A fast-growing, half-hardy, upright, suckering perennial to 4m tall with very large, paddle-like glossy green foliage with random mahongany-red stripes. Mature plants may bear long-lasting, yellow-brown flowers enclosed in purple bracts from summer into autumn, followed by yellowish fruits
1.5-2.5 metres
0.5-1 metres
Under glass, grow in peat-free, loam-based potting compost in full light, with shade from hot sun. Water freely while in growth and apply a balanced liquid fertiliser every month; keep just moist in winter. Repot every 1 or 2 years in spring. Outdoors grow in sheltered site in humus-rich soil and either bring pots indoors, or provide winter protection in the form of biodegradable horticultural fleece and hessian wraps. See banana cultivation
Propagate by sowing pre-soaked seed in spring. Separate suckers in early spring, removing older leaves
Remove damaged or dead leaves
May be susceptible to glasshouse red spider mite, mealybugs and aphids
Generally disease-free