Patty in Wisc

Hi, this is my first post here. I bought 2 Ice Cream nanna seedlings - in 3 inch pots about 2nd week in June. I just potted up (3rd time) into a 2ft W X 18 inch H pot. It is 5 ft high from soil, & top leaf is 2 1/2ft long!! Is this about normal growth? I plan on moving it in my sunroom soon (about 13ft ceiling) where hopefully it will grow slowly in cool temps (low upper 40's to 60's). Maybe by May it will be close to ceiling height & then I will plant it inground.
Is there a chance I will get nannas a yr from now???
How would you compare taste to ones in grocery store - like "chiquita"?
Thanks, Patty
Oh yeah, I will wrap the other one (not as big) & put it in 20 inch crawl space under S room next to basement wall. It will be a good experiment to see if it'll survive that here in zone 5.

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MediaHound

Were your plants pups that were cut off another plant, or were they grown as tissue cultures? How big was the corm on them when you got them? You say you repotted them a few times, so you probably have seen the corm. Is it tiny or a good sized chunk sliced off from another plant?
3 inch pots when you got them - probably tissue cultured
The growth sounds pretty typical, they grow fast and unfurl a new leaf about once per week or two. When young, each of course bigger than the previous under good growing conditions.
You might not get fruit the first year on your particular plants.

We have at least another person in Wisconsin, check out the map and add your point, too.

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AnnaJW

Hi Patty,

Welcome! I just got my first bloom on my first Ice Cream. I planted it in March of 2004. It took alot longer to bloom than I had expected. Her two pup's are almost as tall as she is.
That's great that you have a sunroom to over winter in!

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momoese

The taste is far superior to any grocery store fruit.

Patty in Wisc

Thanks for the responses! I'm thinking now, that it came in 2 1/2 " pots. When I potted them up, I didn't notice a corm..just a nice little rootball which is why I thought a seedling. I left soil intact. Leaves were very small too. I did add a "point" to the map where I live (Milwaukee) but didn't know how to fill in the other stuff - don't know what it means LOL
Wow Anna, you planted in March '04 & just now are getting fruits? I know someone in SC who planted in March '05 -inground, & he has fruits ripening.
Maybe if I got a big pup earlier this yr, I'd have a chance of getting fruit next yr. If I plant mine outside in spring, it'll be too big to drag back in sunroom. I keep hearing that IC is the best tasting nanna so really had my hopes up. How cool it would be to have neighbors see a nanna tree with fruits on it here in zone 5!!!
Anna, how tall is yours now? Inground?
Patty

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AnnaJW

Patty,

My plants are inground. The one that is blooming is approx. 10 - 12'. I think alot must have to do with the climate. This bloom is taking soooo long to open up! The only others I've had bloom are Orinoco's, and they grow really fast.
That would be VERY cool for people to see bananas in your zone!!! I have people tell me all the time that we can't grow banana's (fruit) in our zone. These are nursery workers and landscapers.

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momoese

Anna, my latest Red is taking it's sweet time opening as well. Must be the change in temps.

AnnaJW

Hey Mitchel!

I can sure feel the temps dropping in the evenings now. I so hope there is something in that bloom! The first leaf is starting to unfold...

Go IC! Go IC! Go IC!

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Patty in Wisc

Anna, I sure hope you get bananas to eat. I know that parts of Ca get frost & it will be frustrating if it hurts your babies.
I tried contacting the seller on EBay, but got a diff. seller who says it is probably from culture. I don't know what that means. I only know pups, cuttings & seed. How do you grow a plant from culture?
Also, should I fertilize lightly in winter or or just let it be semi-dormant in the sunroom?
Thanks again, Patty

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AnnaJW

Hi Patty,

We do get light frosts here. Although my husband, who's from Ohio, says that what I call frost is not true frost.
Alot of my plants are TC's. I know there was a post here explaining how they do it, but it's a bit too scientific for me.
Hopefully some of the other people in colder climates can advise you on whether or not to fertilize.

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garnetmoth

From what I understand, a cutlure is just a slice, you can do it to bulbs etc. if you want to multiply quickly. They do make smaller plants, but many more rapidly.

I think its a bit faster than getting something from seed, but much slower than a corm.

Who harvests or makes all these darn cute pics?

D'Andra

Hi Anna Banana,

I don't know how long you've been in Riverside. I took ag classes at Arlington in 84'-85'. There used to be orange groves on Van Buren (anybody remember orange groves?) with big fans and kerosene heaters for when the "frost" hit. I'm not sure what the difference in hardiness is between citrus and bananas, but I remember seeing frost burnt orange leaves. I would think that if it's cold enough to hurt citrus it'd do the same to bananas.

