The Ultimate!

Stunning Peony :)

Beautiful.......

Gorgeous!

Isn't it a wonder?! I have a deep red one in bud at present can't wait for it to burst! Thanks Jacque, Milky and Wohlibuli!

Lori:

I absolutely love this plant...I haven't seen one since I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area. Is it a Tree Peony? or Herbaceous?

It's herbaceous, D1. I have two other peonies who are in my back garden and they have just broken ....lovely new sweet smelling delicious blossoms!!!
will have to post a pic of them today! Tree peony is on my wish list but it will have to wait for the next garden.

Lori:

Thanks for the information!

I have some friend in the San Francisco Bay Area that live in a canyon area where it gets cold...they had herbaceous and tree peonies. I loved the fragrance and the large flowers. Beautiful!

When I lived in The S.F. Bay Area...where I lived was in the "banana belt" I couldn't grow them...the winter was too mild. And yes I did grow bananas. LOL!

I'm just a little too far north for bananas, D1.... but my friend Flcrazy, in N.C. has some pups from a larger one which she winters in a friend's greenhouse. Lucky People!

Lori:

Have you ever heard of Musa basjoo - Japanese Fiber banana? It is the hardiest root-hardy known banana in the World...if that makes sense. lol. I've seen them growing in the ground in parts of central Europe...and I was very surprised!

I've read it tolerates at least -20 F. / - 29 degrees C. when well mulched.

Thanks for the info, D1....I wonder how long it would tolerate those temps?...Our average temp from late Dec. to early March is well below zero C.rarely warmer than minus 10 for months on end.. It might survive that extreme for a day or maybe a week but don't think it would make it here! I think the the basjoo is the type that my friend has...will check it out.. always thought of bananas as strictly tropical...until I joined goY and saw them growing with cycads in UK gardens and in the southern US too.

Lori:

Bananas are commonly grown in the Southern U.S. and bare fruit also. The dwarf bananas are the best because they bare faster than the taller varieties.

I seem to remember hearing that something was afoot with the Cavendish banana...it is a mutant, am I right? a sport which was exploited for its sweetness? What I heard was that it was regressing or somesuch and that bananas as we know them wouldn't be around in the future! Is that just a silly urban legend or have you heard anything about this? was just thinking that I should check out snopes.com on this.

Lori:

I'm not sure if Cavendish is a mutant...however, it is a "type" of banana which bears very large sweet bananas...the 'Dwarf Cavendish' and 'Super Dwarf" are Cavendish "type" bananas which are commonly grown here. I actually grow the Super Dwarf Cavendish...it is a beautiful small plant to only to about 5 feet / 1.6 meters tall.

I think there will always be commercial type bananas, however, many commercial varieties have been hit with horrible diseases.

does your Super Dwarf Cavendish produce the little, fat fingerlike bananas? We've started seeing more of them in the stores...they really are a perfect size...just a couple of bites!
Like most crops...we probably eat a ton of pesticides along with our fruit.
I remember the list of rules for our greenhouse tutorials when systemics were used on ornamentals...also makes a person shudder when you realize the amount of chemicals pumped onto orchards every year!

Lori:

Actually, the bananas grow pretty large...
I've posted several photos of the Super Dwarf
bananas in the past. They do taste very good
and sweet. There's nothing like home-grown
bananas. Yum!

My fovorite though, is the Mysore banana