Here is a link to just about everything you need to know about bananas.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/banana.html

Possibly next summer.

topher2006, good topic. I've just began wondering about fruiting in bananas. When does a banana tree decide when it's ready to fruit? Take a banana three that's starting it's second year in the ground. It had been dug up and stored for winter. The only thing that was cut off of it were the leaves. I've always thought that it was a certain amount of leaves that the plant produced. But if the plant has to be stored every winter, with the leaves chopped off, does that effect the tree as to when it will fruit? Or is it just age, in which case it doesn't matter if it's stored and has it's leaves removed? In this case, it will take longer.

Gardenguy,
I have a couple of dwarf musa's cavendishes that this is there 3rd year in the ground,and I didn't remove the leaves for storing over winter,kept them potted up and growing albiet,they were growing very slow,and planted them in the ground late April,there getting close to 8ft tall to the top of the leaves,and there pups 3 of them are almost as tall,being a couple inches shorter,I thought for sure they would flower,but not yet,I took a pup away last fall and planted it in the ground in the greenhouse and she is a least 10ft tall,to top of her tallest leaf,I'm wondering if the pup will flower and fruit before the mother????
Don

Hi all,
Under any circumstances, as long as itis healthily
survived, it begins to flower after 30th-40th leaves are
presented. This is the basic rule.
So according to the conditions including temp.,sun, humid.,
fertilizer etc, it takes 15 months, or 40 months.

thanks all i appreciate it and so does my nanner : )

Dbryal
Everyone i know down here doesn't trim them at all
they just dig them up wrap them in a blanket and put them in a dark place after last frost they replant them
they realy look dead ! but they are actually dormant and they come right back without you losing any of your banana try it !

Topher,I have done them that way,under the crawl space,and a few have rotted,I have better luck,potting them up,mist the leaves and water them once a month.I get a faster start come spring time that way!

Oh, i have heard they won't fruit that way

And why's that?

not real sure that's just what i have always been told.

Digging them up and the resulting loss of root mass is very stressful. Stress always affects flowering and fruiting. How close the plant was to flowering wqhen it was dug up also plays a role. So, all that to say, it will not necessarily prevent flowering and fruiting, but could have major impact on that event. The Cavendish varieties, for me, fruit poorly if I remove a pup too close to flowering, and that is not near as stressful as digging and storing.

This guy is realy growing gives me a new leaf about every 3 days !