Gardening with Gael - Growing, and going, bananas

 

An advertisement in the Mangawhai Locals page from Our Mangawhai Garden (previously Jaraho) advising that they had banana plants for sale reminded me that I am keen to try and grow some bananas up at the Block.

In fact given the actual footprint of a banana plant there is a possibility that even small gardens could be growing their own bananas. The nutritional value alone makes them  highly desirable. They contain the minerals potassium and magnesium, both of which are good for heart health, as well as fibre, vitamins and antioxidants. They rank low on the glycemic index.

The variety is important.  The tropical varieties require temperatures above 15 degrees Celsius. Here in the subtropical north the short sweet Lady Finger types which can tolerate down to eight degrees are more suitable. Personally I love the smaller varieties. Kids do too. There is no waste. Just enough to cut up on muesli or a piece of Vogel toast.

Natalie from Our Mangawhai Garden agreed to meet me and show me their plants. Ideally situated at the bottom of the valley facing north, their banana grove is well sheltered from all winds. Although they prefer free draining soil they love water. Natalie has a pond close by which is ideal. Gross feeders, they love some organic manure.

Banana plants sucker and it is these new small plants that are for sale. Natalie pointed out that ideally a clump should contain three main stems. The main stem or mother that is flowering and bearing fruit and then the next two which will bear fruit the following years. Once the mother stem has finished it needs to be cut down to encourage the next generation. The old stems are full of water and once cut up make perfect mulch. Natalie stacks them in a thick skirt around the base of the trunk where it becomes mulch and feeds the next producing stem. Here’s another good place for those extra grass clippings.

Natalie is growing organically and not using any sprays at all. A healthy crop of kikuyu threatens some of her orchard. One method that she recommends is black sheeting. She lays strips of black plastic over the kikuyu. After six months the kikuyu underneath is dead.

With bananas being such a vertical plant there is room for another crop between the clumps. Tamarillos are another plant that loves a sheltered position and a number of plants are doing very well between the  bananas. The previous owners grew a number of cherimoyas and they too are thriving.

I have planted a couple at the Block and after visiting Natalie I can see why they are not thriving. Although they are north facing they are not above the frost line and each year they have been frosted back. They do recover well but need more shelter if I hope for any produce. Once the plant has flowered the bunch of bananas takes until autumn or winter to mature. Some people put bags over the bunches to protect them from rodents, birds and the cold.

Here in Mangawhai we seem to have a climate that would suit them well. Just look for a warm sheltered corner with access to water and you can enjoy your own home grown bananas. There are some experienced banana growers in the north as a trip to the Whangarei growers market will prove.

Natalie has a thriving north-facing banana grove.

Bananas emerge from the flower.

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