. For now, I'd put down a thick mulch layer to help the parent continue with some limited root growth (keeping the soil area warmer), and don't give away all your pups, in case you have problems wintering over the parent. Maybe you'll be lucky, and the parent won't even notice! Good luck!

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NJ Banana

Has anyone else had any luck with overwintering a California Gold in the zone 7ish area?

I want to leave it in the ground with protection but if it looks as though it has a good chance of dying I would prefer to bring it in.

Adam

Bob

You mentioned it was 4 or 5 ' tall. Is that the p-stem height or the overall plant? I'd say its marginal either way but the bigger the better.

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hammer

I have with no care my calif gold went thruough dormancy well with no rot last winter.

Cpatrikis

Hello all,

I realize this thread is very old, however it is one of the most informative out of the bunch. I would like to start by stating i am honored to be the first post of 2011!

Now its time for business! I have what i believe strongly to be a musa basjoo nana plant that has been through 2 outdoor summers (with the rest of its time indoors because i live in a zone 7 on Long Island NY).

I have posted on a few threads earlier this fall about wintering my plant and trying to figure out what to do with it this year now that its height (with leaves still attached) is about 10 feet or so.

Every other year, i would bring the plant inside and put it under a plant growth bulb on a timer during the colder months, watering and misting it keeping it growing slowly throughout the year. this year however, i needed to find a different approach because it is too tall for the ceilings in my house. after posting and reading responses from other threads, i determined it would be alright to put the basjoo in my garage for the winter because it is usually around 40 degrees or so.

I have wrapped the trunk of the plant with towels to keep it as warm as possible, and the garage door has been closed unless cars were going in or out. although the garage is not heated, the plant has seemed to be doing fine without any light or water since mid october or so... that is until this past monday 1/10/11 when i discovered that all the leaves stems have creased/ folded and dropped to its sides (became to heavy to hold up). i believe this is due to the harsh winter we have been experiencing here in NY the past month or so, and i imagine the 2 blizzards in the past week haven't helped much at all.

When i noticed the plant in this state, i put a thermometer in the garage with the door closed and after some time it read 39 degrees mid day, however im assuming it must have reached lower temps than that at night during some of the harsh snow storms.

When i examined it, some parts of the trunk that weren't wrapped with towels (because leaves were in the way) seemed to have wrinkled a bit, but the trunk didnt feel frozen what so ever.

when i noticed what happened to the plant, i cut all the leaves but 2 off, and brought it inside, and gave it a little water to wet the roots and rehydrate the trunk.

what im asking all you experts is to take a look at the information and pictures i will post and tell me if you think the plant will still shoot new leaves come springtime when it goes back outdoors.

im not sure if the two leaves that are currently on the plant will survive, because they too have folded and creases. if these two leaves also come off how exactly will the plant be able to soak up sunlight for photosynthesis?

Im just a little worried and i guess i need some reassurance.

Thanks in advance!



These links are to different pics of the plant as of yesterday before cutting most leaves off (pics in found in my photo gallery).

also, sorry i didnt know how to actually post the pictures in this message, i tried but it didnt work. hope this isnt too annoying!



Banana Gallery - IMG_3187

Banana Gallery - IMG_3189

Banana Gallery - IMG_31881

Banana Gallery - IMG_31901

Banana Gallery - IMG_3193

Banana Gallery - IMG_31921

Banana Gallery - IMG_31912

Banana Gallery - IMG_3196

Banana Gallery - IMG_3198

Banana Gallery - IMG_3200

Banana Gallery - IMG_3199

Banana Gallery - IMG_3195




Following pics are after bringing inside and cutting all leaves but two...



Banana Gallery - IMG_3202

Banana Gallery - IMG_3201

Banana Gallery - IMG_3203

Banana Gallery - IMG_32061

Banana Gallery - IMG_3205

Banana Gallery - IMG_3201

Banana Gallery - IMG_3207

Banana Gallery - IMG_32081

Banana Gallery - IMG_3209


Thanks guys! any advise/ reassurance would be great!

