IMO, storing them is easier, more predictable and results in larger plants. That being said, you don't have to limit yourself to basjoo, there are many other varieties that handle digging/ storage easily. The advantage to basjoo is that they can grow at cooler temps than other more exotic banana varieties.

Storing them in a garage is perfect. I place the rootballs into garbage bags filled with some bark mulch, then lay the stems on their sides.

I give them a head start by potting them up about a month before they are placed outdoors to acclimate. Indoors, with warmth, water and some light they grow quickly. When ready for planting, I just pull them out of the pots, without much care for the rootball, and stick 'em in the ground. They are not finicky and can deal with some abuse.

If warm and moist enough they can unfurl a leaf per week, so keep that in mind during the indoor growing period. But those weak indoor leaves will look bad once exposed to the outdoor wind and sun. The function of those leaves is just to get the plant started. New leaves will grow outdoors that will dominate.

During active growth they can take all the sun, water and fertilizer you can give them - as long as the soil does not remain muddy.

I got a pot of dwarf cavendishes because they were a lot cheaper (10 dollars for a couple three-feet tall plants?) and somewhat nicer looking, too. From my understanding, I overwinter them the same way (Dig them up, remove all but the last unfurled leaf, and store somewhere dark and cold till the temperatures are in the 50s). Anyway, since these are less cold tolerant than basjoos, when should I uproot and store it for the winter? Like, what's the temperature range I need to look for that tells me they need to go into storage?

Also, if at all possible, I'd like to grow it in a large container on the back porch. I get the impression that container growing works for these from some of the things I've read. The plant has four or five trunks, so I'm not sure if the corms have multiple trunks, or if there are multiple seperate plants I need to divide, or how big of a container I should use (if that would, in fact, work).

Also, is there any reason why these would be harmful to dogs?

Amccour,

I had an esete (Abyssinian banana) that grew on the patio last summer. I brought the pot indoors for winter and placed in a bright north window (sunny window would have been better but it was all I had). I watered very sparingly throughout winter (which I think is the key as it's not actively growing), in fact I'm surprised the plant didn't wilt.

I also sprayed once in a while with neem oil mixture just to ward off bugs, and made sure no heating vents blew hot dry air on the plant (which would be an invitation for spider mites.

The plant looked okay all winter, got nice new indoor growth in spring (nice green but thinner weak leaves due to not that strong light), but the indoor growth pretty well got tattered and damaged once the plant went outside. We had a few sunny but very windy days. Anyways, I started the plant off on morning sun and now it's moved to full day sun. The new leaves look great. The plant only has maybe 5 leaves but it's 4 feet high so makes a nice impact (rather than starting a new seedling every year).

As for musa basjoo, I started a couple of plants too, so hopefully can overwinter them somehow, either cool storage or as a houseplant.

Glen

If it'll work, I'd like to seperate some of the corms this fall, try growing some indoors in a non-dormant but not-really-active state as houseplants, and garage the rest.