hacking bananas, south St. Louis, photograph by Erik M. Lunsford
Every fall, proprietor Joseph Waeltermann of the Southside Garden Stop in south St. Louis City chops down his hardy banana trees in anticipation of the winter season. Waeltermann will mulch over the chopped remains and wait until spring, when the trees will grow again.
Having learned gardening and growing in Florida, my return to St. Louis and its seasonal schedule for plants still seems alien, even though I grew up in the Midwest. Who knew that hardy bananas grow to heights of ten to fifteen feet in the summer heat and survive freezing temperatures through the winter doldrums? Equally mind boggling is the fall planting schedule for hosta and hydrangea, two recent entries in my garden at home. Intentionally planting it just to see it die back seems absurd, but I suppose the first buds on branches and sprouting tender leaves from the soil in the spring will carry with it a sense of cyclical normalcy.
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