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When to Cut Ensete Ventricosum in California

Abyssinian banana (Ensete ventricosum) is a dramatic looking African native that spices up gardens with its variegated leaves and small, banana-like fruits. In California, depending on your hardiness zone range, Abyssinian banana either grows outdoors as a herbaceous perennial that needs little pruning or needs to come indoors during the winter, in which case you need to prune.

  1. Identification

    • A huge, fruiting evergreen perennial, the Abyssinian banana has considerable appeal in a tropical landscape. Even in nontropical gardens, its arch of 10- to 20-foot leaves are graceful and exotic, generally olive green with prominent central veins and some variegation. Its fruits, while decorative, are dry and unappealing, so don’t grow the plant for its “bananas.” If you cut the top off Abyssinian banana, it will die to the ground.

    Outdoor Growth

    • Abyssinian banana grows year-round in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 and 11. If you live within these zones, you rarely need to cut the plant. It grows naturally to a full height of about 12 to 20 feet, with a spreading canopy of 6 to 10 feet. When it reaches its full height, which takes between two and five years, it sends out a flower stalk, which matures to small, banana-like fruits. After this, it dies to the ground and sends out new shoots from its base.

    Overwintering Indoors

    • Many parts of California provide ideal winter growing conditions for Abyssinian banana, but not all. Outside its hardiness zone range, you can grow it in a container and bring it inside during the winter months. If it is small, you can place it in your home or greenhouse in a sunny room and water it sparingly like other winter houseplants. If it is large, trim each leaf back to 6 or 8 inches in the fall and then store the container in a cool basement until spring. If you cannot bring the container inside, you can remove the banana from the container and wrap its roots in plastic, trim the leaves to the same length and store it in the basement.

    Other Pruning

    • After the Abyssinian banana dies, it produces new shoots from the base of the former stem. If you only want one plant to grow in its place, encourage the healthiest and prune off other suckers. Unlike the edible banana (Musa x paradisiaca), hardy in USDA zones 9 and 10, it generally doesn’t produce suckers at the base until it dies, so there is no need to prune outside during growth cycles. Be aware that when you prune it and bring it indoors, it will likely never flower.

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