In winter, a tropical indoor banana palm suffers from a lack of light and heating heat. Outside, the freezing frost and permanent wintry wet make the banana tree despair. With the right measures, you can see your banana safely through the critical winter period. This is how you hibernate a banana palm indoors and outdoors in an exemplary manner.
Temperatures between 12 and 15°C are ideal for the banana palm in winter
Tropical banana palm overwinter bright and cool
A tropical banana palm tree will take offense if winter care is left the same. Your exotic houseplant cannot cope with the combination of short days, long nights and heating up to the limit. For the right hibernation, the wonderful edible banana (Musa paradisiaca) and other tropical bananas require important modifications in terms of location and care. How to do it right:
- relocation: Banana palm relocate to a light, cool location
- general conditions: Temperatures from 12° to 15° Celsius, humidity 60%, sunny position
- pour: pour soft, room-warm water when the substrate is noticeably dry (finger test)
- nutrient supply: every 4 to 6 weeks, add half the concentration of liquid fertilizer to the irrigation water
Recommended winter quarters for a banana palm are moderately heated conservatories and greenhouses as well as bright, temperate entrance areas or stairwells. The banana will be happy to keep you company in the light-flooded, cool bedroom during the winter time.
Hardy banana palm - winter protection is obligatory
The Japanese fiber banana (Musa basjoo) bravely braves slightly sub-zero temperatures outside in the bed. If the thermometer falls below - 3° Celsius, the banana palm becomes limp and dies. Equip a hardy banana with winter protection and the icy frost and snow become less frightening. Because the banana palm is actually a perennial, pruning is the first thing on the agenda. How to overwinter a banana palm outside:
pruning
- Grab a folding saw (€17.70) or handsaw
- Cut back banana shoots to 50-100 cm (hip height is ideal)
- Cut the outer stems slightly shorter than the middle
Put on winter protection
Build a protective wall around the cut-back banana palm using wooden panels, straw mats or Styrofoam panels. Fix the wall with sisal ropes or ratchet straps. Line the interior of the winter box with straw to keep it nice and warm. As a cover, use an air-permeable garden fleece that is tied to the protective wall with weatherproof cords.
tips
Great weather in winter means an increased risk of drought stress for your banana palm in the garden. If there is no snow or rain, the banana can dry up in its winter box. If you are doing your rounds outside with a clear blue sky and frosty temperatures, please take a watering can with you and water your thirsty banana palm tree under the winter protection.