BANANA PLANTS 
For many years the ornamental use of banana plants in the United States has been 
regrettably neglected. This neglect is due in part to restrictions on the importation of 
these plants. Until their recent removal, many desirable and valuable species of banana 
plants have not been available. 
Now we offer a wide range of species, from the very dwarf table bananas to the 
giant types, including intermediate forms. Some can be used as flowering pot plants 
in the smallest of greenhouses. Others are superb as patio plants in the tropics and 
semi-tropics. There should be greater use of the dwarfs and semi-dwarfs in temperate 
climates as decorative specimens for glassed-in porches and lanais. These bananas 
afford an exotic, tropical aspect with a palm-like slenderness—a silhouette that is 
most useful and yet difficult to find. 
To plant lovers in such states as Texas, Louisiana, and Georgia, and in the interior 
valleys of California, Arizona, and Nevada, where winters are subject to sudden freezes, 
we call special attention to the Japanese banana. A reliable French horticulturist has 
assured us that this species is regularly grown in the open in Paris, where winters are 
very cold. The herbaceous stems above the ground are knocked down by cold; with 
leaf-mulch protection, however, new growths rise abundantly with the advent of spring. 
The dwarf bananas should be used in sunny apartment windows, as novel compan- 
ions to split-leaf philodendrons and geraniums. 
DWARF BANANAS 
These delightful plants are small gems of the plant world. In Europe they have 
been known as table bananas because the entire fruiting plant is used in table decor- 
ations. 
400. MUSA COCCINEA. Andr. Spike erect, bracts brilliant scarlet. The plant should 
flower at a height of 30 inches in an 8 inch pot. We did not find it in Europe 
in 1953, although it used to be an important plant there, having been introduced in 
1793. Native to South China, this small member of the family is a delicate, horti- 
cultural wonder. 
402. MUSA MANNII, Wendl. This species will soon fill a small tub with its numerous 
slender, black-tinged stems. Height, 5 feet; spike, erect; color, pale crimson. Native 
to Assam. 
404. MUSA VELUTINA. The name means velvety and refers to the soft fuzz on the 
short, pudgy bananas that are a shocking pink. The spathes are a reddish purple. The 
plant, happy in semi-tropical climates, will fruit at 3 feet. We introduced it to 
the Hawaiian Islands, where it created a sensation when exhibited in flower arrange- 
ments for the first time in Honolulu in 1954. 
SEMI-DWARF BANANAS 
406. MUSA ROSACEA, Jacquin. This plant grows 4 to 6 feet high, is freely suckering, 
and has leaves that are purplish red underneath. Bracts are pale blue or reddish 
lilac. A very beautiful species. It is native to India. 
408. MUSA ROSEA. Commonly known in Southern California as the pink-flowering 
banana, an allusion to its bright pink bracts. This plant will flower at 8 to 10 feet. It 
suckers freely and is a fine garden ornamental. This species is sometimes erroneously 
known as dwarf. 
410. MUSA SUMATRANA, Beccari. This species is distinct from the MUSA SUMAT- 
RANA that has been called by this name in Southern California in recent years. (See 
MUSA ZEBRINA.) We found this plant in a collection in Germany in 1953. It grows 
to a modest height of 7 to 8 feet. The green leaves are pleasantly blotched with very 
dark red-wine. This is a rare plant in the western world and a collector’s item. 
412. MUSA ZEBRINA. This plant has been generally available in Southern Cali- 
fornia for the last ten years, often called there MUSA SUMATRANA. M. ZEBRINA 
is a striking plant—bold, claret-brown splotches on the upper side of the leaves— 
reddish purple on the lower. This banana makes an exotic ornamental for warm 
locations. 
LARGE BANANAS 
414. MUSA BASJOO, Sieb. & Lucc., The Japanese Banana. In our judgment, this 
banana is the hardiest of the species and should endure below freezing temperatures. 
It has wide yellow bracts. This will be a most useful plant where heretofore banana 
growing has not been ventured. Liu Kiu Archipelago. 
“C415. MUSA CAVENDISHII, Lamb. This well-known wide-leafed Chinese species is 
sometimes used in interior planters because of the compactness of the plant. It makes a 
fine, low growing yard or tubbed plant. With heavy feeding and watering, it has pro- 
duced excellent fruit in Pacific Palisades, California. 
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