Welcome Back, Welcome Back....Welcome Baaaack! May 2016

2016 Will be the Summer of Bananas!

We are well on our way...

The mild Winter and warm Spring have us running a full month and a half  ahead of where we are normally during the growing season(and that's a good thing).  Those that took our advice and trimmed the banana plants up high have been rewarded with 4-5 full sized leaves on their tallest plants.  With the bulk of the Summer a head of us good things are certainly in store.  In fact, we recently and confidently proclaimed on SIMPLY BANANAS FACEBOOK PAGE(Link), that in the year 2016 the Charleston and LowCountry area will produce more Bananas than any other year in the history of Earth!  Think about that for a moment... this a true landmark episode in our relatively short past.
The Chinese were right...
With 2016 being the year of the Monkey...it only follows that it will also be the year of Bananas.

Keep an eye on the weather...

Unfazed by the rain, these Banana Plants are out for a swim during the 1000 Year Rainstorm in October 2015.

Despite underground water tables being 2 feet above historic levels(according to the town of James Island), keep an eye out for dry summertime conditions.  Combat dry weather by watering heavily.  Remember that  healthy leaves lend themselves to healthy flowers and fruits. Banana leaves are wide and long and transpire a lot of water up from the roots.  Mulch keeps weeds from stealing water and nutrients, while holding moisture.  The mulch eventually decomposes and becomes the plant's food.  Mulch early, often, and heavily.  Grass clippings are our favorite.  Many times, you will get the benefit of someone else's lawn fertilizer in your free bag of mulch!

Naked Blooms

Sometimes one of the first items out of the stalk after the winter is a bloom.  While exciting, one must remember that banana fruits need food to grow and mature.  This food needs to come from the not just the roots, but the leaves.  Naked blooms have few or no leaves.  While it is not completely impossible for the fruits to survive and mature, a naked bloom has very little chance for success.  Just enjoy the process and hope the timing is a little better next season.

Banana Harvest Videos

We, Simply Bananas, have a YouTube Channel with different banana related videos.  Many of them are harvest videos showing successful and unsuccessful ways to get the bananas from the stem for eating.  Check it out sometime.

 

10 Years Strong! 

Way back in the infant years of Simply Bananas.

Yes--that is right.  Ten years ago I had an idea to introduce others to the fun of growing bananas here in coastal South Carolina.  It really is something special for all of us to have undertaken together.  You see, in the tropics, bananas literally grow like weeds, therefore very few folks seem to care.  However, in our zone, banana plants are not all that common, so we take a bit more pride in growing them and growing them well.  When we get a flower and eventually some fruit, we have accomplished something that is a bit on the rare and exotic side.  We have accumulated an enormous amount of friends who have taken this journey with us, helping us learn throughout the way.  Therefore, I'd like to say thanks to the feedback and cheers to our success.

The Wildly Popular "How's it Hangin'" Section

Will return very soon when have some enticing dangley bits to show.  If you are not familiar with this section, we publish photos of your bananas hanging off the plant.  Send your pictures to us here SimplyBananas1@gmail.com or add them to the Simply Bananas Facebook Social Media Page.

Some of you may recall our wildlife camera trap project we have going on in Costa Rica.  You can get updated from this link: Camera Trap/Trail Camera Update

See y'all next time! (if I don't get arrested for using the Washington Posts flood image and/or the stunning Ehrinn Cummings 2002 Sports Illustrated  image)

The Post Summer slash Fall Newsletter

 

See....they really do eat Bananas!***See below

While we were monkeying around...the summer passed us by!  Well, of course, that is perfectly normal. We head into shorter days and cooler temperatures.  We can still enjoy the bananas plants for perhaps a couple of months. 

