If they are a new plant and not pups from your Upper Keys plant, maybe it was mis-tagged and it is a plantain type.

DM

With this cooler weather maybe they are stunted a bit, and just need more time to fill out.

DM : You may have something there. These pups were not from my old batch in the Keys, origins are a pup I received by mail a couple of yrs ago from a nursery in Homestead. Will now start clearing out the growing plants I now have, except the two mentioned below, and start from scratch with a new pup bought elsewhere. Could easily be what happened, we'll see.

katkin : Your theory is interesting also, although I did leave the 2 previous stalks hanging on the mama plant for almost 4 months, finally cut both down, hung them in my shed watching as they continued yellowing, but no change,..that was last fall. However, will flog this horse one more time as I just ( 2 days ago ), transplanted two 14 ", 15 " pups, with lots of roots, into an unusually large & deep hole, then surrounded them with a lush compost/manure/topsoil/regular garden soil mixture, sprinkled lightly with fertilizer, then liberally watered.

Will be watching all 3 plants like an osprey, and babying them as no others I've had. If I wind up eventually with the same disfigured fruits on all 3 plants, will just start buying my bananas at Wally's. If however, I discover the error of my ways and start growing again the lush, fat Goldfingers, they will hear me yelling as far away as Sarasota ! lol

Thanks to you both for the savvy suggestions.

I would put a bunch of cow manure on them. My bananas always respond when I do.

Hi keiki, thanks for your input. At this point am listening to everyone and acting where possible. In the big hole's I dug out for these plants, I have just recently been using a mixture of 1/3 top soil, 1/3 a mixture of cow manure/compost and 1/3 regular garden soil. Sooo, after reading your post I went out and slashed open the last two bags of cow manure/compost and spread it all around the base of the five plant's I now have working, two small pup's recently planted and three big moma's, two alredy with a big red flower & a tiny pup.
Watered all 5 liberally, before & after this mixture was applied.. Two pics attached.
This was all I had on hand, - except for one more bag of topsoil. If you think I need just cow manure alone, please advise and I will look around more thoroughly. The compost/cow manure mixture was all I could find previously..
Thanks again.

This is how the banana plants looked after emptying my last two bags of cow manure/compost on them. After this pic was taken, I watered them all again, then liberally applied almost two lbs of 10 - 10 - 10 fertilizer throughout the five plants and then soaked them all AGAIN !!! That's why the gold flecked fertilizer nuggets are not visible.
All I can do right now, have only the one bag of topsoil left. but if something else is needed, will be happy to get it. Am determined to pull out all the stops in an effort to get back on the right track,..miss those fat, luscious bananas I used to grow so easily ! ( smile )

This post was edited by jofus on Sun, Dec 28, 14 at 16:32

Hi Jofus
When I first saw this post and read how your bananas are weird and inedible, my heart went out to you. I've never gotten any bananas from my plants (yet!) and the waiting is killing me.

Then today I went out to look at the emerging flower on my large Dwarf Cavandish, wondering how it will end up with this being wintertime. I had to run back to get the camera and show you how these might be coming out just like yours.

This plant has been in the ground less than two years and has not gotten consistent care and feeding like yours. But I've seen better-shaped fruit from totally neglected plants, although I haven't tasted those and they could be horrible.

Anyways, I still have three more plants from this same parent, so I will start taking better care of them. And I want to thank you for telling us about your plants and hope you'll keep us updated as to their progress.

Robin, do you use the cow-manure-in-a-bag, or the stuff in the pasture?

Thanks
Susie

Yeah Carmen, I believe your input will help a lot. The only comment I can come up with at the moment is " DUH ! "
Trouble is, the last time I had some healthy, fat Goldfinger bananas was awhile ago,..quite awhile ago ! That stalk in the photo above, - taken two weeks ago, - might just show fat, edible choice delights now had I not cut it down and pitched it in the garbage.
Not to worry tho, I presently have three 7 ft tall " Mama's " that are only about 5 weeks or so behind that pic above. Two have the big crimson flower hanging down with about a dozen or so skinny nana's peeking out, the 3rd is about to sprout the crimson flower any day now.
Needless to say I will not be so impatient with these guys. Will record and report on their development on occasion, already have a couple of neighbors licking their chops ! ( smile )
Thanks for your expertise. Tell me, why did you discontinue growing your own bananas ? Think I know the answer, but not 100 % sure.

Jofus, Only reason I haven't grown any in the last 3 years or so, is because I have moved 3 times in three years, and it's hard to plant on the move.
I am now permanent on 5 acres and I am planting away LOL. Good luck with those upcoming bananas.

Hi Carmen - Happy New Year!

If you would like one of my Dwarf Cavandish banana plants, I would be happy to give one to you for your banana plantation. I can bring it to Silvia's next swap. I can't remember - did we already talk about that?

Love ya,

Susie