How much do banana tree saplings cost, how to cultivate and plant them, their lifespan and how many times they fruit in a year

Banana tree, a plant of the Musaceae family, originated in the tropical and subtropical regions of Southeast Asia. It is not a tree, but a giant herbaceous plant; its stem is soft and made of rolled-up leaf sheaths. So how much does one sapling cost? How to cultivate and plant it? How long can it live? How many times can it fruit in a year? According to the banana planting base in Yunnan, banana saplings are divided into two types, tissue-culture plantlets and sucker shoots, costing about 2 yuan each.

How to cultivate and plant banana tree saplings?

Cultivation:

Bananas are mainly propagated by suckers or underground stems.

1. Sucker propagation

According to their characteristics and origin, banana suckers are divided into sword suckers (sword-leaf suckers) and large-leaf suckers (large-leaf buds). Sword suckers can be kept as mother plants, and can also be used as seed plants. Because they emerge at different times, sword suckers are further divided into red bamboo shoots and tattered-clothing suckers, described as follows:

(1) Red bamboo shoots

Red bamboo shoots have a thick, sturdy base and a pointed, slender upper part, with small leaves; they are named for their tender red color. The whole shoot resembles a bamboo shoot (when it first emerges). They are shoots that grow above ground only after temperatures warm up after February, and can be kept as mother plants for the next generation. If they need to be transplanted as seed plants, the shoot height generally needs to be above 40 cm. After planting, they first produce leaves and then grow roots.

(2) Tattered-clothing suckers

The leaves are narrow, small and sword-shaped. They are named this because their leaves emerged the previous year, withered over winter, but still hang on the pseudostem. In the later growth stage of tattered-clothing suckers, because temperatures are relatively low, above-ground growth is slow, more nutrients accumulate underground, forming a shape that is large at the bottom and small at the top, with many roots. Guangxi is accustomed to keeping winter tattered-clothing suckers as planting stock for new plantations. After planting, this kind of sapling first grows roots and then produces leaves, grows fast, and fruits early and reliably.

(3) Large-leaf buds

Large-leaf buds refer to suckers growing from buds near the ground, or buds sent out by weak mother plants, or buds sprouting from old banana corms. The shoot body is relatively slender, and the underground corm is also relatively small; when it first emerges it has large leaves, and the leaves are round and broad, hence the name large-leaf bud. They are not kept as mother plants to continue fruiting, and are rarely used as seed plants; if used as seed plants, the fruiting period is late and the fruit cluster is also small. When digging up suckers, in order to avoid damaging the mother plant and the sucker's underground stem, experienced fruit growers first dig the soil around the sucker into a concave semicircle, then use a foot on the side close to the mother plant to push hard toward the hollow, so the sucker can be separated from the mother plant base; it is even better to use a sharp knife to cut at the point where the sucker joins the mother plant. Try to damage the mother plant's underground stem as little as possible, then pull the sucker up together with its base, and it can be planted.

2. Propagation by cutting underground stems into pieces

In order to cultivate a large number of sprouted seedlings in a short time, underground stems can be cut into pieces for propagation. The method is: after digging out the underground stem, cut off the central main bud, then cut it into small pieces, each piece weighing at least 120 g; a large underground stem can be cut into 8 pieces, a small one into 2 pieces, each piece retaining one thick bud eye, and the cut surfaces coated with plant ash as an antiseptic. According to experiments by the Longxi Prefecture Agricultural Science Institute in Fujian Province, the underground stems of plants that have not flowered or fruited have a germination rate of only 15%, and the sprouted seedlings cultivated from them are no worse than sword-leaf buds in growth and yield. The best time for cutting into pieces is from November to January of the following year; most can germinate, and by May-June, when seedling height reaches 40-50 cm, they can be transplanted, flowering and fruiting at the same time as sucker planting. When raising seedlings, place the pieces evenly on the bed at a plant and row spacing of 15 cm, with buds facing up, then cover with soil and mulch with grass. After the buds emerge, begin applying diluted urine water, then apply fertilizer once every half month, for a total of 4-5 applications; after 6-8 months of management, when seedling height reaches above 1.2 m, they can be dug up and planted.

