These temperamental bananas called Musa Ae Ae originates from Hawaii and were only reserved for royalty in ancient times. They are very fussy plants even here in Hawaii and require heavy feeding… they want just the perfect conditions with acidic soil to bring out their amazing foliage and if your really lucky some real fruit. They are very slow growing, below is a mature plant with some bananas almost ready for the picking. (These are from a friend’s garden and I wasn’t able to taste it since it wasn’t quite ready, mine are below and still quite small plants )
To view more amazing foliage plants visit Diggiing at http://www.penick.net/digging/
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14 comments:
fabulous photos Noel. How long does it take for it to start producing fruit? How many years will you have to wait for fruit?
Oooh... the foliage is gorgeous, but the fruit are really pretty, too! Do they taste better (and as such they were saved for royalty) or was their status based more on their looks?
Your banana looks so much better than mine. I had it in the house for the past year and it has grown an inch. We needed the room, and now it is out in the back garden. Yours looks amazing!
Matti
Wow, I love your blog & pictures! My husband got to spend time in Hawaii as a kid and is always talking about it. I have my first plumeria so look forward to seeing yours & all the beautiful plants you can grow.
Noel, those leaves are so striking. Thanks for introducing me to this exotic beauty.
I'd be interested in your opinion of the fruits once you get a chance to taste them. Reserved for Royalty makes me think they must be something special indeed. :)
Wow! I need to get out more, because I've never seen such a banana in my life! What an amazing specimen!
Gorgeous foliage. It has a right to be tempermental. I have several bananas but none that look like that! None that have edible fruit either:(
Beautiful photos. I especially enjoy the sepia collection, the euphorbia is my favorite. Thanks for hopping on my blog, I'm glad to visit yours...I used to live in Millilani Town when my dad was stationed there in the 80's. Aloha!
Oh, I'm jealous. That is such a cool plant! I have a new goal in life- to taste a variegated banana. Please let us know how they are if you get a try!
Wow, tiger-striped banana foliage. That's really cool. Thanks for joining in for Foliage Follow-Up.
Variegated leaves and variegated fruit--That's really cool! I wonder if the reduced chlorophyll in the leaves from the white stripes keeps the plants from being as vigorous as their all-green cousins?
...sorry, I forgot to sign my comment above...
James
I've NEVER seen this type of banana!! It's beautiful!! I wish I could grow it here in FL but since my "regular" bananas got hit by the long freeze two years in a row, I doubt your fussy variety would do well.
Oh, so you have a previous posting here of that banana. I will just google it up for more information. You are lucky to have that in your garden. It can also thrive here in the Philippines, in some selected areas. thanks.
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