How to Protect Musa Basjoo Banana Plants for Winter UK - A Quick Guide

[@stevebacon1026]

Hi george. That vlog was an excellent one , and you have probably helped a lot of people . Im protecting mine in next couple of days. My musso is massive, and has now decided to get under my patio! It has a lot of strength in that departement, so if anyone reading this take care where you plant yours!!. Regards . Steve.

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Hi Steve, happy to help and all the best with yours - I’m sure you’ll do a more professional job! Oh wow, yours is a proper monster and that’s a good point, a mature clump definitely has a serious base and real energy. Easier sorted than a pesky bamboo though! All the best and I hope you have a great weekend Steve.

[@amphetaminelogic7006]

Nice 1 george. Ive been using same technique, different materials. 6 ft wide wire fencing cilinders around pseudo stem. Fill with all greens from garden ( even bananaleaves, oak leaves, tetrapanax leave, basically anything available. After that i use plastic bags 6ft deep, 1m across that re used on germany for disposal of glasswool. Instead of rope i prefer 1mm coated wire for fixing the whole thing. Finallybi fix bag to ground with ground pins. As close as possible to 100% recyclable. Bags/ wire mesh last for years, and all greens are free compost. People claim the moisture in the greens are too much, but ive never lost a basjoo rhis way on over a decade.

[@ARW.7]

This made a MASSIVE difference to mine last year. Rather than the trunks restarting ground up, I had almost a 2m advantage at the start of the year 😃🎉

[@andizhanstuey]

Another very useful post. I've wrapped mine for many years now and they've got to the height when it's a real chore! I use loft insulation held in place with cable ties and covered with a fleece bag. Always horrified by the number of snails and earthworms that have climbed the stems by spring. Your idea of making a cap of roofing/house wrap is genius, like you say, keeps the rain out while allowing it to breathe. Deffo doing that this year! Many thanks for what you do, always learn something new 👍 I'm in the valleys S.Wales.

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Thanks! Yes, loft insulation works great if you can keep it dry but yes, it’s certainly a task when they get big. At least most of the insects etc just clear up the old / dead growth. I don’t know if it’s worthy of the word genius haha but I thought about it whilst looking at a washing basket. Something telescopic that does the same job maybe, waterproof on top and with vents in the sides. I know some people have used plastic manhole riser rings but they’re quite expensive for what they are and sections of ducting can take up a lot of space so my thought was a nice compromise. Thanks for watching and great to know you’ve had success with a similar method 😊

[@Fire-gv2wz]

That’s what I will be doing this weekend. Thanks you 👍

[@Fire-gv2wz]

Sorry I forgot to ask what size bags are you using by there please. Hopefully I can order some from amazon later today. Thank you 👍

[@bdbevo]

Thanks for hosting "night school" George! Great idea to use the stakes with the pot lid. Have you ever tried digging one and dry storing it over winter like an ensete and comparing height and growth rate the next year with one that stayed in ground? -Bill

[@milkweeddreams8828]

Quite cool here in N Florida today, 55F, but it'll be great for weeding...but when we do get the frosts, my yard will look like a beach scene with all the umbrellas put down for the season, grrrr...but with all the leaves trimmed, it's the time to paint trim on the house and add mulch to the culled leaves and fruits that will not mature...however I still have tons of bananas to eat, this has been a bonus year, my neighbors are loving me(I think)...lookin good George!

[@LORRAINE-z3h]

Thanks George, love your videos, always informative. Keep up the good work , this has been my first year collecting tropicals, and I am already excited to see what next year will bring when they are all planted.

[@essexhognose1808]

Me too, I've got plenty in pots and undercover ready for planting next year

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Thanks Lorraine, I try my best 😊 Exciting stuff, I hope you enjoy making your plans and preparations over winter and spring. Good luck with it all!

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Fantastic, it’s definitely an exciting time building a collection together and looking forward to seeing the design coming together. Good luck with it all 😊

[@ronking9683]

I Have Always Used Bubble Wrap And Have Found It To Work Very Well. The Plants In The Ground Get Wrapped The Ones In Large Pots Get Dragged Into The Shed And The Small Pots Come Into The House .The Large Ones Are About Six Years Old And About Ten Feet Tall And Produced Bananas Last Year.

[@carolynwalker2713]

Thanks for that. I will now have to go and re-do mine as I didn’t cut the leaves off first! It was quite a battle trying to wrap with the leaves still on!