Planting:

1. Seedling selection

Choose seedlings with dark green leaves, well-developed roots, a height of 15-20 cm, 5-6 new leaves, and no pests or diseases.

2. Planting time

Both spring planting in mid-to-late February and autumn planting in September are acceptable.

3. Planting method

Grading banana seedlings by size and planting them in separate sections makes management easier. When planting, open a small hole in the center of the planting pit, gently place the seedling in the pit, with a depth that buries the banana base about 10 cm in soil, with the cut surface of the seedling facing to one side; after planting, tread it down slightly, water thoroughly with the planting water, and cover well with rice straw.

Management

1. Fertilization: the first time in March-April, use 3-5 kg of pig manure or farmyard manure and 0.2 kg of phosphate fertilizer per plant, applied as a liquid, then cover with a thin layer of soil; the second time in June-July, spread fertilizer on the banana bed, applying 50 kg of soil-and-miscellaneous fertilizer, 0.2 kg of peanut bran, and 0.1 kg of compound fertilizer per plant, then shallowly earth up; the third time in early-to-mid August, apply 25 kg of soil-and-miscellaneous fertilizer, 5 kg of farmyard manure, and 0.2 kg of bran fertilizer per plant.

In addition, during the small-leaf stage, apply topdressing of decomposed manure water once every 7-10 days; during the large-leaf stage, apply topdressing of fermented peanut bran water once every 10 days; alternatively, use 1 liang of urea plus 0.5 liang of potassium fertilizer or 2 liang of compound fertilizer diluted with water and applied as a liquid.

Foliar topdressing: during the small-leaf stage, before and after bud emergence, and during the small-fruit stage, spray with 120-fold banana quick-growth agent, Nongzhibao, Penshibao, or 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate.

2. Drainage, irrigation, and weeding

Banana fields should have high beds and deep furrows to facilitate drainage, lower the groundwater level, and also allow irrigation. During the vigorous growth period, keep a shallow water layer in the furrows regularly, so as to water early and late in the dry season, and cover the banana beds well. Bananas are shallow-rooted plants, so when weeding, pull weeds by hand; do not step on the bed surface or hoe and injure the roots.

3. Keeping and removing suckers

Cut off the first-row suckers of the banana tree, and after the second- or third-row suckers emerge, decide to keep 1-2 suitable suckers and remove all the rest.

4. De-budding

After the banana emerges from the bud, pay attention to field inspections; when the top 1-2 hands of the banana axis do not set fruit, perform de-budding on a sunny afternoon to reduce sap loss; when the sap at the wound stops, brush the wound with a fungicide such as 500-fold carbendazim.

Control

1. Leaf spot disease, which harms banana leaves: starting in April each year, spray with 1500-3000-fold 25% difenoconazole EC, once every two months. Or spray leaves with 600-800-fold thiophanate or zineb.

2. Mosaic heart rot and bunchy top disease: the control methods are, first, do not introduce or buy seedlings from diseased areas; second, immediately dig out and remove diseased plants when found; third, spray 1000-1500-fold dimethoate to kill aphids and reduce transmission.

3. The control methods for pests such as banana skipper, locusts, leaf-rolling caterpillars, and weevils are: (1) peel off the rotten leaf sheaths on the outer part of the pseudostem, and promptly remove the insect bags on the leaves. (2) Drench the leaf-stalk forks with 800-fold trichlorfon or 400-fold Shachongshuang (dimehypo) solution. (3) Spray with 1000-fold dimethoate to kill them.

How long can a banana tree live? How many times can it fruit in a year?

A natural banana tree can live about 30 years! But banana plantation owners say that an adult banana tree has only a one-year “lifespan”, and must be replaced every year; these small banana saplings are the seed plants for the next year, and by the third year all the banana trees must be completely cut down, after which small banana saplings are introduced from banana seedling bases.