Hi again Steve. You want to dig them up before the first frost. I still have mine outside. But be careful because I have heard that Cavendish are very picky with the cold. Another idea is to grow them like houseplants. Put them in a bright area with plenty of humidity, just be careful with watering. You will want the soil to dry out a little before you water again. Watch for spider mites which thrive in low humidity. When you dig them up get as much root as you can. Put them in well draining potting soil with alot of perlite. Its best to put them in a smaller pot so that the soil doesnt hold too much water in it. I'm bringing alot of mine in this year and I'm going to plant them next year in the ground. I have one called Basjoo that I found on clearance at Lowe's. It can take -23 degrees if covered with alot of mulch. So next year its going to stay in the ground all year long. Its ornamental unfortunately. I hope that helps some

Cameron Zone 8a, Tx.

Thanks also when I store them should I cover them with a blanket or peat or just put them up in the attic?

You can cover them up with a blanket for extra protection, some people store them bare root but you can also keep them in pots, as long as it doesnt get very cold in your attic they can dormant there. You just dont want it to be freezing in your attic or you may lose them. Bananas have corms which are similar to bulbs. Just be sure to water them a little from time to time to allow the roots to not dry out completely and they should do fine. And be sure that its still below 50 so that they go dormant, otherwise they can become active. Some people use regular potting soil with perlite in it. The main thing you want is to keep them a little on the dry side you dont want the corm to sit in water while its cold and while its dormant. I hope that helps a little. And since it will be dry just watch for spider mites.

Ok im sorry, I have one more question. It is getting into the 40s at night and up in the 80s in the day should i dig them up yet?

Its perfectly fine. I looked today and this area is under a frost advisory from 3am to 9am. I have mine in containers but I'm just going to cover them in blankets since they are the more cold hardy variety and the next night its going to be back in the 40s. I'm trying to figure out what you should do because its only going to be one day this week but Dwarf cavendish are sensitive with cold and frost. So you could protect them by covering them up and the most you may lose may be the leaves, but the stem should be ok with some protection. Its not going to freeze so maybe just wrap them up in blankets really good and then be sure to unwrap them after the frost has passed.

I copied this from NOAA weather statement for. Its for areas north of Dallas. Like Collin,Denton, Hunt, Wise, and some other counties except Dallas and Tarrant

UNDER THE RIGHT CONDITIONS FROST CAN FORM AT AIR TEMPERATURES AS
WARM AS 37 DEGREES...BUT CAN BE JUST AS DAMAGING TO SENSITIVE
VEGETATION AS A FREEZE. MOVE ANY COLD SENSITIVE PLANTS EITHER
INSIDE OR UNDERNEATH AN AWNING...OR LIGHTLY COVER THEM.

Actually after reading that you can probably start putting them in pots . When it gets warmer you can place the pots back outside again. I brought in all my houseplants so the more I think about it the more worried I'm getting. The most I could lose on my banana is the leaves and the pstem. I'm mainly worried about the corm but i think it should be alright.Sorry it took me so long to respond

Well, I just dug them up they are drying in my garage. I hope they dont become active before it gets really cold. If they do become active in the attic how should I deal with that?

Do you have them in pots? since it will be warming up again and your attic wont be cool yet, they will still be active. Just keep them watered regularly and set them outside in partial sun since its going to be in the 70s still and then next week the forecast is going to be in the 60s with lows in the 40s. You shouldnt have to put them in the attic yet because it wont be cool enough in your attic for them to go dormant. When it starts getting really cold and we experience more frosts then you can set them in your attic to go dormant.

Ok, I do not have them in pots and they have minimal roots. Would it be possible to keep them in the garage until it gets colder? I dont want to have to buy dirt and a pot just to have them in there for a few weeks.

The only problem is that it needs to be cooler in your garage for them to be dormant. The lows are perfect for dormancy but the highs are still going to be warm enough that it make keep them active. Its still too warm to store them bare root. Here is a link from the bananas.org http://www.bananas.org/f15/time-put-bananas-sleep-winter-310.html

If you put them in pots you can still store them in the pots the only problem is having to carry them up in the attic when the time comes

Im sorry Steve, I just panicked when I heard there was frost, and I always read that you are suppose to dig them up before the first frost. I shouldn't have rushed into it.

Oh, its not a problem. I shouldnt have to wait too long for the cold, but thankyou You have helped this proscess go really smooth. :)

I really hope they do well for you next year. I just kept most of my houseplants inside because its too much of a chore to take them back outside. I have over 50 houseplants and I hurt my back bringing them inside. Hopefully next year I'll be able to plant my bananas in the ground and hopefully they will thrive. I'm growing Orinoco, Sumatrana x Gran Nain, basjoo, Little Prince, Bordelon, and musella which is cold hardy to zone 6.If you have anymore questions just let me know. =)

Cameron

When I was in SC, 7b, I used to dig mine, wrap in several layers of newspaper, and toss them under the house in the crawl space. The heat from the ventwork kept them nice and warm, and they grew like mad the next year.