agirlsgirl, Glad to see you so excited about growing bananas. I got hooked on them about 4 years ago and keep dividing my clumps. I now have 3 good sized clumps and they get close to 14 feet. I'm in a little warmer zone than yours, but the basjoo's that I grow are really cold hardy so you shouldn't worry much about them. I cut them down to about a foot tall and cover them with leaves. Come spring, they are poking up through the leaves. This year I grew one of the pups in a pot and have it in the garage now. It stands about 3 feet tall and all the leaves are cut off. I don't water it any more and plan to place it in the ground come summer. Thought I'd share a photo of my last standing clump that I'm sure will be mush tomorrow as lows tonight are predicted to be in the 20's. Happy growing. From Garden 2009

Directly below the main title you will see 'Species Pictorial Main Key', click on and it takes you to a page with different subjects, look to the far right for 'UXXX Species' and click on there.

Well, I ran into a problem. I chose the only solution I could come up with stat, but perhaps you guys could suggest something else. It turns out that ragweed wilts on the slightest injury. I couldn't get leaves to stay fresh in water pics. I tried to transplant a whole plant, and it wilted in under 2 minutes. Perhaps the 100-degree weather has something to do with it... Anyways, the ragweed that the cats were on was shot. So the only thing I could come up with was to transfer the cats to the ragweed in my yard. I used a toothpick and transferred 11 of 14, with 3 drops. :(. But my yard's a big scary place -- there were ants, leafhoppers, and some unidentified insect on the same plant as the cats. So...were there any other options? I could always re-adopt the cats if I can guarantee fresh food for them. Jeff

What is a buckeye? A buckeye is an inedible nut which resembles the eye of a deer (or buck); thus called "buck eye". This nut develops on trees naturally grown and common in the state of Ohio. The scientific name is "Aesculus glabra" but the tree is widely known simply as the "Ohio Buckeye". It is a small, round tree. In average it grows approximately 20-30 feet in height and width. In the spring, the tree blooms yellowish flower clusters. They are typically the first trees to leaf out in the spring. Ohio Buckeye has a dense oval to round form, branching quite low. Each leaf is compounded with 5-7 leaflets that are 4-5 inches long. Foliage is medium to dark green and may develop yellow or orange fall color. Fruit is a glossy brown nut enclosed in a thick husk. Why are buckeye trees found in Ohio? The answer is in the soil and climate. Ohio Buckeyes can survive in a broad range of soil and climatic conditions. However, it performs best in moist, well drained soil. In full sun or in partial shade. Ohio's climate has perfect conditions for these trees to grow. In any climate, they are susceptibe to leaf scorch. This problem results in browning of the leaf margins beginning in mid summer. By late summer to early fall, the trees look unsightly and are often partially defoliated. At this time, the buckeye nuts naturally fall to the ground. and know you know the rest of the story. Good day Eric