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

No worries! If it’s a big job then don’t worry about the leaves, they should just dry out anyway. The main reason for taking them off is just to make it easier and more compact to wrap (as you’ve found out 😂)

[@craigrogers3864]

Just in time! I'm doing mine today 👌👌🍌🍌🍌

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Fantastic, hopefully you can do a better job in the daylight! To be fair you could probably make a neater version whilst blindfolded 😂

[@ironian24]

Hi George, another good video, I have always left my Musa bajoo alone, I find the old dead leaves after a few frosts tend to help cover the main stem, every year they grow bigger and stronger as well as spread like wild fire, I must carefully dig a few up and s0read them around the garden in spring I think?

[@Tminus89]

Haha Michelle from yt channel Oh the places you'll grow does most of her videos and plant chores at night.. so like her, this one is not do as I do, do as I say 😆

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Haha yes indeed, do as I do (ish!), not as I say should be a pretty standard bit of guidance for my channel 😂 No spare daylight time this weekend so needs must and I thought a quick vid might help others 😊

[@Tminus89]

​@@GeorgesJungleGarden The things you do for your audience (and your plants).... We don't deserve you😂

[@dbuts5136]

Thanks George. Any tips for protecting a relatively young tetrapanax? Do they need it ?

[@steverichardson4374]

I youse sleep bags as well got different colour lucks funny and colourfull

[@raichcarter1]

I used waterproof cheap washing line cover last year. This year also trying patio heater cover. Fleece direct onto stem then cover over the top. No straw.

[@Thumtwiddler]

Hi George, thanks for that, I was just wondering, I have all my plants in pots as I'm renting. I have a fairly large basjoo, and am thinking of just bringing it in for Winter and basically leaving it in the porch area of our building which has one window but is fairly dark. Would that be ok?

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Hi and no problem, thanks for watching! Yes, your basjoo should be just fine there, particularly as it’s a decent size. Just slow down with the watering while it’s more dormant.

[@Thumtwiddler]

@@GeorgesJungleGarden Thanks a lot for replying and keep up the good work, you're building a new nation of tropical warriors!

[@lindahughes1699]

I wrapped mine yesterday 😮 i put fleece around, then sacking, then bubble, to keep it dry. My big one i did the straw, fleece, sacking and bubble, with fleece bag over the top 🤔 is that a bit overkill George x

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Nice one Linda. No, that sounds fine to me. It’s about the layering and whilst plastic isn’t ideal by itself, as an outer layer to more insulating material it can help keep the whole lot drier. I’m sure yours will be just fine and my method this year isn’t the only way, more of a compromise that’s a step up from last year 😊

[@lindahughes1699]

@GeorgesJungleGarden Thank you George 😊 My first year. Inspired by you alone but I do watch loads of others too now. I'm 77 so as long as I've got the energy it will grow bigger. Have had a lot of plants in pot for a couple of years so they were just itching to get going. I'm so excited about it 🤗 😘

[@pennz2354]

How about if you have one in large pot should I wrap the base of pot to protect its roots?

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Hi, I would prioritise moving the pot to somewhere sheltered (a greenhouse/ polytunnel would be ideal, followed by a garage and then close to your house). If it’s staying outside then some wrapping of the side of the pot (then maybe finishing with a neat hessian wrap?) or surrounding it with other plants might help prevent the roots freezing through, yes 😊

[@pennz2354]

@ I have put it in a small walk in plastic greenhouse 🙂🤞🏻

[@stevenruddy2527]

No plastic sheets then to keep out the wet.

[@GeorgesJungleGarden]

Hi Steven, you certainly can use something over the top but I’ve found the thicker fleece bags keep some water out in combination with the pot on top (when positioned well!). I used them alone for my Musa ‘Tibet’ last winter and it came through well with no rot. Plastic covering the top isn’t a bad idea though 😊

[@39chevy44]

I managed to do protect my tender plants yesterday after looking at the forecast for the next week, I have used large drainage pipes for the last few years stuffed with straw and they seem to come out the other side ok. Fingers crossed it’s a mild winter.

[@39chevy44]

I managed to do protect my tender plants yesterday after looking at the forecast for the next week, I have used large drainage pipes for the last few years stuffed with straw and they seem to come out the other side ok. Fingers crossed it’s a mild winter.