banana dig

Yesterday I wrote about how I protect my cold-hardy banana (Musa basjoo). I mentioned that I wasn't yet prepared to dig up the big tropical banana clump yet.

With a low temperature of 23ºF (-5ºC) predicted for last night, it no longer mattered that I was ready -- it was time to dig!

***

This banana is in a large planter box which made it a little more difficult to dig, as I kept losing my balance and had to jump down.

I eventually got it out though, mainly by rocking the plant back and forth to loosen the roots.

I really should find a cheap bathroom scale and use it in the garden, because I often wonder how much the stuff I lug around weighs. I guess that this was 75 lbs (34 kg) but it could have been more -- maybe 100 lbs (45 kg).

I wrapped the rootball in plastic, mainly to help keep my garage clean.

Then I loaded it onto my dolly and hauled it up the hill into the garage. Easier said than done after a long day of moving heavy pots.

Speaking of pots...

My huge potted Ensete got moved into the garage too. That one is definitely going into the ground next year, as it's just too large for any pot now. The diameter of the "trunk" is almost 12" (30 cm), and it is heavy.

Lots of pots of smaller bananas too. Next year some of these plants will graduate to bigger pots and some will go into the ground.

I'll be digging up several hundred pounds of banana plants next year it seems. And to think that just a few years ago I didn't have a single banana plant, as I didn't like them.

It's funny how plant tastes change, isn't it?

.