Yes to both questions. Ensetes will do fine in full sun as well as houseplants. I grew 2 of them in my basement last winter, with small glass block windows on the north and west side, and a 4 foot flourescent light. It wasn't very bright, but they continued to grow. I watered them at least once a week, and they put out a new leaf about once every week and a half.
They're now in the ground, in full sun, and doing great. The larger was 4 feet tall when i got it last fall, and is now fuller, 3 feet taller, and a much thicker trunk/stem than when i first got it. My only concern is that I won't be able to lift it out of the ground to put it back into a pot because of how heavy it will be.

That's great to hear!!! :D

My only concern is that I won't be able to lift it out of the ground to put it back into a pot because of how heavy it will be.

Yeah, how do I do this in the future too? Can we cut them about 3 ft from ground so that we let go of all the leaves then bring them in our basement in a dark location?

This question usally gets asked here after someone has had them as a house plant and E.ventricosum 'Maurelii' stretches so badly that it nearly topples over, and usally has to be chopped back severly. Having tried with larger plants (1 gallon and up) I'm sorry to say they really suck for overwintering indoors in low light situations, but a possible solution could be a fan blasting air on it to keep it a bit less leggy.

The Pseudostems store well in basements when the get larger, as long as it doesn't get warm enough for growth.

Neil, I have also had them in the basement under very low light conditions,and I have been very surprised how well they do under these conditions. It helps to keep them cool. That way they don't grow so fast. In the past, these are the ones that I have cut all of the leaves off of, and cut the stem to three feet high. By the time Spring comes, they have grown 4-5 leaves. Yes, it is a hassle to transfer them to pots. You usually need a 15 gallon pot if they are fairly large. But worth the hassle!

Hi Kevin,

I received my banana today. Thanks for the tips again. Can I remove the outer leaves upto the part close to the roots? This way, the stem becomes thinner.

{{gwi:422438}}

What a great picture, even while young they are striking looking.

I overwintered a 'basic' ensete last winter, north kitchen window with bright light which maybe got a bit of sun toward late winter and early spring. Anyways, I watered very sparingly and sprayed once in a while with neem oil and water/detergent as a precaution. Also, if the plant is near a forced hot air vent, that's not a good idea as that would encourage spider mites. you can use an heat vent air deflector though.

The one thing is the new leaves the plant develops indoors in winter look nice, but I don't think they're as strong as the ones the plant develops outdoors in better light. Thus, when the plant went back outdoors in spring the wind easily tore the leaves and the sun burnt some of them, but by the time summer came it all but replaced all those indoor leaves with stronger leaves.

The only thing is I grew my ensete in a slightly bigger pot this summer and it was fairly rootbound, didn't gain that much in height. This winter I'm trying to store the root in the basement which should be interesting as my basement isn't that cold.

Glen

Sorry for the delay in reply, Neil. Yes, you can remove the older leaves down almost to the soil line. As the plant matures and the leaves dry out, you can pull them all the way off. I just brought in my big one from outside. It stands 10 1/2 feet high in my living room, and has a circumference of 3 feet at the base. It is becoming a monster, but is definitely impressive in my house.

Kevin

NP Kevin. I also didn't have internet access for 2 days. My firewall went down.

Anyways, 3 ft circumference is huge. Does someone help you carry it inside? I'm very interested how it is planted now. Is it planted in a large pot? Can you take a pic please? Mine right now is in the basement and in a pot. It gets only 20 to 30 minutes of sunlight. The color is still the same. New leaf is coming out too. I actually placed an adhesive tape adjacent to the tip of the leaf that's coming out. I put it so I can check if it was growing. It grew 1 inch after 8 hours.

Thanks! I can't wait to see your ensete pic. :D