Reviving a Freeze-Damaged Red Banana: Cutting Back to the Corm

Cut the Trunk in Half—It's the Only Way

A red banana (Musa spp.) with mushy, fishy-smelling trunk after a Florida freeze: cut the pseudostem halfway down. If the underground corm is alive, a new shoot emerges from the cut center within days.

The Pup Is Your Backup

The small sapling beside it is a "pup" from the same corm. Leave it; it will grow regardless. If the mother fails, the pup continues the clump.

Why This Works

Bananas grow until fruiting, then die back. The corm perpetually produces new pups. Cutting a frozen trunk resets the clock. Warm weather accelerates regrowth.