BB73

Hi everybody,

I was searching all over the .org, but couldn't find any answer to the question I was thinking of:

Will plants, that are grown in containers, pup less and/or later than plants that are grown in the ground?

From my understanding there should be less pups coming up in pots or containers in general and also appearing later, because the space is limited, but maybe somebody has had some experience with this?
A side by side comparison with one plant in the ground and the same in a pot could answer this? (I assume soil/fertilizing and watering to be equal).

There might be also differences between cultivars? Some would pup more or less equally (number of pups and time to first pups) in ground compared to be grown in pots and some may show huge differences?

Might be interessting for those who want to see "babies" as soon as possible in pots and could help for chosing the right cultivars.

If this questions has been discussed earlier, please post the link!

Thanks

TommyMacLuckie

Here's my experience:

I have a Orinoco in a very small clay pot. It's in approximately 3 handfuls of dirt. It's never grown over 12 inches tall.

I've had bananas in various size pots. They'll only get so big because of the lack of space, just like fish in a fish tank. It's possible that if they get root bound they will grow a bit taller. But overall I would say that growth is limited and pup production will be very little. I've never had a banana grow in a large container from just one that has made pups. I would think eventually it would make one pup at least.

I have read that dwarf varieties work well for pots/containers though because of the very fact that they don't get big to begin with so they, I guess, do "better" that way vs. a big banana.

It's pretty safe to say that ALL plants in containers will not get even half as big/tall as they would in the ground.

Mudcon

my Orinoco in pots grows lots of pups. right now the one in front of the house has 3 pups in it and the side of the house has 3 pups. all 5 in the back yard in pots as 1-2 pups in each.

sunfish

Misi Luki


SDC


Dwarf Brazilian ?

Scott

This is one of my Tall Brazilians:


Guess it depends on the size of the plant and pot. You can see the roots are limited to travel in search of nutrients because of the pot. They circled themselves.
At one point it looked like this:


If you want growth, then let the roots travel. When potted, I fed nearly every week. But look at the root system. Tons of searching roots...

With growth and nutrients comes the sweet payoff. That's a 7 foot ladder between the trees:



Zone 10 in Central Florida USA

__________________

Mudcon

good lord that makes that ladder look SMALL........

Abnshrek

Ladder looks like a stepping stool .. lol :^) Great pic & Plants

__________________


I'm a Nannerhead :^)

CoryS

Scott's ladder photo is convincing enough for me. Good work, Scott! It appears that the plants in the ground definitely have larger pups.

__________________
Sunlight makes plants grow and people live. -Me

TommyMacLuckie

Wow!

I guess I've always just had mine in containers to be put on hold for a few weeks.

The funniest thing I ever did was dig up a Dwarf Cav and then I set it down somewhere and amazingly forgot about it - for 3 months. It was just sitting on the ground.

It got huge and bloomed. I've never really worried about leaving bananas out of the ground.

pitangadiego

In general, banana plants pup more when happy. Happiness is increased with sufficient root space. Sufficient root space is seldom available in a pot. If the pot is big enough, and pups form, they will most likely split the pot.

__________________
Encanto Farms Nursery
http://encantofarms.com
We Be Bananas
http://webebananas.com

LilRaverBoi

I would say pot cultivation COULD reduce pup number/time of onset. However, it really depends on the variety. I've had some that pup very readily at young ages in a pot. I've also had others (like my IC) that have grown significant lengths of time/size (6-7 feet of pstem and just got my first pup after well over a year) before showing ANY signs of pups. I'm sure in the soil they do pup better, but many varieties pup just fine in a pot. Not sure how definitive of an answer that was, but that's my experience.

__________________
BANANA RAVE!
Feel the beat from start to stop, dancin' and movin' from bottom to top!
lilraverboi@genxglow.com
RIP Tog Tan. We love you and will always remember you!
I'm Bryan with a Y! There is no 'I' in BRYAN!

MediaHound

I second that. I've collected bananas from forests used as dumps here in FL that were growing suspended in mid air among some aerial tree roots and old debris like wooden pallets etc. I spotted the bananas through the canopy of the brush and after making my way through it I was surprised to find them growing with zero soil whatsoever.

Anyway back on topic, I also subscribe to the notion that the more space they have the better they will do. If for some reason they are given everything they need aside from space, such as good fertilizer schedule, proper watering and light, they will probably, like pitangadiego said, break the pot they are in.
I've stunted my share of banana plants by letting them get root bound and spending too long in too-small of a pot.

__________________
Apologies in advance if I am slow to reply to your PM. I suggest posting in the forums for support if you need something urgent.

sbl

I tend to keep a new variety in a pot until I know how well it can handle our winter. Once I get a few pups in the container, I plant it inground and collect a pup to hold in a container for backup. I have had RP, IC, DC, and my unknown red all pup in containers. The unknown red has produced over 10 pups this yr alone--I just cut 4 off today.