Preparing for Winter--Around this time of year, I usually start getting email about banana protection during the cold.  My mantra...is "Mulch".  Sure, you can wrap the stem in burlap and c-7 Christmas lights, but I don't really think it is necessary. That certainly won't save the leaves from a frost and it won't prevent the trunk from freezing should we have severe cold temps.  The best thing that you can do is mulch around the base of your plants with free grass clippings or leaves.  Heavy mulching will provide protection that has been adequate here in the LowCountry. Cut brown/drooping leaves if they offend you or leave them attacthed for unsightly pseudo stem protection until Spring.  Remember...never run with a machete:

All you need to know in 45 seconds!

3+ inches or 8+centimeters of rain the last few days of September

Typically... and I say, typically--in the absence of tropical disturbances, September is one of the drier months. This September has been an exception. I have personally emptied over 4 inches of water from my rain gauge twice this September.  Even more remarkable than the rainfall is the lack of clear skies this month.  Never have I seen so few sunny days in a month's time.  What does this mean for bananas?  It means that entering the Winter the p-stems will be full of water.  Water and potentially ice can act as insulation for the core from freezing temperatures.  This, of course, is a key necessity in fruit production for our area.  Barring an extreme Winter, fruit production should rebound in the Summer of 2015.
 

Tropical Iguana visiting the Simply Bananas stand in Marion Square

Season 8 was really Great--Simply Bananas has now completed 8 seasons at the Charleston Farmer's Market, one of the top farmers markets in the country.  We always enjoy 'talking bananas' with everyone who stops by.  Thank you for making season 8 so fine, and we'll see you in April for season nine!




This Space Intentionally Left Blank






A dramatic pause...








.. for the incredibly anti-climactic How's It Hangin' Section!

'Wild' Orinocos from abandoned house on Edisto's Big Bay Creek

 

Ben's Bananas from Downtown Charleston

Ornamental Bordelon from here on James Island

Well, that will do it for this edition. Remember that if you have questions or concerns about bananas, I am easy to contact.
You can reach me on the Simply Bananas Facebook Page,
by the comment box below, or via email.

***This photo is from our Trail Camera Project in Costa Rica.  
See more pictures by clicking here:
Rainforest Animals on Trail Cams.

All About Pups...The Late-May-/Slash/-Early-June-Summer-Blog-posting!

Lou Ferrigno, as "The Incredible Hulk", Friday nights on CBS...circa 1978.

Oh...How times have changed!--Remember a few weeks ago when those gnarly green nubs that were poking out of last years smelly banana stumps?  Now what have we got?  Big Green Monsters!  The energy from the 2013's big plants is now funneled into explosive growth.  We'll continue to see this for another few months if we get decent rainfall.  Things will be looking up from the bananas point of view.

Pup-mania-- Calls, emails, random passers-by at the Charleston Farmers Market, etc., all with the same question, "Why are my banana plants pullulating* so much this Spring?"   Banana plants don't really 'know' the seasons.  All they know is that something, somehow, removed the growing portion of the plant.  In the tropics, it could be eaten by an animal or a fallen tree may have broken the banana plant in half.  The results are the same: Send out new growth.  This could be a replacement stem and/or new growth in the form of pups. 

Don't Forget--to Water.  May has been pretty dry.

Should the Zombie Apocalypse come to fruition, sooner rather than later, rest assured that your banana plants can be the key to your survival.  In addition to the great fruit that you may get, if conditions are right, there are many uses for the banana plant itself.  Many of these uses can be seen in this very interesting video:

Pup Chow--If you watched the video above, you may have seen the part about eating the inner core of the stem( at the 9:57 mark).  Here is a Thai recipe that looks like a delicious way to use some of those excess pups.  Eat those pups! Step by Step recipe.

When you get full of those delicious pups for dinner, consider transplanting some.  It is an easy project.  Place a shovel between the mother plant and the pup and dig straight down.  You should see the pup loosen.  Dig around the remaining sides and the pup should pop right up.  Trim the leaves in half and transplant in a desired location.
 
If you have ever wondered how they get those bananas from very tall plants, check out this video.  You can see it is a very smooth operation when done by skilled hands.

  

The How's it Hangin' section:  We got nothin'...yet.
When you get a flower or fruit, send some pictures our way and we'll post them up in our very next blog! 

