Question
I recently asked you about growing fruiting bananas in zone 7.  You replied that it could not be done.  I was wondering if it could be done if I planted the main banana outside, and took off a pup and overwintered it under my artificial lights in my house to give it a head start on the growing season for next year.  Then I could plant it outside next Spring.  If I did this, would the pup have developed enough under my lights to fruit the next season?  I have read that the fruiting time for "Rajapuri" is only 9 months.  While doing this, I could also try to protect as much of the pseudostem of the main Musa Rajapuri plant, so it could keep growing from where it left off.  If I could preserve all of the stem from last years growth with insulation, would it have enough time to fruit if it kept growing next season?   Also, could you recommend any hardy palms that will grow in zone 7, and how to protect them?  Thanks.

Answer
Hello Chris,

I actually had a response to your question last night but then accidentally hit "delete" and lost the whole thing, I hate when that happens! Anyway, let's try this again.

Yes, you can remove a pup and grow it on indoors. keep in mind though, when the reference material says nine months to fruiting, they are referring to growth under optimum conditions. That means a subtropical environment, high humidity and plenty of sunshine which is difficult if not impossible to duplicate indoors. Because of this, I'm not sure how much time you will actually gain but it's certainly worth a try.

The ideal method is to try an perserve as much as the main psuedostem as possible so you will be starting with an essentially mature plant next spring. Again, since we are not sure of the exact hardiness of rajapuri, you may or may not be successful with this method.

Another method that is sometimes used that I didn't mention before is digging the entire plant and keeping it in a semi dormant state in a cool but not freezing basement or garage until spring. I have not tried this method myself but I know others have had some success with it.

In reference to hardy palms, there are two or three that you would want to start with. The first and hardiest is the needle palm (Rhapidiphyllum hystrix). Unofficial reports state hardiness is somewhere around 20 below zero. There is a very large one that grows outdoors unprotected at the U.S. National Aboretum in D.C..Mine grow very well up against a south wall in my zone 6b/7a garden with no protection. Unfortunately they are EXTREMELY slow gowers. They are also a suckering palm and after several years will produce a short fat trunk a few feet high.

Another palm to try is Sabal minor. This is reportedly hardy to zero although I have not had success with it. This is another palm with no apparent trunk and huge fanlike leaves. It is worth a try.

The third palm and the most palmlike of the bunch is the chinese windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei). This can grow to thrity feet or so under optimum conditions. A mature palm is hardy to around zero but foliage damage occurs at around 10 degrees, It is a fast grower and will quickly replace any damaged foliage. This will likely require protection in your area especially if you are in the northern portion of zone 7. If you are in the southern protion, there may be some years where protection won't be needed at all. My  trachycarpus is presently about 6 ft tall and about 6 years old.

Minimum winter temps are not as critical as the duration of the cold when speaking of palm hardiness. For instance, one night at 0 degrees will not likely kill a trachycapus (there will be foliage damage), but 4 nights at 10 degrees may kill it outright.

There are many protection techniques, some involve the use of heat tape and xmas lights for extra warmth. Here is an address for site that will cover protection and a lot of other topics pertaining to hardy palms....http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/1811/


Regards,

Vito Nettis