Planted my SDC in the ground

Pallen · 09-26-2014, 06:07 PM

Took my SDC out of the pot and put in the ground. It is now to big for the house and the corm and stalk will have a better chance of not freezing over the wither if it is in the ground rather than in a pot. I also am placing a PVC greenhouse over it. I fully expect the leaves will not survive the freezes but I do hope at least the thicker part of the stalk will survive for a quicker recuperation next spring.

Ready to go into his new hole.

Finally got his feet in the real earth.

Open southern exposure for some sun. Will close during non banana like weather.

Northern side. Will close my "circulation hole" before cold sets in.

The fixture is staked to the ground and has some protection from several out buildings around to help protect against the winds.

notguilty-808 · 09-27-2014, 12:08 AM

Where can you get those dwarfs? I live in Hawaii. Are they still as fast growing as other banana trees?

crazy banana · 09-27-2014, 03:40 AM

The plant looks very nice. Good job. Can you use some heat tape or Christmas lights in your structure to give it even better protection during the winter?

Pallen · 09-27-2014, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by notguilty-808

Where can you get those dwarfs? I live in Hawaii. Are they still as fast growing as other banana trees?

~ My wife got mine for me from Logees. But I do not know that some banana trees can be shipped to Hawaii, it seems to me there are some restrictions on that. I have only owned one type of Banana plant, so personally I cant give a comparison to to others. My tree has been transferred from successive pot sizes in its life so its growth has been restricted some. If it had been in a location where I could have planed it in the ground from the start(like Hawaii), I know it would have matured much faster.

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazy banana

The plant looks very nice. Good job. Can you use some heat tape or Christmas lights in your structure to give it even better protection during the winter?

~ I have never used heat tape before, but could research it, and I bet this forum is just the place to start with that.

Anyone have experience with this and ever write a post on ways to use it with bananas?

~ Some string lighting would look very cool in our yard too, good idea. I imaging it would be cheaper than heat tape as well. I would have to find a size bulb that would give off warmth but would not melt the plastic if it came into contact with it. Does someone have an idea of what size of bulbs the string should have? I have never used this type of lighting before.

Abnshrek · 09-27-2014, 11:27 AM

I think Heat-tapes are covered here.. Winterization

Olafhenny · 09-28-2014, 01:03 AM

It is quite likely, that a stiff wind will blow this contraption right off the plant.

I have built similar constructs, see here:

In order to keep it in place, I left the 3/4 inch pipes open and pounded 4 bamboo
sticks in the ground at proper spacing and stuck the open pipes over them. That
worked very well in keeping the shelter/greenhouse in place (as you can see mine was
a lot smaller than yours).

But another problem cropped up, when water collected on the top sheet and depressed
it. I therefore had to add a gable see samples here (different structure):

The bottom was insulated, because it was a spring "greenhouse" and bolted to a deck which was open to the air underneath the boards.

This was used in early spring for plants other than bananas, but you can see, that the
incline of the "gable' is significant, as it has to be because at a lesser incline the
water will still collect near the top frame. That will be more of a problem in your
structure, because it has a much larger area.

Good luck,
Olaf

Pallen · 09-28-2014, 10:26 AM

Thank you for sharing your design Olaf.

~ To hold mine to the ground mine the bottom of the frame is wired to tent stakes in the ground. My weakness will probably high winds beating my plastic up. But I have more along with more tape and 3/4 PVC pipe plastic sheet clips.

~ I love your "gable end" idea, this would be a easy addition to help make my 3/4 PVC cover require less winter maintenance from me.

~ I have also since added a thermometer and light with a timer inside to help against freezing. I plan to check the thermometer to see how close to freezing I get and adjust the timer during cold weather as needed. I will use my "trap door" on the north side to access the timer.

Update: 9/28/2014 ~ I checked on the temperature 9:00 am this morning. While it is 62 F inside the cover the outside temp this morning was 53.7 F. A difference of 8.3 degrees, this difference will be shrink during colder weather but if I increase the light on time during freezing I hope it might just be enough to save some of the pseudostem for a faster spring growth start. The opening on the north side was still open.

Update: 9/29/2014 ~ I checked on the temperature 9:30 am this morning. While it is holding at 62 F inside the cover the outside temp this morning was 57.6 F. A difference of only 4.4 degrees. I may need to increase the light time on, or find another heat source. Also a more insulative covering need is indicated for upcoming freezing weather.

mushtaq86 · 09-28-2014, 02:56 PM

I don't know what your winters are like, but the cav family need warm conditions year round to keep actively growing, otherwise they rot its a banana that can not be put on hold, they can take temps around 3c to 5c min at night as long as they get 18c plus during day.

cincinnana · 09-28-2014, 04:14 PM

Just tossing this out there about Christmas lights in the previous post...

