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mattyb1

Musa Velutina

mattyb1
18 years ago

Hello all, I have acquired some Musa Velutina (Pink Fruting Banana or Purple Banana) from Costa Rica. Does anyone have any experience growing this? Thanks, Matt Bradford

Comments (8)

  • laterita
    18 years ago

    Matt,
    A very nice small banana, easy to flower.
    You can see a picture of one of my velutinas which flowered this summer. The stalk was about 4 feet high. It sprouted from seeds at feb 2004 and flowered at aug 2005. With a 4 months resting period. (winter)
    Good luck with it,
    Simon

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:422295}}

  • plantaholic
    18 years ago

    mine get 10-13 ft tall.....much taller than what most literature states. i have incredibly rich soil that is acidic. the easiest banana to flower/fruit from my experience. this banana actually reseeds all over my garden.

  • rubbleshop
    18 years ago

    I grow them too, and mine grow 10-12ft high too. I think they only flower low in pots. Produce pups which flower a couple of months after parents, so there is a continuous run of flowers, 'cos the pups make pups, which make pups.... Seeds very fertile too, but slugs are a threat to young velutina seedlings unlike most bananas.

    Mine have a nasty habit of picking winter to flower though, so I end up with a house full of bananas in flower.

  • dirt_dew
    18 years ago

    A house full of bananas in flower sounds good to me! LOL My ceilings are only 8'
    I just got my first seeds for Musa Velutina. They will be going in the ground when the weather warms in spring. For now they will stay inside in pots.

  • rubbleshop
    18 years ago

    A house full of flowers is not a joke! They get very scruffy too because they hate suddenly brought in to house low humidity! A house full of scruffy leaves with flowers!

    Do you want to live like this? See picture on link!

    Here is a link that might be useful:

  • baci
    18 years ago

    Rubbleshop, can you cut off your bad leaves or trim the damaged areas? Will it hurt the flowering or fruiting if you do so?

  • rubbleshop
    18 years ago

    Well, if I had brought them in earlier that would have been an option, but I brought them in because they were pushing up buds which means they will not grow new leaves, so the scruffy ones will have to suffice.

    Unlike Ensete, Musa is not properly monocarpic and leaves on the pups can feed growing bananas on the main plant if left connected. Best to leave all the leaves on though, even on the flowering stalk, as that would affect the size/number of bananas the plant is likely to manage set and grow.

  • dirt_dew
    18 years ago

    I think the leaves on the fruiting pseudostems will not help the fruit any longer in your kitchen. You could trim them to fit your tastes and needs.
    I DO empathise with you!
    I have a long wait for my seeds to sprout and then much longer before I see my own flower. I might have the same problem with late fruiting.
    For now, I will need to keep making space for them. I will start putting them outside in the ground in April and May.
    Thank you for sharing your experience.