Dwarf Cavender Banana in a pot...UPDATE 2009..NOW FLOWERING!

[damethod]

In my excitement I forgot to update the other banana plant that I purchased out of impulse(small one picture in pott). It turned out that it was not a fruiting banana tree at all! I went ahead and dug it up and replaced it with another banana tree. An apple banana, also known as manzano, which happens to be my favorite. I purchased it online and planted it in the pott, then into the ground. Here is a pic of it:

[img]https://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b158/damethod/mailordertreesandmangoflowers001.jpg[/img]

It's actually a bit larger now since this pic was taken about a month ago.

[hendi_alex]

I bought two dwarf bananas last year, to try here in S.C. Don't remember the variety but was an inexpenive type that gets up to about 6 feet tall and has four inch bananas. The plants came last spring, tiny things in four inch pots. They have really thrived and are now over three feet tall and growing well in my green house, can't wait until this summers burst of growth. These are doing so well I've ordered a second typle from Raintreenursery.com. The banana is related to Dwarf Cavendish banana or 'Mahoi' but grows double and sometimes triple clumps of bananas. Gets about 7' tall in a large pot.

Here is one of those eight inch plants that was in a three or four inch pot last spring. It is now over three feet tall after one season and its roots are filling this aproximate three gallon container.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3370/3234223842_127acffd2e.jpg[/img]

Here is the second plant with similar results. Have been very happy how well they have continued to grow through the winter.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3405/3234223612_eebede515d.jpg[/img]

[damethod]

Very nice! Bananas seem almost effortless to grow. Give them warmth, water, and some fertilizer and they will grow quickly and produce within a year! The only real work is not letting too many banana plants grow at once since they produce new plants from rhizomes underground.

Todays updated pic of dwarf cavendish bananas:

[img]https://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b158/damethod/DCbananas001.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b158/damethod/DCbananas002.jpg[/img]


It looks like I'll have about 100 from this one plant!

[spoiltmom]

Do these taste like regular bananas?

I'm very interested now.

[damethod]

I should have an answer for you before April. I will update.

[rhinosaur]

Hey, very cool. You've got bananas!

I remember my grandparents had a banana tree in their yard in Panama City when I was a kid. I think it produced fruit but I can't remember eating it. Maybe it wasn't the kind of banana that's good to eat.

[damethod]

Maybe it was a plantain or cooking banana. There are well over 50 different types of edible bananas. Some are only used for cooking while others are eaten fresh. I currently have 3 that are meant to be eaten fresh and would like to add a plantain plant if I can get one.

[spoiltmom]

So have you tried any of them yet? I'm still curious about how they taste. I'm seriously thinking about buying some.

[damethod]

They are plumping up now, but still not ready to be picked. It looks like I'll be tasting them around early May.

I actually cut off the flower head about a week ago and they immediately starting swelling. I read that cutting off the flower head and inedible male flowers speeds the developement of the fruit. Let's see.

A woman who leaves her child at my Mother's daycare has a Dwarf Cav as well. She sent me some of her fruit to try and they were exactly like grocery bananas, just smaller. I'm hopeful that I will have the same results.

[damethod]

There are sooo many varieties of bananas. There are 80 different types at the Fruit & Spice Park in Homestead, FL alone. My personal favorite are manzano or manzanilla bananas. Lady fingers are also delicious, but tiny. I've heard Jamaican Reds are delicious, but have not tried them... If you are in zone 9 or higher, it's worth a shot.

Here are some good sites for research, and/or to purchase your plants.

Research:
https://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/banana.html

https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/MG040

https://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/banana.html

Web site with info AND offers banana trees for sale:

https://www.going-bananas.com/

I edited the post to fix a spelling error and to remove a link to a site that I had a bad experience with and did not want to recommend.

[damethod]

UPDATE: I am now eating delicious bananas! My camera is not working properly, so I can't take pics...but, I have given away 2 dozen bananas, frozen a dozen, and still have well over 50 bananas!

I left to Vegas for a week on the 29th of May...when I came back, I found the banana bunch had broken free from the mother plant and fallen on the ground! I picked up the bunch(about 100 lbs!) and hung them for 2 days. I then cut the individual hands, washed them thoroughly, and then packed them in boxes lined with plastic. 2 days later I had ripe bananas!

They do indeed taste like grocery store bananas...but a tiny bit sweeter. DELICIOUS!

So, to recap... Dwarf Cavendish Banana = 12-13 months from planting to harvest.

[applestar]

Wow! That is SO COOL!
Sitting here, 60ºF this mid-June morning, I can't see me growing one.
Maybe someday, if I'm extra good, Santa will bring me a heated greenhouse...

Thanks for sharing your experience!

[Earl K]

Hmmm,Now I'm thinking about a banana tree.I love me some nanners

[spoiltmom]

I must get one of these now. Thanks for keep us updated!