When they are referenced in many post the Christmas lights are the old-style incandescent lights and not LED lights.
The LED lights do not put out enough heat because they are so energy-efficient.
Good for the wallet.....bad for your plant.

SO DO NOT USE LEDs FOR HEAT.

Not enough heat is generated to saftly keep your plant alive.

Pallen · 10-14-2014, 10:18 AM

I have been opening mine on warm days so it does not cook, but my warm cooking days will be getting fewer as winter approaches. I may not have as many opportunities to open it up.

Also, for such a small area I also believe fresh air is needed to keep the leaves healthy. I am no expert but it stands to common reason that the air inside the greenhouse would quickly be converted to oxygen. Great for us, but the plants need some nice fresh carbon dioxide to breath.

geissene · 10-14-2014, 11:40 AM

Sounds logical to vent your structure sometimes. I am not sure how long it would take for a plant to consume all the C02 but I'd guess it could go several weeks - especially in the colder months.

BTW, I was curious how did you move the SDC out of the 25 gallon pot. Any special tricks or just the old 'heave ho'? Looks like you didn't have any leaf damage.

Erik G

Pallen · 10-14-2014, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geissene

Sounds logical to vent your structure sometimes. I am not sure how long it would take for a plant to consume all the C02 but I'd guess it could go several weeks - especially in the colder months.

BTW, I was curious how did you move the SDC out of the 25 gallon pot. Any special tricks or just the old 'heave ho'? Looks like you didn't have any leaf damage. Erik G

Ahh, I had no idea how long it would take before he would be out of breath. it will be mute as he will lose his leaves as things cool down. At that point the challenge will be just to see how much of the P-stem I can keep from freezing for next springs head start.
As for how I moved him. I pre-dug the hole and of course had extra good dirt handy. I carefully tipped my 21 gallon pot on its side right next to the hole. Being careful not to damage leaf's I just drug Caven into the hole and rolled him upright by hand and shovel and settled him into his new home. Caven is settling in nicely with some minor leaf yellowing that I am watching. I have not watered a lot during his settling in as I knew he would need some time. I am thinking the yellowing is just some shock from being disturbed from his mobile home.

Pallen · 10-27-2014, 07:57 PM

Well my structure held up well in its rather protected location against the last wind storm we had Oct 25th with 36 MPH with 45 MPH gusts. As expected my flat topped cover started collecting water on top and I got tired of dumping it. So I took a queue from Olafhenny and put a peak on it today using 8 - 1" PVC T's. I got it mostly done when it started raining. I will get back to it and finish the ends in between showers.

I also now have a 200W Lasko 102 heater on a 35-45 F Farm Innovators Thermo Cube Thermostatically Controlled Outlet ready for when we get freezing weather. I am doing all I can so my SDC is healthy and ready to take off this coming spring.

Olafhenny · 10-27-2014, 09:55 PM

Hi Paullen,

The yellowing of leaves appears to happen every time a banana is transplanted, even
when it pushes out new leaves without interruption. It is nothing to worry about.
I gather, that the plant senses disturbance at the roots and initiates a precautionary
shut down of supply to some of the older leaves.

Your structure looks good now. Good luck with it during the winter.

Best,
Olaf

09-26-2014, 06:07 PM	#1 (permalink)
Pallen Container SDC Hobbyist Location: Eugene, OR, USA Find me on the map! Zone: 8b Name: Paullen Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 138 BananaBucks : 32,227 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 573 Times Was Thanked 241 Times in 82 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 113 Times	Planted my SDC in the ground & put a PVC greenhouse around it Took my SDC out of the pot and put in the ground. It is now to big for the house and the corm and stalk will have a better chance of not freezing over the wither if it is in the ground rather than in a pot. I also am placing a PVC greenhouse over it. I fully expect the leaves will not survive the freezes but I do hope at least the thicker part of the stalk will survive for a quicker recuperation next spring. Ready to go into his new hole. Finally got his feet in the real earth. Open southern exposure for some sun. Will close during non banana like weather. Northern side. Will close my "circulation hole" before cold sets in. The fixture is staked to the ground and has some protection from several out buildings around to help protect against the winds. __________________ It all started with one Super Dwarf Cavendish pup (My Blog) Last edited by Pallen : 10-14-2014 at 10:12 AM. Reason: Added picture details

09-27-2014, 12:08 AM	#2 (permalink)
notguilty-808 Join Date: Jul 2014 Posts: 12 BananaBucks : 5,710 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 6 Times in 2 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground Where can you get those dwarfs? I live in Hawaii. Are they still as fast growing as other banana trees?

