Question
Hi Mr. McCann,
I planted a banana plant several years ago in the front of our home, babied it to hell, plenty of water and food, it grew wildly sprouted to flowers and underdeveloped bananas hands.   The southern Califonia winter weather are to harsh and damage the leaves to much for my taste for public /home appeal.  also i'm afraid this weed is now to close to my home fountation, SO...., would like to remove it PERMANENTLY.  I read if I chop it down and then pour keresene @ $10/gal. should kill it in 7 days.  My local gardener sugggested conc. Roundup @ $45/gal or $4/gal gasoline, however if I use gasoline or kerosine I would not be able to plant anything for over year.  what do you reccommend.???

Answer
Cut it back to ground level, have your gardner dig up what he can of the corm (underground root system) and then use a shrub killer, any of the drenches used to kill shrubery and bushes; they are a drench, that you mix and saturate the ground with. This is the cheapest and safest way to dispose of the corm. I have dug numerous corms up completely, they will lift out like a large potato, its a little work, but it will come out intact if the digger is willing to take the half hour it will take. Either method is much more desirable to using caustic methods like gasoline or kerosene.