Musella lasiocarpa 'Chinese Yellow' Banana

Product Details:

Ships late May 2010

Musella lasiocarpa 'Chinese Yellow'- At one time this rare banana was thought to be extinct in the wild in its native Yunnan, China, home. Its butter-yellow inflorescence is unmatched in show. Bracts are stiff and waxy and may last up to nine months on the plant. On some plants, 2 or 3 inflorescences are produced. Because of its temperate origin, it may prove very hardy, but it remains to be widely tested. It produces small, fuzzy, rounded, nearly flat, seeded and inedible bananas. Highly recommended for unique flowers, foliage, and form. Clumps tightly, does not run. Prices drastically reduced from last year as propagation has increased numbers. (Was once priced $275.)

Banana leaves, pseudostem (trunk) and fruiting stem (raceme) grow from the underground rhizome (or pseudobulb's) top surface and the roots grow from the lower surface of the rhizome. The fleshy stems sheathed with huge broad leaves can grow from 2 to 35 feet in as little as 1 year, depending on variety and growing environment. Each pseudostem produces one flower cluster, which develops fruit, then dies. In addition each parent banana plant during its life cycle, will produce as many as 10 suckers which grow into new plants. New pseudostems then grow from the rhizome.

Bananas grow best in a uniformly warm environment and need 9 to 15 months of frost-free conditions to produce a flower stalk. In the subtropics, fruit ripens in 2-3 months. In cooler climates it may take several weeks longer to ripen. Plant growth stops when temperatures drop to 57°F. Stokes Tropicals' Banana Blend (6-2-12) is the best fertilizer source for these fascinating tropical giants.