Some people in Vancouver, BC use burlap. It does not matter if the outer layer of skin freezes as long as the core does not freeze. Canes can be wet all winter. It's just an issue of frost penetration.

BTW, I like your yuccas. Tree yuccas are not cheap on the west coast. Here's a photo of Trachys on Canada's west coast.

Here is a link that might be useful: Trachys in snow

Welcome to the "Banana Belt", Musa Bajoo is the most used "hardy" banana. It will grow to 10/12Ft.in Z6 Toronto.
I've used green garbage bags full of oak leaves,3 deep by 5 across, for protection. Oak leaves, because they do not pack down,but stay more like a quilt. After the first frost has hit I cut the stem a couple of inches above ground, and cover.
Be careful uncovering in the spring. I obtained my trees from www.tropic.ca

Hello, I live in the Chicago burbs zone 5. I've had Musa basjoo for two years, last winter I put it inside but this year I left some outside. I can't say whether it survives our winters but I'm excited to see if the rhizomes survive. All I did was put 10 inches of pine bark mulch on top of the cut bananas. I'd like to see others' experience with overwintering Musa basjoo in zone 5.

Looks like my fan palms and tree trunk yuccas made it through the coldest Feb (all the way down to -1 two days in a row (Ouch))in over 40 years (albeit, the yuccas are a little frost burnt and will need some trimming).

Anywhere in the states to order the Musa Basjoo? I'd like to try more tropicals this year. I'm also looking for the monkey puzzle tree.

I found my musa basjoo on Ebay. If I can remember the seller (somewhere in Texas) I'll order from her again, they arrived in great shape and were very healthy.

Our winter was very, very cold. I'll be surprised if my musa basjoo made it through. :(

I've learned more about overwintering musa basjoo, maybe too late for this year.

This winter I just put bagged leaves over the top, with a hole cut for the stem, thinking it would be insulated and dry. Unfortunately because it was just a small hole the plastic seems to have trapped moisture (probably from the plant itself as well as the ground). So I read that you really should use a fungicide and also do your best to let them breathe while keeping them dry.

Next winter I'll probably build a chicken wire cage at least a foot or so around the plant, fill it with dry leaves or mulch, then cover it all with plastic tightly staked to the ground.

I don't know if my bananas will survive this year, I hope so!

I'm growing an indoors banana tree. I grew up in Africa and had one in my backyard (yes, it was very banana-prolific :) so I'm obsessing on how to raise this baby indoors. So far it's doing great, but it's still pretty young. I live in Ottawa (zone 2) so there's no way it can overwinter outdoors. Our summers are very hot and humid, however, so I'm hoping to have it out in the summer months.

Does anyone here have any experience,or has even heard, of growing bananas indoors?

is

I've got a Dwarf Cavendish that I've overwintered for 2 years indoors now.

The best advise I can give is to put it into a well draining mix, provide a little humidity and water sparingly.

Mine has not bloomed, but it has pupped both last winter and this winter.

~Chills

Its in a room with large south-facing windows and its surrounded by passionflowers, Jasmine and other tender plants. It receives filtered morning light.

I live in SW Mi and I grow Basjoo, chinese yellow, dwarf cavendish,ensente maurelii (sp), Bananas are the easiest plant in the world to grow. This summer they are all going into the ground and the basjoo will stay over the winter. I am also growing tree ferns and heliconia, black bat flowers and any other tropical I can get my hands on.

Where do you get your tree ferns and heliconia?

I got the Heliconia on Ebay and I got the tree ferns from "Glasshouse Works" .com, They even included an extra Dicksonia Antarctica", one I am not sure about, it looks like all the fronds are brown and I dont see any new ones pushing out, but the other one is pushing out fronds like crazy, and the third is another we'll see, but I am happy that even one is growing.

So NW Chicago burbs, right off O'Hare, and my Bananas (Banjsoo) are growing! I saw three shoots sprouting new leaves, yeahhh!!!!

I didn't do much except put an extra layer of bark mulch, maybe 8 inches at the deepest. Plus, when we got warm weather in March, I uncovered them. I thought it was a mistake since we had some freezing weather in April, I was out of town, but they did make it.

K.

Soooo, do you think it is okay to plant them now? In SE MI Zone 6? What type of soil do they like?

Yardman, you mention the Monkey Puzzle tree. I remember them growing in Vancouver BC and some of the nurseries there selling them. Arts Nursery is one

http://www.artsnursery.com/shopping/product.asp?classid=45&id=561

Hey, I've already purchased and planted my Monkey Puzzle Trees. Usually, by last week of April we are out of danger of frost, and the mailing papers stated that they are good down to -10F.

I got them from Burnt Ridge Nursery (Washington State).

Great. When I moved to the west coast years ago and saw my first monkey puzzle tree I was fascinated by them they looked so odd. They do well in the northwest coast. I was told they had originally made there way up there on sailing ships way back when in the 1800's. There's some mighty big ones in and around vancouver and Seattle.