Question
I have 3 dwarf cavendishs and have been reading about the hardiness zones for them. I have heard everything from "bring them indoors below 50 degrees to "they will tolerate temps as low as 10 deg. F."  I'm in zone 6b/7, but it never gets below 20 deg. F in the winter.  Is that good enough to plant these outside?  I can build a frame with plastic over them in the winter, and even supply solar heat.  I'd love large, beautiful banana plants, but do not have the room for them indoors.  Does this sound feasible?  Thanks.

Answer
Hi Martha, I would love for you to be able to grow beautiful lush, tropical (I emphasize "tropical") Bananas, but it isn't feasible in your climate zone, even with protection; I live in a 9a zone, and I have to take protective measures in the winter to save my Bananas, and I am talking about maybe 2 or 3 days where it dips into the low 30's. The bottom line is, if the ground freezes, then the corm (underground rhizome) will die, and there is no way to prevent this from happening; also there are no varieties (contrary to what some will tell you) that will grow well in a container, their root system is just to expansive. I am sorry I can't encourage you, but the fact the matter is, Bananas are indigenous to the Equatorial areas of the world and are just to tropical to grow in a zone below 9a. Nick