Cultivating a banana tree in your own garden is a particular attraction for many hobby gardeners. Getting such plants to flower is a challenge in itself. The promotion of the fruit is considered a real supreme discipline.
Bananas are in season all year round
origin and growth
Banana plants grow in tropical conditions and are harvested year-round in Central and South America. Since they are not subject to climatic fluctuations here, they produce fruit at any time of the year. Harvested green, the tropical fruits are exported with slight cooling. They then ripen further, converting the starch they contain into sugar. Bananas are in season in supermarkets all year round. The banana plant in the garden, on the other hand, follows a different rhythm.
Make a banana plant bloom
Despite its tropical origin, you can plant a banana in your garden. The heavily consuming plant needs a good supply of nutrients. Potassium-rich fertilizers encourage flowering when it's time. Soil and light conditions are also important for the perennial to flower.
These varieties are suitable:
- Musa Basjoo: 'Nana' and 'Saporro' are frost hardy down to -12°C
- Musa sikkimensis: 'Red Tiger' is hardy to -10°C
- Musa x paradisica: 'Dwarf Cavendish' is a non-hardy edible banana for the tub
flowering season
It takes a few years for a banana tree to flower. Under optimal conditions, this happens from the fifth year, and with some species for the first time in the third year. The strikingly large flowers are surrounded by purple bracts and exude a sweet honey scent. If the banana tree develops flowers, it means death for the mother plant. However, it has formed numerous offshoots in the root area, which continue to grow after it dies.
Do the perennials produce fruit?
In principle, it is possible for fruit to develop on a banana plant you cultivate yourself. In the tropics, birds are responsible for pollinating the hermaphrodite flowers. From a botanical point of view, however, these berries need optimal conditions to ripen.
development
After flowering, it can take up to 180 days, and with good care between 80 and 100 days, for the first mini bananas to appear. It takes another three to four months before the fruits are ready to be harvested. In most cases, the bananas rot on the perennial. The warm period of the Central European summer is not sufficient for full fruit ripening, so cultivation in a greenhouse makes more sense.
tips
When you see the first fruit buds, remove any remaining inflorescences. In this way, the perennial can invest all of its energy in the development of the existing fruits.
use flowers
The flowers are a typical ingredient for Asian dishes, salads or provide a vegan fish alternative. Similar to artichokes, the heart is stripped of the petals so only the inside is used.