__________________
Chris

bananarama2

Well Chris, I'm sorry that your plans to overwinter your plant in the garage didn't work our as anticipated. Assuming the plant did not actually freeze at some time (darkened, soft tissue would be evident), my guess is that the plant simply shut down metabolically for the year, due to low temperatures and no watering. If it is "stored" in a place that will still support even minimal growth, it will require some basic light and water. The yellowing of the main stem and the dull color of the leaves suggests that the plant has gone dormant. If that is so, then you should be able to cut back the main stem until you encounter fresh growth, at which time you might consider moving to a warmer, well lit location, and begin light watering again. Alternately, at this point, overwinter in a cool, dry location with the root corm protected from moisture and freezing temperatures.

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Kostas

Your banana is just showing cold damage from exposure to below 0C temperatures,nothing more and nothing to be concerned about unless it reaches mid 20sF in the garage for hours. If not,just put it back in the garage and it will be ok till spring. There was no need to cut folded leafs as although folded,they show that a good portion of them was ok and they would be at least partially functional. My Blue Java was exposed to -3C overnight plus snowstorm and close to 0C for a day and it still retains green tissue on some of its folded leafs. They don't die just because they folded
If you want overwintering to be easier on it and to start growing already,you could place a strong fluorescent light over it in your house and you wont believe how fast it will grow! But this growth will probably burn when you place it outside in the sun again.

__________________
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Bob

Yeah it's been super cold in the area recently but , all in all I think your basjoo looks fine and you're doing very well with it. Likely it will just start regrowing leaves as soon as you plant it out and by June you wont remember all these mid winter shots at all.

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lcweber69

It's the time of year that I dread...time to dig up the bananas. For those of us in colder zones with no greenhouse, we have to do it in order to ever get fruit. Everybody has their own methods of overwintering bananas.
Hi Frank!!
I have no idea if you'll even see this post-not sure when you posted the one I'm replying to.
I'm z5 and have many bananas on my deck in huge planters. Musa Basjoo is one kind, Ensete Maurelii is another. They are 15 to 18 ft tall, many pups in the pots, this is their second summer with me, as last fall I pulled them into the house, put them under 'grow lights' and they survived well enough as 'house plants' to bring them out this spring.
I origionally wanted to ask the question is it too late to put them into the ground and mulch them,(too late as in they wouldn't have time to become established) I really don't trust that, and when I saw your photos of how you 'cleaned them up', well, now this is a whole new story.
#1, What do you mean 'store them under your house'?? Do you put them in peat moss, like canna tubers? Can I get them out of their pots, cut them as you did,( but cut the whole stalk down), clean the roots, and put them into bins in my cool basement over winter?? If I can store them this way it'd be wonderful. My Ensete Maurelii is huge, and there is no way I can get her into my studio this year. Please, even if your not Frank, if anyone knows the answers, HELP!!!

tastyratz

time to dig? its august! I'm in zone 5 too and things are just getting going!

Personally I like to wait to see a little bit of leaf damage before digging. I think the set back stunts growth and makes the plant resist growing indoors with minimal light.
I overwintered all of my plants in my fairly warm basement last year in front of a too small window and with 2 small 18w florescent lights. I can tell you from last year's terrible experience (most died) how I was thinking I would change things this year:

-I had a nasty gnat and root aphid problem bringing outside plants inside. I tried bayer tree and shrup insecticide diluted and sprayed on the leaves this year and it nuked all the baddies magically. Yes it is bad for the soil food web but aphids really are a bother to me and japanese beetles WERE tearing my ensete apart. This year I will strong dose all of my plants prior to them coming in and over the winter. This does not take care of spider mites but as long as you give your plants a visual check you can easily nip them before they get bad with soap/oil.

-Lighting. You are more likely to kill off from too much heat ratio to light than too much light. This year I will install 2 4 foot fixtures over the plant areas and run on long timers. Hope that is enough my basement is around 65f. It is too warm to stay dormant but hopefully the light keeps them only weak active.

