Stan mentioned some pictures I took of the banana grove at the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens near Savannah, GA and the old orange on Parris Island. I am posting them here. Click on the image to see it full size.

Stan the Citrusman (may soon add Bananaman to his title)



Another friend in the banana grove.



The whole group (less the photographer)



Not related to our trip, this is a chinaberry called Jade Snowflake that is in our yard. The variegation shows up best in spring.

Great pics Ned !

Yeah I think I'm going to try some other Bananas as well. Have a look at my Ice Cream Bananas. First plant has a nice bloom & the other is getting ready to bloom as well.

What variety are those that fruit soo small ? My Ice Creams are about 18 Ft tall.

How do you keep the bananas alive during Winter may I ask?I thought bananas are tropical plants.

Benny we dropped to 27 degrees at the lowest last winter. The leaves die back, but the trunk stays alive. In spring it continues to grow where it left off last year. Your climate is about the same as ours, about 3-5 nights below freezing a year.

great pics!! Thanks for sharing!

I got it!!!! Tropical Stan..

hey Stan.. been meaning to ask you..... did a book case fall on you when you were a kid?? Flatten you out?? and did ya get mailed to grandmas?? Just kiddin ya.. Too bad my kids are all over the "Flat Stanley" grade.. That would be cool.. Flat (insert Childs name) with "Tropical Stanley" Bet the report a kid could give on that would be fun.. bananas, eucalyptus, Citrus, Palms.. and CABBAGE!!!

That Jade snowflake it pretty Ned.. Are the berries edible?

Gina *BabyBlue*

I forgot to stick in a picture of the PI Orange. It is a little diffcult to see it here, but it is right in front of Stan. You can see it is very near the marsh (& water) which might help during cold weather. We are not sure how old it is, but it is a multi-trunk seedling that has obviously been around for quite a while.

Gina the chinaberry is a tree that has naturalized in the Southeast (some say it is invasive). The berries are poison to humans (birds like them), but are the perfect size for throwing at siblings, playmates, etc.. The trees could also be used for climbing and making slingshots. Thus it is fondly remembered by kids from my era, when you had to entertain yourself. It a relative of the neem tree.

Ned

Shame ya can't eat the berries.. but I fully understand the fondness.. not to mention it has beautiful form and the variegation of the leaves make it stand out.. I'd love to have something that pretty in my yard.. but probably not hardy to my zone *darn* the "pretty" trees in my yard are two Mimosas.. can't get a decent picture of the blooms.. would have to get up on roof top.. love the pink powder puffs.. and they smell heavenly.. Also my childhood memory tree.. spent lots of time climbing the one in front of my house and making bows and arrows with branches for cow boys and Indians.. and sling shots.. no fruit to throw at my brother though.. Black walnuts and pecans at grandma and grandpa's made up for that though.. I remember one time starting early in the day till time to go home.. and was head to toe black.. stayed that way for what seemed like forever.. but then.. we made black walnut "stew" in the red wagon also..

Gina *BabyBlue*

Benny,

It never got that cold here, maybe 30, and I suspect the BF&CG only got a few degrees cooler. We had a very warm winter.

Lazz, Your Icecream banana looks great. Let us know how it tastes. I don't know a lot about bananas, but they are all labeled at the BF&CG, so you can tell what you are looking at. It is a great place to visit sometime - very much underutilized. I don't believe anyone else was there last Saturday when we visited. Some of those bananas looked to be 25' tall!

I do have a variegated banana, given to me by a friend. It is growing like crazy! I have it in a pot but need to put it in the ground.

Ned

Variegated Banana ? Hmmmm. You have to send me some pups !!! What variety is it ?

What kind of variegation, is it red or white?

Thank you all for the advice regarding the time to harvest bananas. Great suggestions!

The variegation on the banana is white, but I do have to say it is not as much variegation present now as when it was a pup. I think it has to do with the rapid growth and heat. I have noticed that some of my variegated plants seem to lose some of their variegation as summer wears on. Maybe it is like the intensity is less. I will try to remember to take a picture to post.

Ned

Hey Gina, No, a book case didnt fall on me. I was backed over by an 18 wheeler loaded with bags of fertilizer! I know you doubt this but its true. I was 18 months old at the time and the ground where I was pressed into was soft enough that only some bones were broken but no permanent damage was done. There are some old timers still around who still remember it well! I get asked about the incident occaisonally and I often respond when folks ask whats the matter with me " I was run over by a tractor trailer rig.. whats your excuse! BTW Ive never heard of flat Stanley.. is that some sort of childrens book or something?

WOW what a story!!! Glad you lived with only a few broken bones..
Yes Flat Stanley is a childrens book. By Jeff Brown.. it was a buletin board that fell on Stanley.. Been a few years since I read it..
As each of my kids went through Kindergarden here they read Flat Stanley then the kids would lay down on paper and some one would help draw a line around them then they would color the picture of them selves and cut it out and mail to a relative or friend.. the friend or relative would take the "flat child" around with them during a day and take pictures.. then mail the pictures and story of what all they did back to the child.. IT IS A HOOT..
My youngest "Flat" Child went to my Aunts Dairy farm in Louisiana..
Here is Flat Sean with my cousin the cat and a bunch of calves..


A Flat Stanley has even made it to space with NASA!!
http://www.freelancestar.com/News/FLS/2002/122002/12032002/807573

Also to the white house...
http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/flatstanley/

Sorry to be waaayyy OT here..
Given your own story Stan.. I bet you would get a chuckle out of the story..

Gina *BabyBlue*

Great pics Ned! Thanks for sharing. Almost didn't recognize Stan, amongst plants without his hat on LOL

Here's a pic of my first ripe banana........


I feed it ground robbers.

Patty, I love your variety of Banana Patty.. did you have that specially cross bred just for you?? If you get any pups PLEASE SHARE!!!

Sorry.. "Flat Stanley" is over 40 yrs old now.. He is quite a legend around this house!! LOL I presumed he was well known all over...

Maybe I need to mail a "Flat Gina" to the citrus Expo this yr so I can get in on some of the pictures.. hehehehehe

Gina *Baby(not so flat)Blue*