*pullulating-definition

The 'Man-I'm-Glad-It's-Officially-Spring', Update:

                   

        So...What are you going to do... What can you do?

Don't just sit there and feed your bananas to the goat!

My Gosh, man, where have you been?--Well, when the LowCountry got cold, we went south.  We left Charleston on January 7 for a scheduled Winter excursion to Central America.  On the day we left, it was 21°f at our house and I knew the plants were in for a big hit.  It was not cold enough for a fatal blow, but deep damage was certain.  As Winter dragged on, I could only hand wring from afar as our 'tropical' plants were battered again and again by cold wet weather. 

I certainly believe--that this year mirrors the Winter of 2011.  My records indicate that we had cold weather well into April.  In fact, our Saba finally put out a tiny new sprig on APRIL 20, that Spring!  On our FaceBook page, I documented the phoenix-like return of the Saba Banana with "The Wednesday Afternoon Saba Report" photo album.  Here is another link: Click Me!
We just need a few 80° days to get things going.  If history repeats itself, I suspect we'll some green above ground in then next month.  Everybody relax.

So what can you do now--If you have not done so, cut away the dead parts of the plant.  I needed to cut most of mine away before I got any indication of life inside of the trunk(psuedostem).  After a normal Winter, I would not suggest such butchery.  A rotting core can spread downwards and kill what's is left of that stem.  Cut away the stink and the mush. 
Here is how I did it a few weeks ago:

 
What was I doing in Costa Rica?--Well, there was research to be done.  You may recall our camera-trap project that we initiated in the jungle last July.  We set out 12 motion activated cameras and let them snap away for 6 months.  We are in the process of cataloging our findings from the over 12,000 images.  Here is more of what we found: CLICK ME!

One night, the Kinkajou came for a banana snack.

How's it Hangin' Section
Obviously, there won't be much to see...but I ran outside and shot a few pictures. 

The Saba, working hard on a leaf.

 

Michael. my neighbor, has this new 'leaf' on his Ice Cream mat.

 

The Namwah shows a little green.

Remember, these early leaves will be shredded and ugly for the first month or so.  When you get 3 or more leaves, shredding should decline.

See you next time!

Comments are welcome.

Visit us on the Facebook page for important information: Mash Here

 

 

The Simply Bananas Late August Update

Those Long Summer Days- June Update

The Long Days of June--The Summer Solstice arrives at week's end.  These long warm days are what enables us to have tropical banana plants in our less than tropical location.  We have about 2 more hours of daylight than do the tropics this time of year and it translates into extra growth.  Spend a late afternoon or early evening wandering around your banana plants.  Check around the leaves and trunk, because you'll never know what you will find...

A Squirrel Tree Frog resting in a unopened Banana leaf!

Our Conservation Efforts--My wife, Kate, and I have kicked off a project to survey the animals on the property that we own in Costa Rica.  The information that we gather will enable us to help keep the forest as healthy as possible.   We've chosen a great crowd funding site called IndieGoGo to help us.  Crowd-funding enables individuals to make small contributions to a project.  The site accepts credit cards or PayPal easily and safely.  To find out more information about our campaign, please click on the link:
Animal and Plant Conservation in Costa Rica!
We have less than two weeks left!
Animal and Plant Conservation in Costa Rica 

Patience Pays Off--This past Saturday, I was notified a minimum of 3 times about fruiting bananas.  The mild winter seems to finally be yielding the expected results.  Barring any unforeseen storm damages, we can expect to be eating homegrown bananas 4 months from the time the plants bloomed.  You may cut the flower pod off when it is 12"-18" from the last hand of bananas.  Google a recipe on how to prepare the flowers to eat!

Leave it Be--While I do not advocate this practice all the time, I will sometimes snip a leaf off of a non-fruiting banana plant and use it in cooking.  The first step is to soften the leaf over heat.  This makes it pliable.  You then cut it into sections to wrap food or use like parchment or foil.   Here is one of our favorite recipes involving fresh Grouper.

