I purchased the Abyssinian banana in May of this year and planted it up into a pot with the understanding that it would be overwintered inside. The banana has become very large and probably needs to be repotted. My question is whether I should repot it now and grow on in larger pot until I bring it in, or is it better left in the smaller pot as it will probably have to come inside in a couple months? Not sure if it will root up enough in the larger pot? Do people cut these plants down and have them grow back the following spring? Any information would be greatly appreciated. This plant is absolutely beautiful, the growth on it is spectacular. Thank you CR
I planted mine out this year after it became too root bound. Now I have to devise a way of protecting it thru winter. Cheers, LPN.
I also planted mine out this year. But I intend to dig it up and repot it for the garage for the winter. They don't need a huge root ball and they seem to do well after moving.
Hi Palmera and LPN, When you overwinter your Ensete in garage, is it heated? Does it get light at all? The watering must not be frequent at all? I have a windmill palm (14ft) that I just protect the crown so water does not get in it and freeze and a New Zealand flax that is very large that I also protect in the winter. I intend on bringing the Ensete in the house, but could put in garage although it is not insulated and/or heated. CR
Hi CR, My garage is not heated, but it is attached to the house and I don't think it really freezes in there (but I haven't tested it). I have one narrow, East facing window that lets light in, but it's not bright. As for watering, I only gave a little water when needed to keep the soil from getting completely dry. Once a month or so. I envy your 14 footer palm as my largests are only in the 5 foot range. One day...
Windmill palms of that size, or any size for that matter, don't require winter protection. I leave small seedlings out in their flats for all of what winter has to offer, no problemo. All my NZ flax have never been protected and are thriving. An unheated and uninsulated garage won't be enough to winter your Ensete. Cheers, LPN.
LPN do i need to do much to my new zealand flax in abbotsford besides some good mulch around the base of it and maybe pulling all the blades together in a cluster ?
Abbotsford is a bit trickier for sure, colder in winter and warmer in summer than locations closer to the coast. Some Phormium species tend to be better at taking snow loads without laying over hard. Summer water sure speeds growth after such an event. You may have to experiment regarding the clustering of the leaves etc as I have no first hand experience. I'm a mile from the ocean and I leave mine as is. Cheers, LPN.
Abbostsfordpalmman, We have a New Zealand flax, that we cover in the winter as a precaution as we lost one many years ago. The snow load if we got one would flatten if we did not get out and brush it off. We pull the leaves all up (similar to the net that you used to see xmas trees in) loosely and cover with plastic. You need to take the plastic off as soon as the weather warms. This has worked for us for the past eight years and we now have a very large specimen. CR
thanks soo much for the tips. I have seen some in abbotsford that survived last winter but luckily i found at cedar rim nursery in langley they have an entire green house full of them! they have these ones that have spiraling blades and the most brilliant colours i have ever seen! it was absolutely AMAZING! if any of you are in the langley area you have to check out cedar rim! they also had TONS of windmill and mediterranean palms. Joe told me about them years ago and that is where i got my very first palms. Hey how about this story ... i was at art knapps and they marked the price of a flax wrong, it was supposed to be 89.99 and it was marked 29.99 and they gave it to me for that price, aswell as a small windmill palm for only 10 bucks!
by the way, if anyone is looking for a beautiful abyssinian banana, the abbotsford home depot has a very large beautiful one! i think they are asking 150 bucks for it if my memory is correct, but it is for sure a beauty. I dont know why they are selling it in abbotsford, it would be extrememly hard to winter here, although i have seen it done. ( i should probably add, it died a the next winter)
Cheaper still would be to get one at Tropic to Tropic as a small gallon sized plant, over winter it and plant it out the following year. You almost watch them grow! Cheers, LPN.
