Hello, we live in Nanaimo on Central Vancouver Island. We have two Musa Basjoo that have not at least 8 pups each. They are growing like crazy. Since it is nearing Fall, is this the time to seperate the pups to plant elsewhere? Also, from what I have read, the bananas stop growing at -2 degrees Celcius. When do we cut the leaves off for mulch and wrap the plants with pipe insulation for Winter? Is there a specific temperature to watch for? We just obtained these banana this Spring need some help and direction to preserve these beautiful plants for next year. Thank you! Vanessa
OK, definitely time to separate the pups. Do you know how? If not, I can walk you through it; it's fairly simple. Your basjoos will definitely stop growing at -2; you'll actually notice them slowing down around +5, though. The general wisdom is to wait for the first frost to kill back the leaves, then cut the whole patch down to about 6" from the ground and mulch it in well. However, if you're going to try to save the pseudostems by insulating them, you'll need to take off the leaves on the first day you notice the temperatures have dipped below about +5 - at that point you won't be interfering with growth.
Thank you Lorax for your knowledge - I'm just wondering, how do you insulate the pups - I have some from 1 foot to three feet - do you wrap them separately, like you to the main plant with pipe insulation? Vanessa
I'd actually bring the pups inside in pots for this winter. Basjoo's survival is best when there's a reasonably large chunk of corm underground, and the pups won't have that this season. If you pot them up and bring them in, they'll have a chance to develop more rootmass, and you can plant them out again in the spring (and they, subsequently, will have a bit of a headstart on the mother plant, ensuring that you'll have that lovely foliage in the garden right from the get-go.)