The How's It Hangin' Section--Showing off your Bananas!

Kathy's Dwarf Namwahs from Summerville

Nicole's Nutty Goodness's Ice Cream  Bananas-- More about Nutty Goodness

Eloise's Bananas from Sullivan's Island

Ryan's Ice Creams

Ryan's Postcard-Perfect other bunch of Ice Creams

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The Pre-Ides of March Update

Banana Plants on Folly Beach!...Just Kidding.(actually the Samoan Islands)

Hello to everyone.  This is, of course, the first Simply Banana Update of 2013.  I hope that everybody is doing well and had a great LowCountry Winter.  It seems that it was a mild Winter so far.  We are always prone to a Spring frost, but I'm guessing that we are past the serious danger zone.  If this is true, then it looks like we'll have another very good year of fruit production.

Time for Trim?-- Well probably.  After studying the weather, I decided to trim the old frozen leaves off(yesterday) and get the plants ready for the warming temperatures.   In some cases I found a partially green leaf that had emerged. 

Trimmed up it would look something like this:

Also--where I saw no leaf, I cut away all the top 'branches'.  Inside I found this:

Two Days later...it looked like this:

Its important not to cut the trunk parallel to the ground so make an angled cut.  This is done to reduce constriction on the new leaf.
Remember that the first leaf will be ugly as it will show cold damage and tends to shred easily.  As more leaves emerge, shredding eases and classic banana form takes hold.  The old leaves/trunks can be used as compost/mulch or dragged to the curb.

While you are waiting--for Spring to get here, enjoy this video about the Fruit Hunters.  There is some great banana information in here as well. 

Before the freeze in January, we were able to cut some of our undersized green bananas and stored them in the garage.

They are very slowly ripening and taste really good.  One thing we learned was that the more dark spots the banana had the sweeter it was.

Eight(8) Years...I was fortunate be invited back to the Charleston Farmer's Market for my eight season.  Look for us beginning  April 13.  I will also be a vendor at the the Mount Pleasant Farmer's Market starting on April 16th.
Come see us!

The How's it Hanging Section--

These Ice Creams probably won't make it.  Pretty Sad!

That's it!  See you next time!

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The Early Fall Update

When will the Bananas be ready?

Have patience...they'll ripen up soon!

October marks the beginning of the end of the growing season for our Banana plants.   Leaf production slows down and old leaves begin to yellow and brown.  They can certainly be trimmed and discarded, or mulched around the base of the plants.  Keep watering on warm days.  Don't be surprised as there will be quite a few late bloomers here in the next 6-8 weeks.

Late Bloomin' Raja Puris....Dang it!

OK--Your well supported bunches of fruit may need a little attention.  It is probably time to remove the flower pod.  You can remove it when there is 16"-18" of space from the last bunch of bananas to the top of the bud.  They say this will force energy into the ripening fruits instead of flower production.   You intentionally leave that 'tail' beneath the fruit as it tends to protect the lower fruits from drying out.

Dwarf Namwahs with 'tail'.

Close up of 'tail' drying out.

I expect that we'll start hearing of fruit ripening in the next few weeks.  You can tell when things are getting close as the bananas will lose that 'angular' shape and begin to plump up and fill out.  If they start to yellow 'on the  vine',  you can eat them right away.  One thing about home grown bananas is that they often taste better if the peels brown up a little bit.  Unlike Cavendish/grocery store bananas,  home grown bananas don't really turn mushy as the peel changes color.

Ripe Raja Puris.

The Raja Puri plant that bloomed in May(see photo above) had some fruit ripening.  However...I noticed in late August that the fruits had stopped increasing in size.  Further investigation led me to discover that the waterline for that mat of bananas was blocked and the plants were getting very little water.  That being said, these tiny bananas are just really, really small.  Their taste is outstanding!


 In early September, I wrapped up season 7 of Simply Bananas at the Charleston Farmer's Market.  It is always fun being down there beside the Wife and talking bananas with so many people.  The Truly Tiny, a super dwarf Cavendish type, was especially well received.  I'll be anxious to hear of fruit in the coming years from this exciting new cultivar.  Thanks to everyone for stopping by we had a lot of fun!

