Banana Plant Growth

Because of its rapid growth, banana plant is one that you almost can sit back and watch grow. When banana plant is about three-quarters grown, it produces several suckers at its base. Remove all of these, save one, by trimming them at ground level with a sharp knife. The saved shoot is called a follower. It will become your banana plant’s main stem after mother plant fruits.

The “trunk” of banana plant is actually a densely packed group of concentric leaves, a pseudostem. After banana plant has grown about thirty leaves, fruit stem shoots through them from rhizome and emerges as a terminal inflorescence (a group of flowers at tip of stem). The fruit stem matures three to four months after its emergence. Flower bracts soon cover stem and then roll back almost daily, each exposing a “hand” of bananas. At beginning of their development, little hands grow downward, but as they grow, they turn their fingers towards sun and appear to be growing upside down. This phenomenon is called “negative geotropism”.

Banana Harvest

A banana bunch is ready to cut when fruit is round and plump with no obvious ribs. At this point, flower bracts will be very dry and easily break off from fruit tip. To harvest bananas, stalk of bunch should be cut well above top hand of bananas.

Bananas ripen by self-producing heat and ethylene gas. To maximize your banana harvest, pick individual green hands to ripen them for use. Seal hand in a plastic bag with another ripening banana or a fruit like a red apple. The hand makes use of gas produced by ripening fruit and speeds up process. Place bag in a cool dark place, like a cupboard (a refrigerator is too cold!). After 24 to 48 hours, remove ripening fruit. The hand of bananas should be able to finish ripening process on its own.

After harvest, cut mother plant down to ground level. The “follower” will take her place for next year's banana growing!

Scabiosa "Ace of Spades" - This is one for chocoholics, "Ace of Spades" is a mass of velvet and maroon with little white pins that have a pincushion effect. What a beautiful flower this is, nestle them among green foliage of alchemilla for comptempory color scheming. Allow last flowers to self-sow.

Delphinium Belladonna Group - If you are looking for grace and charm then Belladonna hybrids are for you. They are ideal for summoning a romantic effect, look wonderful around cottages, and bring an English type of charm to your garden. For a full season of color grow with peonies, poppies and dahlias. Cut down first spikes once they have flowered for a second flush of blooms.

Papaver " Lady Frederick Moore" - A charming peach poppy is much softer on eye than traditional pillar box red oriental, and is easier to blend with pastels of early summer. Grow in sun and hope for gentle weather to prolong this tissue paper like flower.

Monarda "Capricorn" - Think magenta, think hardy geranium? Why not try an unusual monarda instead with its beautiful aromatic foliage and spidery petals totally adored by bees. The stunning color and shapes make it a good contender with spikes of lythrum and veronica, best planted in sun where soil does not get too dry nor space too crowded.

LLathyrus latifolius - A delightful sweet pea that is everlasting but without sweet scent,so you can never quite have it all. However, with strong aromas from flowers above this pretty flower, I think that it is worth having in your garden. The flowers are much bigger than annual L.odoratus,with iridescent shells for petals and twining tendrils that obliginly twirlup small trees or wires on sunny fences. Give them occasional folier feed and cut down last years foliage in winter.

Acunthus mallis - Most perennials have unremarkable leaves, but not this stunning bear's breeches. Acunthus makes a versatile backdrop for classic herbaceous borders or jungle style foliage. The dark glossy leaves and spikes of dusky hooded flowers will make a show all summer long. Water well in dry summers.

Achillea "Walther Funcke" - If pastels are not your bag, spice things up instead with paprika shades of "Walter Funcke"! Add a scattering of yellow day lilies and mix in wispy blonde leaves of ponytail grass, (Stipa tenuissima), for good measure. It makes a compact drought tolerant mix for a sunny border where space is tight.

Thalictrum delavayi - Verbena bonariensis is not only see-through plant. The tall meadow rue is wonderful airy for front of a border, with perenial ferny foliage and clouds of tiny, fluffy flowers on skinny purple stems. Grow on cool side of garden where soil does not get too dry in summer.

These are just a few of my favorite wonderfully scented flowers and plants that I think will add a soft to dramatic color to your garden. So why not let your imagination and flair for color work magic on your garden. I can tell you that I feel like a true artist when my garden is in full bloom.

Marie K Fisher is an avid gardening enthusiast with a passion for exotic flowers and wondeful colors. She is a regular contributor to Garden Center Showplace a leading online Garden Center. For more details of the superb range of products offered, and also more Featured Articles And Tips on Gardening visit http://www.gardencentershowplace.com