-cut down on fert earlier. I might even shake off the rich organic dirt for the most part before bringing everything in and bag the roots.

-spray leaves down with some sort of anti desiccant. The roots will rot from the moisture they don't absorb but the leaves will still dry themselves out, ESPECIALLY palms.

-My smaller plants will be living in a bay window this year.


What was mentioned before was for individuals who store their dormant plants underneath their house someplace or in some other protected area that will be slightly warmer than away from the house. Some people definitely just bin up their plants in the basement. I have seen some good photos of someone who cut their ensete down to trunk and bare rooted it in the basement. Nothing wrong with bare root storage if you are staying dormant.

lcweber69

I am not sure if Tastyratz was responding to my post, but I must not have made myself clear. Sorry. My bananas are on my deck in huge planters, not in the ground. I was origionally wondering if they'd have time to become established before cold comes, if I were to attempt to overwinter them outside. But then I read the post (and saw the pics) of someone (can't remember his member name but his name is Frank) of a bunch of bananas he'd dug up and cleaned off as one would canna or an EE. These he'd stored under his house.
I would like to get these out of the pots, as they are way way to big now to try to get into my studio (as I did last year ) and store them dormant in my cool basement. Last winter I kept 5 musa pups, origionally around 3ft tall, in pots, under several 4ft jump start grow lights, with no problem other than they started really growing tall by May!! My Ensete Murelii I also brought in and after having removed all but the center leaf, put her in the same room, in front of an east facing window, the only large window I have. At the time, she was around 10ft tall. By May, she looked a little ratty, but really exploded this summer on my deck. She's now at least 14ft, and way too big to try bringing in to over winter. But can I get these out of the pots, and store them bareroot dormant in a cool dark place??

saltydad

I store most of my bananas bare root in the basement leaning up against the wall. As a result, my E. glauca flowered this year. I find that the smaller ones don't do as well bare root; these I pot up but only water about 2 or 3 times during the winter. My basement is not cool in the winter due to the furnace's radiant heat. There is minimal light from 2 small windows. I also overwinter my ee's, cannas, and caladiums here. And there is not enough time to establish your plants in the ground now. If you have basjoo, plant them out as soon as the nights are in the 50's. Mulch them well the first winter or so; I used straw bales. Of course, I'm in zone 7a and you're 5, so maybe someone from that area can advise on keeping basjoo out in the winter.I did keep a dwarf cav in a pot in my living room near a large bay window and it did fine.

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"If by a liberal, they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind; someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions; someone who cares about the welfare of the people, their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, their civil liberties; someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicion that grips us; that is what they meant by a liberal, I am proud to be a liberal."
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oakshadows

We have a 30 foot long concrete block wall tha faces south. Intend to plant sensetiver bananas there an build a lean-to type covering for them. We enjoy some days below 32 degrees but not many and not for extended times. If it looks like the temps might get too low we will install some type of heat, lights or maybe even a small electric heater. If we take the time to monitor this we can use timer to control heat and will as usual loose many hours of sleep checking up on the situation.

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lcweber69

Thanks Saltydad. I want to store my basjoo's bareroot in my basement. Can I do that? Also, can I do the same with my Ensete Maurelii's??

sunfish

Just a over head cover even shade cloth makes a big difference.Keeping the soil on the dry side during the winter is a good thing

saltydad

You can indeed do this with the Maurelli, although this spring my Maurelli failed to wake up and slowly died after planting. However, the glauca did fine, and was a bigger plant. I have never stored basjoo, always left them out, so you'll have to see if anyone else has experience indoors with them. Good luck.

__________________
Men In Nursing- "A Few Good Men"

"Gardening is the purest of human pleasures." - Francis Bacon





"If by a liberal, they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind; someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions; someone who cares about the welfare of the people, their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, their civil liberties; someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicion that grips us; that is what they meant by a liberal, I am proud to be a liberal."
John F. Kennedy, September, 1960


http://flickr.com/photos/saltydad/ and
http://community.webshots.com/user/saltydad
http://s751.photobucket.com/albums/xx151/saltydad/