Musa basjoo
Japanese Fiber Banana, Hardy Banana
From £11.96
Hardy banana is aptly named for being the most cold-hardy banana tree, a perfect choice of plant to lend an exotic and tropical aura to your home garden.
Musa basjoo produces huge but delicate paddle-shaped leaves which glow as the sun shines through them.
Plant Biography
Whilst it is also known as Japanese Fibre Banana, Musa basjoo doesn’t actually originate from Japan as was previously thought. Rather, it originated in Southern China, with the most significant wild population in the Sichuan province and was exported to Japan where it is used ornamentally and to create a textile known as ‘Banana Cloth’.
They have since become popular ornamental plants around the world for any garden with enough space to accommodate them. Whilst our Musa basjoo are sold as ‘outdoor plants’, they can successfully be kept indoors in a large enough room.
Part of the natural aesthetic of Musa basjoo is the splits in its large, delicate leaves. This is an evolutionary tactic for them to avoid the main stem being damaged by strong winds, which would otherwise catch on the large surface area of their foliage. To ensure your banana leaves stay entire they need to be kept in a sheltered spot.
Expert Tip
Care & Size Guidance
For plants grown directly in the ground, cut stems back to 60cm after frost kills the leaves, wrap stems with hessian, horticultural fleece, or any other breathable material, and apply a thick mulch to the ground to protect the roots. Plants in containers may be kept in a dry, unheated area over winter.
Whether kept indoors or outdoors, it’s important to consider that the Hardy Banana is a large plant when it matures, and thus requires a spot with enough space.
Please Note:
As Musas are quite delicate, it is almost impossible to ship them without damage. Therefore, we have to cut the leaves before shipping the plant to you, but don’t worry – new leaves will quickly emerge.
Plant arrived in great condition, as described and new leaf just coming though. Very pleased with overall service and will certainly use again
Terry M. –
I had visited and bought plants from the Palm Centre for many years and have always been delighted with the service and plants purchased. A few years ago we moved to the west of the country so not so easy to pop along to the centre. I bought the Musa Basjoo online and although I waited a few weeks for delivery (due to the current situation) I was not disappointed when the plants arrived. They were beautiful plants and very well packed for transit and the courier treated them well. I miss my summer weekend trips to the Palm Centre but at least I know that I can still buy my plants from them and enjoy the quality. Thank you Palm Centre.
Sheri C. –
Kept seeing Monty Don racing about banana plants so we ordered this one as a starter. Great quality plant. Looking forward to nurturing it.
Mark R. –
Excellent plane, packing and delivery. Thank you.
Elaine H. –
it come when you said, and i’m so pleased with it
keep up the good work
Peter C. –
this plant arrived, very moist and in excellent condition. nicely packaged for delivery. very pleased.
frances M. –
With the quality of the plants. Well packaged. No damage to leaves. Plants were bigger than I was expecting and very healthy. Thank you. Would definitely order again.
Jo H. –
lovely plant very pleased. There was a short delay on delivery but this was expected and communicated to us.
jenny P. –
There was a slight delay with my musa basjoo however couldn’t be happier with the help I received in such busy times and will always order from here
Luke D. –
Musa bajoo was great, but the delivery times were not so great, waited around a month, delivery dates were changed a few times, understandable under the circumstances
kylie-ann J. –
My plants arrived on time and in superb condition. In particular, the Musa basjoo vastly exceeded my expectations. Its far larger than I had imagined when I ordered it, which is a wonderful surprise. Now my jungle garden looks instantly lush. For ~£25 I was expecting a small plant with one or no leaves, that would stand maybe 50cm tall once planted at most. What I got was a plant at least 1.2m tall, full of beautiful foliage with another leaf on the way. All the leaves were in perfect condition. The packaging was simple, but by far the most effective of any nursery or retailer Ive ever ordered from (and Ive ordered a lot). There was no mess at all, and very little plastic. Compared to plants Ive received from other nurseries for a similar price, the difference is unbelievable. Im very impressed, and will definitely be ordering from Palm Centre in the future.
Joshua R. –
Fantastic plant arrived safely well protected would recommend
Karen R. –
Really happy with the service, plant arrived in great condition
Chris B. –
Good quality plant at a very fair price. Arrived in great condition. I will definitely use this company again.
