Ensette Maurelli.

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karl66
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Ensette Maurelli.

Post by karl66 »

This is my first year with growing bananas, i bought the above in the house approx 5wks ago & there growth rate has doubled!!, is this normal when bought indoors?. My Basjoo's & Sikimmensis have slowed down big time but they are planted out. karl.
kata

Re: Ensette Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by kata »

Where is your Image Karl, you said Image above.

Stop watering.

I found this Karl:
The main purpose for winter care of bananas is to protect the pseudostem, which allows for large plants that may flower and fruit, along with increasing survivability of marginal plants. There are two techniques for protecting the pseudostem of your banana. First, you can dig and pot the plant in the fall and keep it growing indoors in a warm location. If space is a problem, consider digging the plant in fall and store it dormant in a cool location that can be kept above freezing. If this still sounds like too much hassle, consider mulching the plant in the ground. We prefer the latter, since it has proven the most successful for us and requires less indoor space. Our procedure for overwintering bananas in the ground is as follows:

1. Once freezing temperatures have caused the leaves to turn brown and collapse, cut off the top of the plant, leaving 3-4' of pseudostem remaining. It is okay to leave the brown leaves on the plant since they will provide additional insulation.

2. Construct a cage around the trunk using rebar and concrete reinforcing wire (this is a sturdier material than chicken wire). Drive the rebar into the ground 2' from the outermost pseudostem to create supports for the wire. Two or three should be sufficient. Use the concrete reinforcing wire to wrap the stakes, forming a cage. Secure the wire to the stakes with zip ties or string.

3. Fill the cage with shredded leaves. It is important to shred the leaves since whole leaves can hold water, clump together and cause the plant to rot. We rake the leaves onto a lawn area and use a mulching mower to bag them for use. Most municipalities which collect leaves run them though a large shredder, and the result is usually perfect for this purpose. Do not use pine straw, hay, or grass clippings since they do provide the proper amount of insulation and aeration. Without this protection, the plant would die to the ground and need to begin from the soil line in spring.
4. When new banana leaves start to emerge in spring, remove the cage and spread the shredded leaf mixture around the base of the plant where it will continue to decompose and provide rich compost for your banana plant.

If the mulching we outlined isn't feasible for you, then dig the entire plant from the ground after it has gone dormant, remove the soil from the roots and wrap the plant first in newspaper and then in plastic bags. This plant can be stored in a room at 45 °F (7 °C) and ignored until spring.
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Re: Ensette Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by Dave Brown »

Good luck in finding a supplier of 'Rebar' this side of the Atlantic, and definately don't try using Kata's method for for any non hardy Banana :wink:
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karl66
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Re: Ensette Ensete v Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by karl66 »

kata wrote:Where is your Image Karl, you said Image above.

Stop watering.

I found this Karl:
The main purpose for winter care of bananas is to protect the pseudostem, which allows for large plants that may flower and fruit, along with increasing survivability of marginal plants. There are two techniques for protecting the pseudostem of your banana. First, you can dig and pot the plant in the fall and keep it growing indoors in a warm location. If space is a problem, consider digging the plant in fall and store it dormant in a cool location that can be kept above freezing. If this still sounds like too much hassle, consider mulching the plant in the ground. We prefer the latter, since it has proven the most successful for us and requires less indoor space. Our procedure for overwintering bananas in the ground is as follows:

1. Once freezing temperatures have caused the leaves to turn brown and collapse, cut off the top of the plant, leaving 3-4' of pseudostem remaining. It is okay to leave the brown leaves on the plant since they will provide additional insulation.

2. Construct a cage around the trunk using rebar and concrete reinforcing wire (this is a sturdier material than chicken wire). Drive the rebar into the ground 2' from the outermost pseudostem to create supports for the wire. Two or three should be sufficient. Use the concrete reinforcing wire to wrap the stakes, forming a cage. Secure the wire to the stakes with zip ties or string.

3. Fill the cage with shredded leaves. It is important to shred the leaves since whole leaves can hold water, clump together and cause the plant to rot. We rake the leaves onto a lawn area and use a mulching mower to bag them for use. Most municipalities which collect leaves run them though a large shredder, and the result is usually perfect for this purpose. Do not use pine straw, hay, or grass clippings since they do provide the proper amount of insulation and aeration. Without this protection, the plant would die to the ground and need to begin from the soil line in spring.
4. When new banana leaves start to emerge in spring, remove the cage and spread the shredded leaf mixture around the base of the plant where it will continue to decompose and provide rich compost for your banana plant.

If the mulching we outlined isn't feasible for you, then dig the entire plant from the ground after it has gone dormant, remove the soil from the roots and wrap the plant first in newspaper and then in plastic bags. This plant can be stored in a room at 45 °F (7 °C) and ignored until spring.
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Image above icon_scratch . karl.
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Yorkshire Kris
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Re: Ensette Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by Yorkshire Kris »

It's much easier to put these to sleep for winter (dry them out) rather than over winter in the house.

Things you have to contend with are:

green fly
Red Spider Mite
flies
other bugs
dripping onto the floor and carpets
having to water
stretched growth
running out of room!
feeding (possibly).


Basically its more work to overwinter ensetes in the house, whilst growing compared to storing them dry or keeping them a bit cooler.
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karl66
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Re: Ensette Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by karl66 »

Kris, i think the problem lies with amount of water i've given them :lol: . They will be through the ceiling come febuary. karl.
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Re: Ensette Ensete v Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by Yorkshire Kris »

karl66 wrote:Kris, i think the problem lies with amount of water i've given them :lol: . They will be through the ceiling come febuary. karl.
Mine already are!
sanatic1234

Re: Ensette Ensete v Ensete v Maurelii.

Post by sanatic1234 »

karl66 wrote:Kris, i think the problem lies with amount of water I've given them :lol: . They will be through the ceiling come february. karl.
My maurelli's didn't stop growing till Feb this year when i lifted them last winter, then i started it off again beginning of April. so just goes to show how they can keep on growing for such a long time till they run out of water.
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