Charleston Farmer's Market rare purple bananas EGGPLANTS!

Bananas in the News--From the almost-too-much-information department, Australia's AussieBum Underwear company, has discontinued its Banana Fiber and Cotton men's underwear.  How do I know...Kate tried to get a pair for me for my birthday from them, but had to go the eBay route.  Here was their one and only commercial(sfw) from YouTube:

I figured this would fit in nicely near the How's it Hangin' section!

 

the How's it Hangin' Section

Photos of LowCountry Bananas!

Doc's Ice Cream Bananas from Daniel Island

 

 

 

From Mark in Mount Pleasant

Well supported Orinocos from Folly Beach

More from Folly Beach

Even more from Folly Beach

More from Folly 'Banana' Beach

Belle Bananas from Simply Bananas-James Island

One last Orinoco bunch from Folly 'Banana Beach', SC.

Send your pictures to me,   SimplyBananas1@gmail.com

See you in a few weeks--Enjoy your plants....time is running out!

 

Keep updated even more by clicking this FaceBook Link

 

 

The Late August Update

Hello!--

This past week, the Charleston Horticultural Society, came by for an educational Banana Tour.  We had 20 plus folks traipsing around our mosquito-infested, fired-anted yard to view the 23 varieties of banana plants.  We met many nice folks and had a fine evening.

Nathalie Dupree penned an article on her 4 banana plants with fruit for the Post and Courier.   The story centers on the plethora of fruiting banana plants in Charleston this summer. 
You can access Nathalie's story here:  Low Country Bananas.

Some of Nathalie's recipes call for banana leaves.  You should have plenty.  First soften the leaves in hot water, or over an open flame.  Like this guy!

Tropical Weather--One grower observed that every time his bananas fruit, "it means a hurricane is coming".  Likely a barb that the high winds will blow down the vulnerable plants and he will lose the fruit.  Maybe.  I thought about it a bit, then realized that this is a logical statement.  Warm winters= Bananas in Charleston.   
Also
Warm winters=Warmer Ocean Waters=Low Country Hurricane potential.
Keep an eye on what's rolling up from down south.

Support your Plants--It's always a good idea to support the fruits especially on already leaning plants.  Heavy racks of bananas can often pull over exhausted fruit-bearing trunks.  The easiest method is to lash it to another structure or banana plant with a bungie cord(watch your eye) or rope.  Another way is with a PVC pole with Y connector on the end.  Just prop up the bunch.  The pole can be painted dark green to soothe the eyes. 

In other Banana news:
Reports that regular water and bananas can be better for you than gatorade!  Here's the Linky.
Also:
Are you tired of your bananas rotting before you have eaten them?  A new Spray Gel made from shrimp peels can keep them fresh for days longer.  Perfect for the Lowcountry.  Give it a try!

 
Why not--have a teak table and a banana umbrella?

Another Video--We spent the first weeks of August down in Costa Rica.  Once again we had the pleasure of spending some time at the Paradise Botanical Gardens.

Robert Beatham let me cut down and have a nice bunch of the best Red Bananas! He also sold me the Gros Michele Banana plant(Banana Grande) for the finca.  Gros Michele was what people ate before Panama Disease and Sigatoka forced the big fruit companies to switch to Cavendish types of bananas.  Enjoy the video.

Hows it Hangin'? 
A lot is hangin'.  See for Yourself:

Ice Cream #1 from the Fox banana plantation.  West Ashley.

Ice Cream #2 from the Fox banana plantation.  West Ashley.

 Ben's Bananas--Smith st., Downtown.

 From Billy, way out on James Island

Another from Billy, way out on James Island.

From Joan Perry, Percy St, Downtown. 

From King St.


Another Ice Cream Bunch from Michael, on James Island.

From our house, James Island.  Ornamental Bordelons!
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See you Next Month!