We have several small groves of PawPaws, Indiana bananas is what my grandfather called them. Also wild raspberries, wild plums.

Marla

Got a link to that information? I would love to grow bananas in Ohio.

We have tried Casabanana a Guatemalan fruit that looks like a red cucumber and grows on a vine. It did not work. we got the seeds to germinate and grow for a while but the summer was too cool and we got the seeds too late so they did not have the 145 days they need to produce

we have paw paws, wild black raspberries and catnip.

Musa basjoo is supposed to be root hardy to zone 5 and I have read that there are folks growing them in Wisconsin but I have never heard of anyone getting a banana harvest. That doesn't mean it can't happen though. There are cold-hardy palms that can be grown in Kansas and other states with cold winters.

boulderbelt..You may be able to get infomation by logging to WSAZ.com
They should at least be able to put you in touch with the extention agent. He's a regular on their news program and has his own show on Saturday morning at 5:30 a.m. (Yes there is a 5:30 a.m. I knew about the other one, in the p.m.).

We tried artichokes, germinated but did not grow or produce. I know they are supposed to take 2 years to produce, but didn't make it 6 months.

We grew a pineapple in FL, in the front yard. Just as it was almost ripe, the neighborhood boys, pulled it up and drugged it along the road. I was SOOOO mad.

Marla

I've never tasted an artichoke. My wife says she hasn't either. There's a TV network RFD. On Sunday they have a show called California Country. One week they showed a farm that grew hundreds of acres of them.

My daughter-in-law was born in CA, and lived most of her life in FL. She likes them, basically steam/boil until tender and dip in butter. Don't eat the skin, just suck the insides out. I'm not really impressed with them, but she wanted to try them, so why not? seeds were about $3.

They are a perinneal, if you can get them started. CA is the main growing area for them, as far as I know.

According to the program "California Coutry" it's about the best state to grow anything. Of course, they do have a year round growing season.
This Valentine's Day I ordered my wife one dozen chocolate covered strawberries from Shari's Berries located in California. The berries were huge. They have a good marketing scheme also. Printed on the delivery box is,
Instructions:
Close and lock door
Hide behind large piece of funriture
Quietly open box
Savor and enjoy

On the end of the box is printed,

Perishable
Once opened, contents may disappear immediately

I have to admit, they were good. She shared.

Very interesting.

I am in WV on the border of Marietta, OH.

I will look at WSAZ and see what I find.

Marla, I was mad reading about your pineapple. I can only imagine how mad you were!!

Andrea

They're were little hooligans, luckily some of them grew up to be rather decent people. I don't remember where we got the plant, at that time, I never knew what was going to be growing in the front garden box (26'x3'). My son worked for a landscape company and when they tore out plants, he would bring them home. I will say, my front box was usually very pretty.

Marla

Andrea, if you're near Marietta, you and I are in the same boat...watersoaked (Pardon the pun).

Don't waste your time trying to grow bananas in the wrong climate. I live in California where it is rare to ever drop to freezing, and after waiting two years finally got one bunch of tiny terrible tasting bananas. I sold all my plants and will never try them again. On the other hand in a place suitable for them, like my backyard when I lived in Sri Lanka, a banana plant can grow three feet in a week and get twenty feet high and make a large bunch of great tasting bananas.BTW, a banana plant will only make one bunch of bananas, after that you cut it down and one of its pups will sprout up and make the next bunch.

Yes, churchmouse, it looks that way!

We drove around a little while ago looking at the water levels. My husband wondered if Marietta got flooded again.

Churchmouse, do you sell at Marietta's market?

Andrea

No, I'm about 60 miles south of Marietta in Gallia County.

The water has started going down now. My road is open. I need to get out in the morning. Since my retirement I've been sub teaching at the local high school.
The local weather forecast on TV is no rain until Wednesday. The Sunday newspaper says rain on Thursday. The Weather Channel has rain Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I guess I'll just have to wait and see. I guess one of them will be right.

andreaz6wv,
you sound like you are in my old stomping grounds...my families place is just across the river outside of Fly.

Not too many people have heard of Fly!!!
My step mom has family there and in New Matamoras.
What a small world!!

it gets smaller if you look for my families name its all over the place in that area.

Ray Fluharty