Banana Tree

The Banana Palm Tree, scientific name Musa, is one of the most popular palm trees around the world because of its fruit. It is not only used to grow bananas, but also to give a landscape or indoor space a tropical feeling. Appearance: This fast-growing palm has large green leaves that measure 4-6ft long and 2ft wide. Leaves are attached to the trunk by short stems. The Banana Palm has a clustered, cylindrical collection of leaf stalk bases instead of the trunk. Each palm has around 7-15 oblong leaves with leaf veins running from the mid-rib straight to the outer edge of the leaf. In the windy conditions leaves tear along the veins creating a feather like look. Flowers/Fruits: The inflorescence consists of a long-oval purple bud that grows above the last leaves in an upright position. As the bud opens, clustered white flowers emerge in whorled double rows along the the floral stalk. Unisexual flowers are followed by deep green fruits that turn yellow or red, depending on the variety, when they ripe. Fruits range from 3 – 12 inches in length and 1/5 -2 inches in width. Bananas start forming in the summer and ripe till march of the following year. It takes fruits around 100-120 days to reach harvest maturity after the opening of the flower. Growth Rate: Moderate to Fast. Musa can get up to 10 – 20 ft tall and 1-5ft wide. Outdoor/Indoor Use: Both. It is a great houseplant if provided with enough water and light Cold Tolerance: Banana Palm is cold hardy and can tolerate cold down to 15F. Light Req: Full sun to Partial shade. Water Req: Moderate. It needs moderate amount of watering, but likes well drained soil. Maintenance: Easy. Apply good quality palm fertilizer that has continues release formula twice a year during growing season.