Musa Basjoo Banana Care

Are you looking for a cold-hardy banana tree that is fast-growing and provides a tremendous ornamental display? Then the Musa bashoo banana tree is what you need. The only problem is it produces inedible green fruit because it is bitter and dry. Keep reading to know more about this outdoor plant.

What is The Cold Hardy Banana Tree?

While you cannot eat the fruit of the Japanese banana plant, it does add a tropical island flair to your garden. The tree is a herbaceous perennial that can withstand cold winter temperatures. Then, in spring, it bounces back with growth and yet might seem hard to believe.

Another interesting fact is that this is not a real tree. The fascinating thing is the trunk-like pseudostem has tightly rolled leaves and not wood. The green leaves are showy as they unfurl from the plant. With each emerging foliage, it becomes more prominent than the previous one.

These leaves can reach up to six feet in length, and it is a fast-growing plant that reaches up to 12 feet in height. The plant you find in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia and goes by many names:

  • Hardy Banana
  • Japanese Banana
  • Japanese Fibre Banana
  • Sichuan Hardy Banana

Cold Hardy Banana Trees Care

Musa basjoo banana

The tropical plant is stunning grows in cool climates, and makes for a great ornamental banana plant. But before we get to care for your cold hardy banana tree, check out the primary care information here:

musa basjoo card card

Now, let’s take an in-depth look at how to care for this tropical beauty.

The Best Soil For Your Cold Hardy Banana Trees

A loam soil is essential whether you plant your cold hardy banana trees in a bucket to place indoors or outside by the pool. The best substrate to use needs to be porous, allowing the water to drain freely. You can use a potting mix filled with coconut fibers to retain moisture and prevent the roots from rotting.

Doing this provides a well-drained potting mix for your plant to thrive. Still, the ground needs to be acidic with a pH between 5.5 and 6.5. When grown as an outdoor plant, you need to provide it with a hole three times wider and deeper than the container it is in. You can work in organic mixed with inorganic substances to improve drainage.

For organic soil, you can use biosolids, sphagnum peat moss, and a well-draining composted manure. When you want to add inorganic materials, the best is to use perlite and vermiculite.

Lighting Condition

banana lighting requirement

The cold hardy banana tree needs full sun with slight shade to grow. It is best to place it in the landscaping center, away from your other plants creating too much shade when planted outside. You can leave it standing on an uncovered patio or place it close to a large window when grown in a pot. Still, the plant needs protection from high winds that can shred and dry out the leaves.

Watering Your Banana Tree

Your Musa basjoo needs a lot of water as the whole structure of the plant is water-rich. So you need to water your plant regularly to keep the soil moist. While the mature plants can tolerate some levels of lime found in the water, they prefer rain or stale water. Growing your banana plants inside helps to provide them with a misting on the leaves and the pseudostem.

Temperature and Humidity Needs

When it comes to temperature and humidity, the most care is taken in winter. Your banana tree proliferates in one season. Yet, when the first frost hits, the plant dies back to the ground. So before the first frost hits, you can cut back the stems and leaves.

Leave about up to ten inches of it above the ground. Next, apply a heavy mulch over the top of the crown. For ease of removing when spring arrives, you can use a chicken wire cage placed over the plant before adding the mulch. Then, when growing your plant in a container, you can move it indoors.

For keeping your plant indoors, your banana trees need a humidity of 50% but can tolerate lower levels.

The Best Fertilizer

plant fertilizer

Compared to many other plants, this tree is a heavy feeder. You can add a 1/2 teaspoon of fertilizer to a gallon of water. Apply the feed every week under full sun conditions to help with growth. When placed in lower light or cool temperatures, you can reduce the frequency of the feeding. When your plant becomes dormant in winter, you need not feed your banana trees. A great product to use is 15-15-15 or 7-9-5.

Banana Family Propagation

The best way to propagate Japanese banana plant is through division. For this method, you need to wait for spring when the offshoots appear. Dig the shoots from the soil to remove a portion of the root system. You may need to pull the rhizomes apart from the mother plant.

Take the detached plant and place them in a container filled with moist soil. Remove the lower leaves at the top of the sand. Place the plant in a spot where it receives cooler morning sun. Keep the soil moist once it dries out.

USDA Zones

The hardy banana rarely blooms because of the shorter growing season if you live north of zone nine. You can place your tree with other tropical plants on the patio or at your pool. In zones nine and ten, your banana tree remains evergreen year-round. Your plant can take up to 24 months to bloom yellow flowers and carry fruit.

Potting and Pruning

With the rapid growth of the banana tree, it can grow high and may need relocation to a bigger pot.

  1. Remove the offshoots from the mother plant to prevent negative growth.
  2. Place a quart of clay shards and sand at the bottom.
  3. Cut the rhizomes shorter to encourage growth.
  4. Place the tree in the pot and fill it with potting mix.
  5. Press on the ground to provide the plant with a hold.
  6. Use lime-free lukewarm water and remove the excess water.
  7. At this time, do not feed your plant and wait for about six weeks before providing the plant with fertilizer.

You can prune off the yellowed leaves, and once the central shoots flowers and carries fruit. Then, you can remove the young shoots at the base.

Musa Banana Varieties

While the hardy banana is a great plant to have, there are other banana species you might be interested in as well.

Dwarf Cavendish

dwarf cavendish

You can grow this banana tree indoors and outside. This indoor plant produces huge bunches of fruit every harvesting season. When the banana gets ripe, it starts off green, and the skin turns yellow with white flesh. The texture is smooth and sweet.

Musella lasiocarpa

Musella lasiocarpa

The banana tree is exotic and also creates a tropical vibe in the garden. The plant has golden yellow flowers ending up in a blue-green banana. But the fruit is not edible.

Musa velutina

Musa velutina

Now, this banana tree is a sight to see with its pink banana. The plant is an early bloomer and bears a lot of fruit. But again, you cannot eat the fruit as it is too seedy.

Musa Basjoo Banana Diseases & Pests

One thing you’ll find is that there are not many pests bothering your tree. Yet, during the winter months, too much moisture in the soil can lead to root rot. Other concerns are aphids and moths that eat on the leaves. To prevent them from destroying your plant, you can use a non-toxic insecticide.

Frequently Asked Questions

With full sun for up to 15 months and at the right temperature above 15oF (-9.4oC), it allows the plant to fruit. With optimum temperatures of 27oF (12.8oC)and above, you will notice the fruit ripen after two to four months.

During spring, when it is warm, you need to provide regular watering with feedings to help sustain growth. The hardy banana is a fast-growing plant.

According to the University of Florida IFAS Extension, the plant grows a mat of rhizomes, suckers, and roots. The roots can reach up to five feet deep and spread horizontally up to 16-feet.

The hardy banana you can find online from different retailers or at a local nursery. You’re in luck as Plantly can help you with this tropical tree to create an oasis in your backyard or home.

Whether you want to buy, sell or simply reach out to other plant enthusiasts, Plantly is the right place to be!

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