Banana plant troubles

4 years ago

last modified: 4 years ago

I purchased my banana plant about 3 months ago and it quickly began to go downhill. First it was brown spots in the middle of the leaves and all along the edges, then it as aphids. I got rid of the aphids by making a spray with dish soap, but there has been a black sort of residue on the stems ever since and the leaves just keep looking worse. I tried putting it in different locations since I was thinking the brown spots were scorch marks from too much light, and I also tried to be careful not to over- or underwater it. Nothing seems to be making much difference, with the exception of one location that had more afternoon sun exposure and made things worse. Right now it is on my East patio where it gets unfiltered morning sun and is in full shade by about 1pm. I have cut off multiple sickly looking leaves at the base when they got to the point of being very wilted and yellow, and I just hope I didn't cause too much harm by doing so.

Please help!! This poor plant deserves better :(

Featured Answer

Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL

4 years ago

This plant probably needs a MUCH wider pot. It needs room to form offsets, and consistently moist soil, with a drain hole so excess water can flow out. Without near-perfect conditions, the oldest leaf will always be dying off at about the same pace as new leaves are forming. To maintain the most foliage, the conditions need to be consistent. I have a terrible time trying to keep mine moist enough to have more than 4-5 leaves.

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Comments (7)

katob Z6ish, NE Pa
4 years ago
If your weather is warm enough I don't think you can overwater or over fertilize a banana. In a pot that size daily watering or even twice a day in a hot afternoon sun location wouldn't be out of the question.

What kind of fertilizer schedule are you currently going by?
Emily Smith
4 years ago
@Katob thanks for the reply! I used to water it almost every day, but lately it's been more like 1-2 times per week so I'll definitely give it some more. I fertilize about every 2 weeks with liquid miracle grow (which I'm about to do right now!). The newer leaves look pretty healthy so I'm hoping that it might have just needed time to adjust to it's location, which is something a neighbor mentioned to me the other day.
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Emily McClure
Original Author
4 years ago
@Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL thanks for the advice! I'll work on getting it into a bigger pot asap. The one it's in now seems to be holding moisture pretty well, but I'm sure a bigger one couldn't hurt! Thanks again :)
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
4 years ago
My pleasure! It probably doesn't need deeper, just wider. These plants can be prone to getting spider mites, so keep an eye out for spider webbing. You can treat prophylactically by wiping the leaves about monthly with a cotton ball damp with rubbing alcohol. Do the bottom of the leaves too. If your schedule doesn't provide time for that, lightly spritzing the plant with rubbing alcohol can also help keep SMs away. Just don't over-do it so that a lot of alcohol runs down into the soil, which would alter the PH of the soil.
Emily McClure
Original Author
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago
@Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL Good to know, thank you!! I think it'll be a lot happier in its new pot, it was starting to get pretty rootbound so I really appreciate the advice! I'm assuming I'll probably need to go even bigger at some point, but hopefully this will keep it happy for a while :)
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
4 years ago
I hope so too! :)