09-27-2014, 03:40 AM	#3 (permalink)
crazy banana Location: San Diego Find me on the map! Zone: 9-11 Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 1,641 BananaBucks : 189 Feedback: 73 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3,021 Times Was Thanked 2,962 Times in 1,115 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1,999 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground The plant looks very nice. Good job. Can you use some heat tape or Christmas lights in your structure to give it even better protection during the winter?

09-27-2014, 11:27 AM	#5 (permalink)
Abnshrek Happy Growing Abnshrek 's Photo Gallery Location: Beaumont Texas Find me on the map! Zone: 8b, but 9b weather.. Name: Migael / Michael Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 9,493 BananaBucks : 223,283 Feedback: 45 / 100% Said "Thanks" 10,447 Times Was Thanked 16,443 Times in 5,238 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 2,318 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground I think Heat-tapes are covered here.. Winterization __________________ I'm a Nannerhead :^)

09-28-2014, 01:03 AM	#6 (permalink)
Olafhenny Olafhenny's Photo Gallery Location: Penticton, BC, Okanagan Valley, Canada Find me on the map! Zone: Hardiness Zone 6 Name: Olaf Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 1,705 BananaBucks : 253,547 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 2,050 Times Was Thanked 2,012 Times in 876 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 77 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground It is quite likely, that a stiff wind will blow this contraption right off the plant. I have built similar constructs, see here: In order to keep it in place, I left the 3/4 inch pipes open and pounded 4 bamboo sticks in the ground at proper spacing and stuck the open pipes over them. That worked very well in keeping the shelter/greenhouse in place (as you can see mine was a lot smaller than yours). But another problem cropped up, when water collected on the top sheet and depressed it. I therefore had to add a gable see samples here (different structure): The bottom was insulated, because it was a spring "greenhouse" and bolted to a deck which was open to the air underneath the boards. This was used in early spring for plants other than bananas, but you can see, that the incline of the "gable' is significant, as it has to be because at a lesser incline the water will still collect near the top frame. That will be more of a problem in your structure, because it has a much larger area. Good luck, Olaf __________________ The reason I joined this forum was to share experiences, my own and those of others and to learn from them.

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09-28-2014, 10:26 AM	#7 (permalink)
Pallen Container SDC Hobbyist Location: Eugene, OR, USA Find me on the map! Zone: 8b Name: Paullen Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 138 BananaBucks : 32,227 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 573 Times Was Thanked 241 Times in 82 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 113 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground & put a PVC greenhouse around it Thank you for sharing your design Olaf. ~ To hold mine to the ground mine the bottom of the frame is wired to tent stakes in the ground. My weakness will probably high winds beating my plastic up. But I have more along with more tape and 3/4 PVC pipe plastic sheet clips. ~ I love your "gable end" idea, this would be a easy addition to help make my 3/4 PVC cover require less winter maintenance from me. ~ I have also since added a thermometer and light with a timer inside to help against freezing. I plan to check the thermometer to see how close to freezing I get and adjust the timer during cold weather as needed. I will use my "trap door" on the north side to access the timer. Update: 9/28/2014 ~ I checked on the temperature 9:00 am this morning. While it is 62 F inside the cover the outside temp this morning was 53.7 F. A difference of 8.3 degrees, this difference will be shrink during colder weather but if I increase the light on time during freezing I hope it might just be enough to save some of the pseudostem for a faster spring growth start. The opening on the north side was still open. Update: 9/29/2014 ~ I checked on the temperature 9:30 am this morning. While it is holding at 62 F inside the cover the outside temp this morning was 57.6 F. A difference of only 4.4 degrees. I may need to increase the light time on, or find another heat source. Also a more insulative covering need is indicated for upcoming freezing weather. __________________ It all started with one Super Dwarf Cavendish pup (My Blog) Last edited by Pallen : 10-14-2014 at 12:21 PM. Reason: Temperature update

09-28-2014, 02:56 PM	#8 (permalink)
mushtaq86 mushtaq86's Photo Gallery Location: Hartlepool, UK Name: Mushtaq Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 707 BananaBucks : 69,886 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,708 Times Was Thanked 820 Times in 381 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 46 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground I don't know what your winters are like, but the cav family need warm conditions year round to keep actively growing, otherwise they rot its a banana that can not be put on hold, they can take temps around 3c to 5c min at night as long as they get 18c plus during day.

