If you like bananas, you may be happy to know that you can grow the plants yourself. Although many people living in subtropical countries grow them outdoors in their own gardens, it is actually possible to grow them in pots indoors as well. By getting the right material, the right plants, and taking care of them properly, you can grow them at home too. Within a year of planting you will be able to get the first fruits from your new banana tree!
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Getting the Correct Material
Step 1. Choose a dwarf banana variety
The standard plant can grow up to 15m tall and outgrows a common pot. When buying it, make sure it's the dwarf variety, which grows 1.5 to 4m and doesn't get too big for the container you bury it in. Search online to find commercially available dwarf bulbs.
The types of dwarf banana trees include Cavendish, Musa and others
Step 2. Purchase the corm or seedling at nurseries or online
The corm is the base of the tree and contains the roots. If you don't want to bury it and you don't want to wait for the tree to grow, you can buy a young seedling or a sucker; in this way, you avoid having to grow new suckers from the corm and the whole burying process becomes easier.
You can buy the young seedling or the corm at nurseries
Step 3. Make sure the soil is well-draining and slightly acidic
This plant prefers soil that you drain well. When looking for the right type of soil, opt for a good blend of peat, perlite and vermiculite; you can look for a specific soil mixture for cacti or palm trees, which is also perfect for banana trees. This type of soil is sold in bags at major nurseries and garden centers.
- Some types of soil are not suitable for this plant, for example standard soil or that found in the garden or vegetable garden.
- The banana tree prefers a soil with a pH of 5.6-6.5.
Step 4. Choose a deep pot that offers adequate drainage
Start by taking a 6 to 8-inch tall pot with a hole for drainage. never plant the banana tree in a completely closed container. Also make sure the pot is deep enough for the roots to expand properly. When choosing the container, you must also consider its material; choose one in ceramic, plastic, metal or wood according to your budget.
- When the tree gets too big for the first pot, transfer it to a larger one.
- When it gets big enough for a 12 '' container, switch to one that's 10-15cm larger every two to three years.
Part 2 of 3: Plant the Banana
Step 1. Rinse the corm thoroughly with warm water
This is an important step before burying to remove any parasites that may be present, as well as any bacterial or fungal colonies.
Step 2. Dig a small hole in the ground
Fill the pot with the soil you bought at the nursery and use a spade to create a small hole about 8 cm deep right in the center; you may have to dig even a little deeper to accommodate the corm according to its size. Make sure there is enough space around it so that you can insert the plant deep into the pot. To check the right conditions, put the corm in the hole and make sure that 20% of the plant body is outside the hole itself; this portion must remain exposed until the first shoots develop. Once the bulb is buried, fill the surrounding space with soil.
Step 3. Bury the corm and cover the roots
Place it in the hole you just dug, with the roots facing down. In this phase, make sure that the circumference of the pot is 7-8 cm from the plant to offer the roots enough space to grow well; remember to expose the top 20% to the air until the first leaves appear.
When the first shoots or suckers start to appear, you can cover the rest of the corm with compost
Step 4. Water the banana tree
Wet it thoroughly with a garden hose as soon as you've buried it, making sure you soak the soil well. Take the pot outdoors and let the water run out through the drainage holes; after the initial watering the soil must remain moist, but not excessively soaked.
Do not place the container on a saucer, as the water could stagnate, with the risk that colonies of bacteria and rot develop
Part 3 of 3: Caring for the Plant
Step 1. Fertilize the tree once a month
Use a fertilizer rich in magnesium, potassium, and nitrogen to promote growth; mix the soluble one with water or spread the granular one on the ground. By regularly fertilizing the plant, you provide the roots with the right nutrients, minerals and promote their growth.
- In spring and summer you can do this once a week.
- If you can't find a soluble fertilizer specifically for tropical plants, consider getting a balanced 20-20-20 one.
- Popular products include Agrium, Haifa, Potash Corp, and Yara International, which you can also find online on e-commerce sites.
Step 2. Water the tree regularly
Make sure that the soil under the banana tree remains moist at all times; to check this you can insert a finger into the ground to check if it is dry or not. To ensure ideal conditions, make sure it is always moist to a depth of 1.5 cm. Provide watering daily to keep the soil moist and moisturize the roots.
If the surface portion of the earth is too saturated, you have probably spilled too much water
Step 3. Make sure the banana tree gets indirect sunlight
It is best to place it in a shady place where it is not exposed to direct sunlight. If you live in a temperate region, you can keep it outdoors during the summer when it's hot; place it in a spot sheltered from the foliage of other plants that blocks the sun's rays. Rotate the pot regularly so that all sides of the plant can receive sunlight; if you decide to keep it indoors instead, place it in front of a large window so that it can still receive an adequate amount of natural light.
- The ideal temperature for it to grow properly is 26-30 ° C.
- If it drops below 14 ° C, most banana trees stop developing.
Step 4. Prune the plant
After 6-8 weeks of healthy and steady growth, the banana tree must be pruned, as suckers begin to form during development. The goal is to eliminate all but one of them; choose the healthier, larger one and use garden shears to remove all the others from the corm. Once the plant begins to bear fruit, you need to prune further; after harvesting the bananas, cut the plant so that it is about 75 cm tall, being careful not to damage the main sucker. The tree produces more fruit after this procedure.
- The sucker looks like a shoot that grows from the outside of the corm and develops leaves.
- You can replant the other suckers to get new banana plants, but in this case you need to take some roots from the original corm.
Step 5. Bring the tree indoors when temperatures drop below 14 ° C
Cold weather and intense winds are not good for the plant and can block fruit growth. If you know that cold winds blow in your garden, consider bringing the banana tree indoors or protecting it by placing it inside a row of trees; if the season is changing, it is best to get the plant indoors before the cold starts.
Keep in mind that it begins to die when temperatures reach 10 ° C
Step 6. Transplant the banana tree when it outgrows the pot
You have to transfer it to a larger container before the roots are too crowded; you can understand that the time has come to proceed when it no longer grows in height. Lay it on its side and slide it out of the jar; put the earth in the new container and then place the tree inside it before filling the rest of the space with soil. Move carefully during the procedure so as not to damage the roots.
