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blackwillow87

Musa 'Ice Cream' Progress

blackwillow87
11 years ago

I bought a musa 'Ice Cream' plant in June. It struggled in the heat and drought and several leaves have been scorched, despite plenty of water. Since the temperatures have cooled down, it's starting to grow again. Last week it put out a very large leaf, and this week an even larger(3 feet) leaf emerged. I'm hoping it starts growing in height soon. I'm giving it plenty of water and weekly fertilizer. Here are some pictures of its progress.

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Comments (4)

  • User
    11 years ago

    I love your pics!
    I just got my new little baby blue java yesterday and it is so little and cute!
    i enjoyed your pics to see what my little baby might look like next year.
    Your java is definately alot bigger than mine so I am going to keep in small pot til next summer.
    Does it get afternoon shade?
    It looks nice and healthy, you are doing a great job with it!

  • blackwillow87
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thanks! I hope your baby blue java grows great for you. Keeping it in a small pot is good idea. I don't know if I want to bring mine indoors for winter, or leave it in the ground and put mulch around it. I may just bring it indoors. I made the mistake of not planting it in area that gets afternoon shade. Next year I'll plant it in another spot. The leaves got sunburned when the temperature was a little over 100. I think the low humidity also caused the leaves to get sunburned faster. I'm hoping it puts out a lot of growth before late fall. Are you going to eventually plant your blue java?

  • User
    11 years ago

    I really want to plant it in the ground, I think it might be hardy to zone 8 with alot of mulch around it.
    I don't have very good soil at all, so I was going to try to keep in pot til I can build a raised bed for it. It's really tiny right now, I am afraid to leave it outside this winter because it is so small.
    My goal is to keep it outside when it gets older, yours is probably going to be fine outside this winter, but my little one will die.
    I think they are suppose to be hardy in zone 8, and when it gets bigger, I can always wrap it in burlap if it gets too cold.
    I hope mine grows as good as yours did.

  • blackwillow87
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I have a friend that lives a few miles away and his blue java comes back every year. He covered it with a tarp and that caused a lot the corm to rot. Luckily some of the corm survived and he had several baby bananas the next year.I live on the border of zone7b and 8a. I wouldn't mind my blue java producing fruit, but I would have to bring the whole plant indoors to save as much of the pseudostem as possible. I have horrible, rocky clay soil, so my banana is planted a little higher than the surrounding soil. Next year I'm going to dig out most of the clay soil, and put in good topsoil and compost. I mixed the native soil with compost and topsoil, but it still gets compacted. You're right about overwintering your plant this year. I think I still planted mine too late, so I'm not sure about the size of the corm. I'll probably end up digging it up to be on the safe side lol. This winter maybe colder and wetter than normal here, which would definitely kill a banana plant. Yours should do great for you, and by early spring, you will already have a larger plant. I've lost a few bananas indoors because of lighting and overwatering. I've learned from my mistakes now lol.

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