09-28-2014, 04:14 PM	#9 (permalink)
cincinnana container grower Location: Southwest Ohio U.S.A.🇺🇸 Find me on the map! Zone: HZ 6/5 Microclimate - Elevation 750 feet- 228.60 meters Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 8,851 BananaBucks : 3,001 Feedback: 7 / 100% Said "Thanks" 3,897 Times Was Thanked 11,750 Times in 4,900 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 1,948 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground Just tossing this out there about Christmas lights in the previous post... When they are referenced in many post the Christmas lights are the old-style incandescent lights and not LED lights. The LED lights do not put out enough heat because they are so energy-efficient. Good for the wallet.....bad for your plant. SO DO NOT USE LEDs FOR HEAT. Not enough heat is generated to saftly keep your plant alive. __________________ Cincinnana/Hostafarians Photo Gallery 🌴 Last edited by cincinnana : 10-14-2014 at 03:57 PM.

10-14-2014, 10:18 AM	#10 (permalink)
Pallen Container SDC Hobbyist Location: Eugene, OR, USA Find me on the map! Zone: 8b Name: Paullen Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 138 BananaBucks : 32,227 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 573 Times Was Thanked 241 Times in 82 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 113 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground & put a PVC greenhouse around it I have been opening mine on warm days so it does not cook, but my warm cooking days will be getting fewer as winter approaches. I may not have as many opportunities to open it up. Also, for such a small area I also believe fresh air is needed to keep the leaves healthy. I am no expert but it stands to common reason that the air inside the greenhouse would quickly be converted to oxygen. Great for us, but the plants need some nice fresh carbon dioxide to breath. __________________ It all started with one Super Dwarf Cavendish pup (My Blog) Last edited by Pallen : 10-14-2014 at 12:20 PM.

10-14-2014, 11:40 AM	#11 (permalink)
geissene Location: Pennsylvania Zone: 6 Name: Erik Join Date: Nov 2013 Posts: 489 BananaBucks : 103,090 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 301 Times Was Thanked 983 Times in 317 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 16 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground Sounds logical to vent your structure sometimes. I am not sure how long it would take for a plant to consume all the C02 but I'd guess it could go several weeks - especially in the colder months. BTW, I was curious how did you move the SDC out of the 25 gallon pot. Any special tricks or just the old 'heave ho'? Looks like you didn't have any leaf damage. Erik G

10-27-2014, 07:57 PM	#13 (permalink)
Pallen Container SDC Hobbyist Location: Eugene, OR, USA Find me on the map! Zone: 8b Name: Paullen Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 138 BananaBucks : 32,227 Feedback: 1 / 100% Said "Thanks" 573 Times Was Thanked 241 Times in 82 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 113 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground Well my structure held up well in its rather protected location against the last wind storm we had Oct 25th with 36 MPH with 45 MPH gusts. As expected my flat topped cover started collecting water on top and I got tired of dumping it. So I took a queue from Olafhenny and put a peak on it today using 8 - 1" PVC T's. I got it mostly done when it started raining. I will get back to it and finish the ends in between showers. I also now have a 200W Lasko 102 heater on a 35-45 F Farm Innovators Thermo Cube Thermostatically Controlled Outlet ready for when we get freezing weather. I am doing all I can so my SDC is healthy and ready to take off this coming spring. __________________ It all started with one Super Dwarf Cavendish pup (My Blog) Last edited by Pallen : 10-27-2014 at 08:00 PM.

10-27-2014, 09:55 PM	#14 (permalink)
Olafhenny Olafhenny's Photo Gallery Location: Penticton, BC, Okanagan Valley, Canada Find me on the map! Zone: Hardiness Zone 6 Name: Olaf Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 1,705 BananaBucks : 253,547 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 2,050 Times Was Thanked 2,012 Times in 876 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 77 Times	Re: Planted my SDC in the ground Hi Paullen, The yellowing of leaves appears to happen every time a banana is transplanted, even when it pushes out new leaves without interruption. It is nothing to worry about. I gather, that the plant senses disturbance at the roots and initiates a precautionary shut down of supply to some of the older leaves. Your structure looks good now. Good luck with it during the winter. Best, Olaf __________________ The reason I joined this forum was to share experiences, my own and those of others and to learn from them.

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