Increasingly, lovers of exotic plants grow bananas at home. And this is not surprising, because these tropical trees are attractive. In addition, with proper care, they bear fruit. But you can’t call them unpretentious, and it will take a lot of effort to grow a culture. In this material, you will learn how to plant a banana at home and take care of it in the future.
Can a banana be grown from seeds?
If you plan to grow a tree from purchased bananas, then immediately abandon this venture, because you will not succeed. The fact is that in such fruits there are no seeds and it is impossible to germinate them. And those numerous videos that show the process of growing trees from purchased fruits are nothing more than fiction. In these videos, experimenters take out black grains from the fruit. But how they are formed in fruits, "flower growers" do not show.
And they won't show it, because this process is impossible in principle. Can seeds germinateonly from wild fruits. Of course, if you often visit Thailand, India or other Asian countries, then finding suitable fruits is not a problem for you. There are miniature bananas growing everywhere with large dark pits that can be used to grow into trees.
If you can't afford to travel abroad, then don't worry, because you can plant a banana, like kiwi, from seeds that are sold in flower shops or the Internet. From such grains it will not be possible to obtain a fruit-bearing culture. Nevertheless, you can easily grow a decorative tree out of them, which will become an interior decoration. How to plant a banana at home will be discussed in the next chapter.
Seed preparation
Before planting a banana, the seeds must be germinated. If you get a wild fruit that can be grown into a tree, then place the fruit in a plastic bag and keep it there until completely dark. When this happens, peel the flesh from the skin, and cut the banana to the core. Carefully remove the seeds with a sharp object and spread them on a napkin.
Be sure to calibrate the seed and select only round and he althy samples. Flat seeds will not sprout, so discard them ruthlessly. Rinse the sorted material and soak in warm water for 2-3 days. After that, rinse and dry the grains again.
Before planting a banana at home, be sure to scarify the seeds. To do this, make shallow notches on the shell with a needle, nail file. Without this, the sproutswill be able to break through the dense shell of grains.
Soil for seeds
An inert substrate is suitable for the plant, which is sold in a flower shop. If you want to make the soil yourself, then mix peat with sand in a ratio of 1 to 3. But in any case, before planting banana seeds at home, be sure to disinfect the substrate. To do this, hold it in a steam bath for 1-2 hours. After the soil has cooled, mix it with perlite, and fill it with a solution of potassium permanganate.
Rooting process
How to plant a banana:
- At the bottom of a pot with a diameter of 10 cm, lay a layer of drainage. For these purposes, use small pebbles, expanded clay.
- Fill the drainage with a 5–6 cm layer of prepared substrate.
- Moisten the soil well.
- Press the seed into the soil, but leave the tip of the seed above the surface so that the future plant receives light.
- Cover the planting with polyethylene or glass and place in a warm, well-lit area.
In order for the seeds to germinate, it is important to provide them with comfortable conditions.
Seed care
We figured out how to plant a banana. But for successful cultivation of a crop, it is also important to know about the rules for planting care. After all, in order for the grain to germinate, it is important for it to provide comfortable conditions. To do this, keep the temperature in the greenhouse at +27…+33 °C during the day and around +20…+25 °C at night. Keep the pot in a bright place, but out of direct sunlight.
Regularly ventilate the landing and remove condensation from the film. Do not forget to periodically spray the crops with warm water from a spray bottle, preventing the substrate from drying out. And at the same time, make sure that the soil is not too wet, as mold can form on it. If this happens, then moisten the soil with a solution of potassium permanganate.
Don't expect quick results, because the first sprouts will appear only after 2-3 months. But immediately after this, the culture will go into violent growth, and after 2 weeks it can be transplanted to a permanent place.
Landing
You can also plant a banana in a purchased substrate, but it is not a fact that he will feel comfortable in this environment. Therefore, it is better to dig the top layer of soil, 5-10 cm thick, under a linden, birch, acacia or hazel. Add 2 kg of river sand, 0.5 kg of wood ash, 1 kg of humus to a bucket of this soil. For disinfection, be sure to calcine the resulting substrate in the oven or hold it for a couple.