I'm in NM now and just planted my first seven 4-06 and with the pups I now have over 22 plants. I guess it's kinda like growing them in WI 'cause all my neighbors are asking what they are. WTG Patty! Pretty Cool!

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AnnaJW

Hi D'Andra!

I've lived here all my life. Grew up in La Sierra and now live near Lake Mathews. I hate what is happening to what used to be a nice, slow-paced town. How long since you've been here? Sadly, the Ag building at Arlington is nothing but a shell now.
I remember when most of the area I live in was orange groves. Now, if you want to see orange groves, you have to go to the Citrus Heritage park on Van Buren. Ah, the smudge pots! You'd get up in the morning and see a black haze in the air...
I lost one banana (at least) to the frost last winter. I have alot more plants to be worried about this year. It's interesting that the temps up by the Lake tend to run a little cooler in the summer, and warmer in the winter than down the hill.
That's cool that you have bananas in NM!

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doubravsky

I graduated from Arlington in '84! I grew up on 10 acres of orange groves over off of Adams and Victoria. I remember all of the helicopter blade fans that would come on when the temps got close to freezing.

Anna... I've checked some of the cold temps in town during the winter... and we always seem to be 3-5 degrees warmer when it gets colder. I've only had real frost on the ground 1 time in the last 5 years.

Haven't lost any bananas yet but I have lost some delicate palms to cold.

STEELVIPER

EEEEWwwwwwwwwwww a lion!!! LMAO i live in Riverisde to, born and raised. went to NORTH HIGH. as far as temps go here, it does not even come close to what it used to get here. I remember many mornings going to school with frost all over the place. Ive seen it get as low as 19 degrees. But the last 10 years ,were are lucky to see 2 weeks worth of 32 degrees or lower .through the whole fall/winter. Last year was very mild here. All i had to do to my bananas was wrap or tarp them. I did this only on nights that fell below 39.Did not lose a single banana. Or had any frost damage. Did not even cover my passion fruit vines. All made it with flying colors.I say the weather has chaged so much here.

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AnnaJW

Okay, don't hold it against me, but I went to Norte Vista. :-)

Interesting that two of you went to school together!!!

I do remember walking to school with frost on the ground and surrounded by fog so thick you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. (That would be a few years back)

Yeah, we haven't had the cold weather we used to have. I remember having to scrape the ice off of the windows of my car. Haven't had to do that in years. Although, in the winter of 2002, we did have some light snow "up here"!

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D'Andra

Steelviper; I remember North High. Did they ever get a football team? (j/k!)

Doubravsky; We went to school together like 22 years ago how funny! I don't know if you were in FFA back then, but if you remember Sandi Broeland our President I think in 84/85, she wrote me about a year ago. We sent mails back and forth but I haven't talked to her for quite sometime. Which brings me to this.

Anna; That's sad news about the ag buildings there! (Sandi will be bummed when I tell her.) Do they still have an ag program at all? I got my first and hopefully last rattlesnake bite working on the garden plots there! Ag was one of the reasons I went to that school.

You might also find this interesting. I lived off of Gavalin Rd. On Villa knoll with an awesome view of the lake and the city lights throughout the valley. We might have been neighbors.
Now for a word of warning. While the frosts are not as often as in Mockingbird Canyon and low lying areas we had a few strong ones "up there". I remember snow a couple of times between '83 & '89. It never really got too bad though and I looked at your pics. Killer job! you're my hero!

I actually joined this forum to try to find someone in my area to trade tips and experiences with, but how cool is it to talk to people who live where I grew up?!
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D'.

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D'.

STEELVIPER

Ooooooooooooooo good one! D' andra. LOL yes we do have a football team. And they are very very good.............. but that was way after i left.... LOL... As for Riverside much of what is used to be is gone. But not all. Just A hell of a lot more people and many many more houses.

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Patty in Wisc

Well, I don't know when the last post was posted,...it doesn't say, but my big IC is in a very big pot & getting ready to be potted inground outsid.e The smaller one (because of pot size) will go into that pot. The big one is now over 7 ft tall & I am hoping for fruits next summer. I won'r be able to bring it back into sunroom this falll, so will have to wrap it well & put under sunroom for next winter...hoping it will survive. It was from culture & I got it last June, so i don't think it will fruit this year. It will still be cool to see a banana growing here in zone 5.

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Patty in Wisc has sadly passed away 9/05/11. We will miss you Patty.

AnnaJW

Hey Patty! Don't give up here!

I hope your IC blooms this summer! That would be so awesome to see a bloom in your area. My IC bloomed last year when it was only maybe 9 - 10 feet tall. So it sounds promising for yours!

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