Hi, Vancouver/White Rock BC area Last year spring 2013 we planted outdoors several hardy banana musa basjoo. They grew well, healthy and very fun in front of our home. From 2.5' to about 5 feet and one grew to about 8 feet, all started the same size. It is now May 11 2014, though a cool spring for sure, there is no sign of growth. Does it need to warmer for them to start growing? Not sure if they are dead or slow to grow back after the winter. They are hardy to -20 F ! Any suggestions would be appreciated. Vsby
It's wasn't so much the cold that did them in (they can handle that) but the freezing. It's true we had a week long cold spell of -10C in December and another in January, but the big problem was the damp, wet conditions prior to the freezing. When everything froze, this meant the moisture around and inside the corms froze too; instant death. You can check and see if there's any firmness left in the corm (root); if it's soft and/or mushy then I'm afraid you've lost your plants. I lost all my bananas this past winter; a beautiful mat of 8 basjoo plants ranging up to 10ft in height, as well as a collection of unusual semi-hardy bananas (I couldn't protect them from the dampness). .....I'm sorry for your lose.....
Thank you...we will check it out right away...thanks...and then if it is a loss, time to plant something else...too bad they look so great in front of our mexican style home... Appreciate the help S
