How to Fertilize Potted Banana Shrub (Michelia figo)? Methods and Tips Explained
Banana shrub, also known as banana flower, shanjiezi, hanxiao mei, shaojiu hua and so on, gets its name because its half-open, drooping flowers look shy and seem to smile without smiling. It originally grew in South China, stays green all year round and bears fragrant flowers. It can be planted in gardens and also grown as a potted plant, making it an excellent fragrant ornamental flowering tree.
Banana shrub (Michelia figo) is an evergreen shrub of the genus Michelia in the magnolia family. Even when in bloom its flowers do not fully open, seeming to smile without smiling, hence the name hanxiao (hidden smile). It can be grown in the ground and is also suitable as a potted ornamental. When it blooms, its rich fragrance fills the air, making it deeply loved by people and an excellent fragrant flower variety for indoor cultivation.
Banana shrub loves fertilizer, but if base fertilizer has already been applied to the potting soil, it should not be fertilized too much during the growing period. Generally, starting from early May, dilute liquid fertilizer can be applied as a top dressing, mostly using decomposed cake fertilizer, bone meal, chicken and duck manure, and fish offal and other composted fertilizers mixed with water, applied once every 10-15 days. July to August is the flower bud formation period, when it is advisable to apply appropriately more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. Stop fertilizing after October.
In addition to applying sufficient base fertilizer when potting, banana shrub should normally be given light but frequent fertilizer applications, with dilute cake fertilizer water applied once every 7-10 days, and the fertilizer must be fully decomposed. To promote deep green leaf color, a 1:10 alum fertilizer water should also be applied about once every 10 days; alum fertilizer water and cake fertilizer water can be used alternately. During the bud stage, apply appropriately more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, which helps the banana shrub produce brightly colored flowers.
During the growing season, if there are consecutive cloudy and rainy days, 15-20 g of fully decomposed dry cake fertilizer can be applied on the surface of the pot. The general principle of fertilizing is: in spring and summer, when growth is vigorous, more fertilizer can be applied; in autumn, when growth slows, less fertilizer should be applied; in winter, when the plant is dormant or semi-dormant or semi-dormant or semi-dormant, fertilizing should be stopped.
This can be done once every 1-2 years, as far as possible before new leaves sprout in spring, after flowering, or in autumn. When repotting, remove some compacted old soil and replace it with fertile, loose culture soil, cut off dead and weak branches and overly old roots, and replenish base fertilizer.
Banana shrub loves fertilizer. Mostly use decomposed cake fertilizer, bone meal, chicken and duck manure, and fish offal and other composted fertilizers mixed with water, applying fertilizer about once every 15 days during the growing season (April to September), and stop fertilizing during the flowering period and after October. If the leaves are found to be not bright and deep green, apply alum fertilizer water once.