Jody B. –
Perfectly packaged, delivered and received. So grateful….many thanks the PalmCentre
Mark C. –
Slightly underwhelmed by my musa basjoo that arrived today. I had seen such gorgeous specimens at the Palm Centre last Summer and it was these that had fuelled my desire to get one for the garden. Accepting that the leaves would be removed before transit, I thought that this would be a good time of year to buy one online, before the leaves start to appear. Not as tall as I’d expected, based on those I’d seen last year and more recently at the Palm Centre, but I’ve planted it in a sunny bed and am keeping my fingers crossed that it flourishes and produces lots of large luscious leaves. I’ll keep you updated!
Janet B. –
Great plant well packaged and delivered in top condition!
Sanj –
Great price, fast delivery and a nice little plant. Very pleased.
Samuel –
Starting chucking out giant leaves as soon as it arrived – ppl cant believe how quickly its growing from a stick to a Banana, great plant
brunomartelli –
Delay in arriving but was advised of this. Plants appeared to be young plants with plenty of fresh growth and wasnt expecting this. Re-potted them and have placed in sunny position. Leaves have wilted and gone brown. Dont know if they will recover this year or not.
Karen Renwick –
I ordered a banana tree (musa bajoo), it arrived promptly, excellent condition and I am very pleased with the plant. Wouldnt hesitate to use the palm centre again in future.
Teresa –
have bought a banana plant every year for the past three years, starting from the very cheap size to the biggest – dearest size. none of the trees survived the winter despite protecting the plant and the past two winters here in the south being very mild. This is the last one I will be buying – I hope I am not wasting my money again.
christine urwin –
Arrived in great condition, taller than expected, but thats good.
David K –
Received what I thought would be a cracking specimen looks dead now within a week what can I say
Palm Centre Reply: Were so sorry to hear youre not happy with your Banana Tree. We clearly specify that as the plant is quite delicate, it is impossible to ship them without damage. Therefore, the banana tree leaves are being cut before shipping to you. This is why maybe you meant by looking dead. New leaves will emerge soon as were getting close for this time of the year where Musa basjoo grows quick and strong leaves.
Gwyn –
My order of musa basjoo and strelitzia reginae arrived well packed even with gift Im really satisfied and the height and condition was better than I expected ????
Dominik –
Arrived safely, very well packaged. Planted yesterday so cannot pass any other comments at the moment.
Roger Griffiths –
Arrived safely well packaged and promptly, Great size and has already sprung into life and looking good
Dave Pollard –
Received 3 Musa Basjoo superb plants. I would highly recommend . THE PALM CENTRE to all my gardening friends,i will certainly be back to buy more from you . regards Carol McGovern.
Carol McGovern –
Excellent service. Speedy delivery. Nice to do business with you.
Jan Marais –
Very speedy delivery of 3 plants in 1 pot that separated easily. No damage during transit. Good job.
Jonathan Roe –
Ordered 2 2ltr Musas, initially had a problem with one of them but it was dealt with very professionally. Planned m plants are excellent and bigger than expected. Well done!!
Richard Perry –
Bought a Musa Basjoo in early May (along with several other plants). Arrived perhaps around 6-7 feet tall with a healthy stem. Since then the first leaf has unfurled. Fairly sure the tree will give us magnificent foliage during the summer.
Qamar Z –
Planted one of these last year and it grew from a few inches high to around 6 feet – stunning plant and the centre piece of my exotic garden. Didnt expect it to survive our Yorkshire winter so didnt try to protect it but it survived anyway and has been putting leaves out for the past month. Each frost has killed the leaves but its still going and hopefully the latest leaves will survive now its mid-May.
jon kelly –
Bought this last year, protected as best I can through the winter. Sadly hasnt survived. Not sure what else to try.
Kevin roman –
Arrived well wrapped – due to size hard to gauge health but have planted out and looking forward to seeing the resulting growth. Have bought palms here and arrived healthy and well packaged also
Andy –
The plant was smaller than described, disappointed 🙁
Dave Deakin –
Arrived the following morning perfectly wrapped and in perfect condition..Exactly as described .Well done.
Jack Magnus –