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needinfo001

Can i leave my dwarf banana in the ground for winter?

needinfo001
9 years ago

I have a dwarf banana tree. It is supposed to be hardy to my area. It is still very small and only has maybe 8 leaves.
Im i take it out if the ground can i keep it growing inside? i want it to have friut next year.

I think it is called the dwarf orinoco

Comments (7)

  • appleseed70
    9 years ago

    no....dwarf Orinoco is not even a truly cold hearty variety from my research and in fact no banana will survive 7B winters unprotected...well, maybe the roots could survive in a mild winter. but no bananas can tolerate frost at all.

    I'm not a banana guy at all...this was just a 20 sec. online search.

  • waiting_gw
    9 years ago

    There are banana-specific forums where you might get more responses. One is here at gardenweb, but it is not very busy. Another is not part of gardenweb, with lots of traffic. Google is your friend. Sometimes. In this instance.

    gary

  • larry_gene
    9 years ago

    Various non-fruiting bananas here in zone 8b come back reliably from roots, but in 7b you may need to use a foot of compost for winter protection.

  • mamuang_gw
    9 years ago

    I've seen Musa Basjoo growing in the Berkshire (zone 5). It dies to the ground and comes back up from the root. Need a lot of mulch to protect the root.

    I grow a few dwarf cavendish in pots. I need to bring them in before frost bites!!!

  • jean001a
    9 years ago

    The lower the prevailing temps, the longer the time to fruiting.

    Even if yours survives, it will need more than next year to fruit.

    When I grew the dwarf in SoCal, w/ much higher temps year-round, 18 months were required for fruit.
    In a normal tropical climate, just 9 months.

  • gregbradley
    9 years ago

    A hardy banana is one that can take near freezing. In other words, my zone 9b would have no damage to an unprotected tree some years. It would have no damage most years in protected locations or with some additional protection. They need some protection in some winters in Zone 10a!

    Some mean hardy in that it the roots would survive freezing or a couple degrees below and the plant would grow back from the roots.

    Zone 7b would need a greenhouse and heat.

    This post was edited by GregBradley on Wed, Oct 15, 14 at 18:46

  • canadianplant
    9 years ago

    don't think k Orinoco will survive, even the roots. maybe if its planted right up against a south wall, cut down to a stump and buried in leaves like northern basjoo growers. basjoo will.do well there with minimal.protection. itinerans might, same with musella. yunnanensis may as well. sikkimensis should with protection. they will die down to.the ground every winter in your zone. research how northern growers protect musa basjoo, or dig it.up and.pot it for the winter