How to care for a Banana plant

De Bananenplanten wordt al sinds de zesde eeuw gekweekt en is daarmee één van de oudste commercieel gekweekte kamerplanten. In Costa Rica is de eerste officiële bananenfarm opgestaan, maar van oorsprong komen ze uit Zuid-Oost Azië en Australië. Inmiddels vindt je ze over heel de wereld.

The Banana plant is lightly air purifying. This is quite a surprise given the large leaves that this beauty possesses. Can't have it all!

Fortunately for you, and fido, Musa's are non-toxic.

This plant actually consists of 80% water. Knowing that, it is not surprising that this plant likes to drink. Keep the soil moist at all times which means watering at least twice a week in summer months. Just like most other plants, beware that there is proper drainage and no standing water in the bottom of the pot as this tends to cause root rot which is hard to get back from for plants. The leaves also like a mist every now and then and will thrive if you take good care of them. Spray them once or twice a week.

This jungle plant likes its sunlight as much as cookie monster likes cookies. Try to put the Musa in front of a window where light shines in abundance. South facing is best. In the summer months, when the sun can get super bright, you may want to keep your Banana plant a bit farther away from the window. When you just bought one, give it time to get used to the direct light of your window sill by placing it closer to the window bit by bit.

Banana plants are fast growers. They will need plenty of fertilizer to do so. If you want your Musa to amuse you with large leaves, you'll have to keep up with its nutritional needs. Give it a bit of food every two weeks in summer and you'll have a huge stunner in no time!

Since the Banana plant is known to grow quickly, you'll find yourself looking for a new home for it quickly, too. Still, the best thing to do is repotting every two years and not more. When you do find a new pot, try to go for about 20% more room so there's plenty of room for expansion.

Musa's tend to get some browning on the bottom set of leaves rather quickly. This doesn't look insta-worthy of course and you can cut these bits away but eventually the entire leaf will have to go. In that case, cut it a few cm from the stem for the best results. When leaves turn yellow-ish your Musa is getting a little too much light. Put it a bit further from the window and he'll recover.

Musa's aren't very susceptible to diseases. Give it the odd check-up to make sure there are no bugs or aphids present. You should be fine!