Bye Bye Banana Trees . . .

Our weather has been chilly at night and my beloved Banana trees have been looking weary.
So . . . .  I have cut them back.
I used to cut them to the ground and mulch them heavily, but a few years ago, I stopped doing that.  I now cut the trunks diagonally, about 3'+, depending on their height.  This way, the new growth has a head start of a few feet, allowing great height during the growing season.
Unfortunately, in Atlanta, we can have a surprisingly warm winter followed by a late freeze.  When this happens, the banana trees will send out new shoots that I then cut off. . . . and we start all over again.
The trunks look like rolled up corrugated cardboard that's soaked in water.  So when temps drop, they really freeze.

Backyard Banana Tree From Spring 2011

This tree grew approximately 15' before I cut it back.

It worked well as a support for this Asiatic lilly when it was small.