There is a special thrill, isn’t there, in growing something yourself? What is sweeter than that hard earned carrot or the strawberry that you hunt down yourself, peeking under leaves on your hands and knees? I am still suffused with pleasure when I can walk back from the garden with an armful of lettuce (and I am looking forward to lettuce weather — I don’t bother with it in the heat of the summer).
I admit that I take some of the garden workhorses a bit for granted; radishes, with their dogged reliability are like loyal friends that are all too easy to under-appreciate, and even home-grown tomatoes can begin to taste simply good and normal by the end of the summer (until you end up face to face with a supermarket tomato, that is).
Some things, though, dazzle us just by making an appearance.
In all likelihood, we will probably never be able to eat these three bananas, but it is so thrilling to see fruit on the tree that it hardly matters. (And I like the way the canna nearby makes it look like a tropical garden… if you squint a bit and use your imagination…)
This banana tree is located at the outlet of one of our drainpipes, so it gets plenty of grey water throughout the year. And every winter it dies way back only to re-emerge late in the spring. I saw lots of banana trees groaning under the weight of their fruits growing up, but this meager bunch has us beaming with pride. Good old banana tree.
Garden Correspondent 
That is too cool! Fingers crossed that they’ll ripen for you!
We can always hope! Even so, I smile every time I see them hanging there, all green and full of promise.
This is probably obvious somehow, but why won’t you be able to eat the bananas?
I’ve felt the strange urge to grow something, or many delicious edible things lately, as in it’s strange for me because I always thought I was lazy about those things, and apathetic to the better taste etc. compared to supermarket varieties. But I was watching a cooking show that mentioned rhubarb being in season… and eating it with berries to add sweetness… and really wished I could grow both! And I was reminded of high school days where we’d go down to the farm and hoe out weeds from our zucchini/ carrot plots (it was an agricultural school so there was a mini farm with poultry, cows, peach and orange trees, bees, and a failed attempt at aquaculture which we nonetheless had to study for our exams!)
Also, did you always love gardening/ growing things?
I was for years a classic “black thumb.” I had indoor plants and invariably killed them. I had a coleus plant that survived me (named James, but not after my dad) but that was about it. So I am living proof that things can change. I am still not great at looking after indoor plants, though.
I think it will probably get too cold for those bananas to ripen — they don’t like cold weather at all. We’ll see.
I hope you do manage to grow a little something somewhere. Even a pot of parsley is a nice thing to have on the windowsill.
Your high school sounds lovely. Was it lovely to you, or did you hate it? (I hated every minute of high school, but in retrospect I realize that I was in two very beautiful schools that I severely under-appreciated.)
It was lovely, I miss it so much! I had some great teachers (especially in English) and it was just so cozy and sheltered compared to university. Although while I was there I think I also didn’t appreciate it as much as I do now, looking back.
wow–worth the wait, how many years now? tell me, are they edible as well but that doesn’t matter, does it?lovemom going to t-mobile to reactivate your new york phone for one month, then tekserve to see what’s wrong. what a mess. hope i am incommunicado only this morning. lovemom
Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2012 11:31:08 +0000 To: owilde98@hotmail.com
You will probably be here by the time we can or cannot eat them!
That is exciting to see bananas on your tree!
Sometimes, the smallest things can be the most exciting.
You remind me of my Grandfather and his lemon tree. He kept it indoors for much of the year and always marveled when it bloomed. One year, it actually produced a lemon — the only one it ever produced. That year, most of his conversations began with, “Have you seen my lemon?”
Enjoy watching your bananas grow. i hope you’re able to taste at least one of them and may these 3 be a sign of more plentiful harvests in the future. 🙂
We were like that when our jujube tree produced its first fruit — our grand total harvest for the year. That was two years ago, and we are buried in them this year. I love getting excited over those firsts. Too bad that lemon was also the last!
That looks so tropical…I’m looking a leaves changing color and falling.
Oh that’s such a beautiful sight, and one we don’t see in these parts.
How lovely to see those bananas growing. I love fresh produce picked straight from your own garden too. There’s nothing more satisfying xx
Fresh bananas are incredible my friend, the wonders you could make with them (or just eat as well ;))
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I’ll be happy if they ripen so I can eat them!