Erlend Hardy-type bananas will probably stop actively growing around 45-50F degrees. So I guess you have to think about how much time they'd have outside to root in the ground before it got too cold. I'd plant them outside here in the Dallas Texas area but average low temperature doesn't reach 45F degrees until mid-November. So that's maybe 2 good months of strong growth here followed by another month of slow growth mid October to mid November. I'll tell you one thing... I have some M. zebrinas that are not hardy at all. I stored them in my garage last winter and they recovered just fine. After the first freeze I cut off all their browned leaves and just dragged them into the garage still in their pots. I didn't water them all winter long and they looked like sticks. Then in the Spring I dragged them out and watered them and the started growing right away. Here's a pic of zebrinas this last March 6th: Then here they are this past week. The big one is planted in the ground and the smaller one stayed potted. I'll bring them both into the garage again this winter. If you decide to store then in your basement I see no harm in that. Just make sure they don't get any water or they'll rot and turn to mush. You could plant 4 outside, store 4 in the basement and keep 2 alive and active in pots in the living room. That way you have reserves incase some don't make it. Good luck and let us know what you decide to do. -Todd

Some great advise already. I would get a bright light and check the underside of the leaves for mites. These tiny animals are the size of the sharp end of a pin. Look carefully under each leaf. Indoor potted bananas usually are attacked because of the ideal environment. They tend to suck the sap from the leaves, weakening the plant, slow growth, leave droop, leaf drop, death of plant. If you find them, wipe off with warm moist rag,rinse well. Or gently spray with hose under the leaves. Other than that, a transplant into a larger pot would be beneficial.

Thanks guys, I will indeed check out the links you offered. One of the farm service companies here is advertising a Bausch & Lomb 20x for something like 18.00 and from some of the few prices I have seen so far this might be a nice deal. Cathy, I just had a mental vision of myself with those over-the-head lenses on...maybe that's a cheaper cure for my astigmatism?? At least then I could pluck my own eyebrows a bit more efficiently!

i'll be doing a lot of it myself. not changing out the sink or putting in a faucet tho - lol! I'll have to hire someone to do that for me and move the appliances around. I think I can put down some laminate flooring but it'll take me a long time. I guess I've got some of that tho. I'll have the electrician come back to replace some light fixtures and check out why I don't have cold water inside. I do at the outside spigot. He'll probably have to replace my water heater too. maybe he'll try flushing it first. the water smells. He needs to replace the handle on my water pump and maybe hook up the dw. bf will still do the outside work. He can't do a lot of things now because his balance is off. Things like getting down on the floor and under a sink would be very hard for him and he'd have a heck of a time getting back up. shoot, I do and I've got both of my feet! He can't drive his big trucks anymore either so he has to hire someone to haul his equipment out here. Once out here he can manipulate the forklift and grader fine. He's finally found someone he trusts to drive the flatbed, is putting insurance on it and replacing a few tires. Hopefully then I'll get a decent set of steps up into the new place (he has 'em I think). Or he might move one of the steps I have into this place. They are both way too heavy to move w/o the forklift. I also faxed him a very long list of things that need done yet. typed it up, type size 12 (his eye aren't so good either) and i think it was double spaced - but very little margin top and bottom. Plus I scratched in a few more things by hand before i faxed it to him. I'm also hoping I can get him to cut some of the laminate planks for me when he's out here. At least til I get comfortable doing it myself. So far I've been afraid to try it. My sister used to have a young guy she knew do odd jobs for her and he did good work so I'm gonna call him and see if he wants to earn some extra money. He's probably in his early - mid 20s now - bought a house to the E of me the other yr so he's only a few miles away. He's a big guy so moving appliances around or lifting the sink won't be a problem for him. I just hope he wants work. my sister told me the other wk she thought he had a gf now so maybe he doesn't have any spare time. puppy and I are spending the afternoons over there. She plays and i try to work (or nap in the a/c). She's a pest tho - all she wants to do is play! I can see that whatever flooring I put down won't look new very long... not the way she skids thru the house chasing her toy (that someone throws as far as she can to get a few seconds of peace). I finally found my level today so I'm going to attempt to put up some shelves tomorrow. I moved the level and haven't been able to find it for wks. Hated the idea of buying another one... I'd already checked for studs and marked them so I hope it flies right along after I mark up the wall with a level line to drill the braces in. I'm sure this is more than you really wanted to know - lol!