krismaskiss

Hello,

I'm looking for guilds or biologically beneficial companion plants for bananas, not just "pretty arrangements of plants" . (For those who don't know this permaculture term: a guild is "a harmoniously interwoven group of plants and animals, often centered around one major species, that benefits humans while creating natural habitats. They are an attempt to bridge the broad gap between conventional vegetable gardens and wildlife gardening by creating plants communities that act and feel like natural landscapes, that include humans in their webwork. They usually have these components: A central element...in this case bananas...with various other elements: 1.)grass-suppressing plants 2.)insect-and bird-attracting plants 3.)mulch plants 4.) nutrient accumlators 5.)nitrogen fixers 6.)soil fumigants and pest repellents 7.)habitat nooks. Guilds restores nature;s role as the gardener's partner, transforming a solitary plant into a plant community that immensely benefits all and lightens the human workload. By designing your gardens using guilds you weave a strong web that builds fertile soil and mulch, attracts pollinators and pest-fighting insects, reduces fungal disease, provides a diverse arry of food, flowers, and herbs, creates wildlife habitat, and reduces water and fertilizer use. These benefits stem not just from choosing the right parts-the right plants-but also from placing the guild's parts in the right relationship to each other." -taken from "Gaia's Garden A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture" by Toby Hemenway.)

So my question is: Does any one on the forum know any banana guilds?

Richard

Bananas are native to Burma, however there has been much breeding over human history and some varieties are quite comfortable in a subtropical plant community; e.g., the Himalayan "foothill" region at 5,000 foot elevation or so, or the subtropic climes of Argentina where an entire plant community (other than monocots) can be in the Myrtle family (Myrtacaea).

There has been much research on the role of "repellent plants" and the basic result is that insects always avoid the undesirable flora and go straight to the most desirable, regardless of the proximity.

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Abnshrek

It would be nice to have a guild for every part of the US. but I doubt that's possible. Well not year round anyway..

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I'm a Nannerhead :^)

Richard

In terms of a banana guild for every part of the U.S. I agree. But otherwise, guilds existed naturally before human intervention. An excellent treatise on California plant communities can be found here:

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lorax

You could check out the Ecuadorean approach to guilding; the article is kicking around in one of my galleries here, I think.

Gabe15

I don't know of any preexisting systems, but I find that a good vigorous sweetpotato variety makes a nice ground cover, and since bananas replace their roots every 4 months and dont mind being disturbed a little, you can dig out the sweetpotatoes without hurting the banana. I don't know what kind of varieties you can grow wherever you are, but if you find a fast growing broad-leafed type it could be a good start.

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Growing bananas in Colorado, Washington, Hawaii since 2004. Commercial banana farmer, 200+ varieties.

Abnshrek

I think if I planted any potatoes around my banana's I'd have a better crop of crawfish than tater's.. (of any kind) :^) but its worth a try.. right

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I'm a Nannerhead :^)