The trial planted in early November 2017 has now started to bunch. Bell emergence commenced in week 14 and assessments are currently underway.
An exciting component of the industry’s National Banana Development and Extension Program is to apply different practices to banana plants which growers may not be willing to, or have the time to try on their own farms.
Some initial observations from the ground cover trial have shown that plants planted into the black weed matting, appear to be shorter on average than the other treatments. However, there is no difference in average leaf emergence between the plants in the weed matting and other treatments.
Other trial work underway is looking into two different timings for desuckering. Half the plants have had their first flush of suckers removed once there was at least 3 suckers 30 cm tall, at approximately 3 months after planting. The other half of the plants will be desuckered closer to bunch emergence.
Check back here for updates on the trial.
We appreciate grower’s knowledge and experience of banana production systems and are keen to seek feedback and advice on our trial work. We therefore encourage all growers who can contribute to our current trial work or have ideas on new innovative practices to contact our team: betterbananas@daf.qld.gov.au or phone 13 25 23.