Protect your banana plants from the winter cold.
Banana trees, which are tropical plants, do not survive harsh winters without protection. These plants prove delicate when the temperatures dip. Keep your plant alive throughout the winter so it will grow back in the spring. Properly cared-for banana plants can produce fruit from a flower 10 to 15 months after planting, but this means that the trees must survive the winter. Once the banana plant grows a flower, it can produce up to an entire hand of bananas per day as the flower rolls back. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Dig up the banana plant's rhizome after the first frost, when frost covers the ground and the temperatures dip into the lower 30s, near freezing. Look for the leaves to darken to indicate the plant has gone into dormancy.
2. Place the base of the banana plant into a black plastic garbage bag, tying it snugly.
3. Store the banana plant in a cool, protected spot with temperatures from 40 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit. An attached garage or unheated basement are both good options for storage.
4. Cut off the top portion of the plant 4 inches above the root ball after the last frost of the spring.
5. Replant the banana in its original site in your yard. New growth will begin in a few weeks.
Tags: banana plant, banana plants