Step by step instructions on how to plant a banana from seeds germinated at home:
- Lay a layer of drainage 3–10 cm thick on the bottom of the container, depending on the volume of dishes. Please note that planting a crop in too large containers is not recommended. Moisture accumulates in such a container, and the roots of the tree rot.
- Pour a layer of moistened sand over the drainage, and cover it with a layer of substrate.
- Gently transplant the plant into the pot, being careful not to damage the roots.
- Fill the voids with the substrate, and moisten the soil abundantly.
This planting method is suitable andfor purchased ready-made plants. But before planting a dwarf banana from the store, be sure to keep the pot in partial shade for 2 weeks so that the culture adapts to changes in humidity and temperature. And only then proceed to the transplant.
Irrigation
If you want to get a beautiful tree, then, in addition to knowing how to plant a banana, you will need information about the rules for growing a crop. It is important for this plant to provide abundant irrigation, because its large leaves evaporate a lot of moisture.
Water the tree when the top layer of soil dries out to a depth of 1–2 cm. For irrigation, use settled water with a temperature of +25…+30 °C. Pour enough moisture into the pot so that the liquid seeps through the drainage holes. Reduce irrigation in winter to prevent root rot. After each watering, loosen the top layer of soil to increase air access to the roots.
Humidity
Banana can't stand dry air. To maintain optimal humidity, place containers with water near the plant. In the summer, spray the foliage daily with a spray bottle. In winter, do this event once a week. And also do not forget to wipe the leaves from dust with a damp cloth.
Despite the love of moisture, the banana does not tolerate liquid stagnation. Therefore, it is advisable to lay a grate or flat stones between the pot and the pallet. Then excess water will immediately drain. In addition, the roots will receive additional air through the drainage hole.
Temperature
For a banana, preferablymaintain room temperature +25…+30 °C. In winter, a decrease to +18 ° C is allowed. If you want to get fruits, then try to keep the culture as warm as possible, but you can’t install the plant near batteries or heaters. The plant suffers from hot air.
In the summer, take the tree pot out to the balcony or garden. The plant will only benefit from this. But if a cold snap is expected at night, then return the pot to the room.
Lighting
Banana is a photophilous plant. And for normal growth and development, he needs good lighting. Moreover, daylight hours should last at least 13 hours. Therefore, in winter, a photo lamp is indispensable.
It is advisable to place the crop pot near the south and east windows, in extreme cases, place the tree on the west side of the room. If the only available window is located in the north, then growing a banana here without additional lighting with photo lamps will not work.
If you take the culture to the balcony or garden in the summer, then take care of the shading of the culture, because direct sunlight causes burns on the foliage. To avoid this, hang gauze or tulle over the pot. Or install the plant in the shade of trees.
Feeding
Banana, like any fast growing crop, needs regular fertilization. Fertilize every seven days in the summer. In winter, fertilize the soil only once a month. As top dressing, alternately use the following compositions:
- Humus made from horse orcow manure. Do not use bird droppings or pig waste for fertilizer.
- Biohumus.
- Herbal infusion of lupine, quinoa, nettle or weeds.
- Superphosphate or nitroammophosphate.
Apply any fertilizer only to moist soil so that the roots do not get burned. It is also useful to water the plant with a kind of "ear" - water obtained after defrosting or washing the fish.
Growing problems
Bananas are very resistant to diseases and pests, and problems with them only arise due to improper care. Often, flower growers are faced with the fact that the leaves of the culture darken and dry out at the edges. Root rot caused by excessive moisture leads to this phenomenon. Reduce irrigation to correct the situation.
Another problem that growers face is the yellowing of banana leaves. So the plant signals a lack of nutrients in the soil. To cope with the problem, feed the tree more often.
Now you know how to plant a banana and take care of the plant. And if you adhere to the rules of cultivation, then the tropical guest will not only take root in you, but even begin to bear fruit.
