A man has been going bananas after his tropical tree started growing fruits after six years.

Russell Flawn planted the tree in his garden as part of a project to add a number of exotic plants to his property.

And because the climate in Hove is less than ideal for bananas, he could not peel-lieve his eyes when the fruit began to grow.

Russell, who lives in Applesham Avenue, said: “I thought they would never grow, we didn’t have any expectations and then this year they flowered.

“We have been focused on building this jungle garden and it has done something unexpected.

“I’m surprised it has chosen this summer to do it because it hasn’t been that hot and we have had all this wind and rain.

“I’m so pleased, it’s amazing as my mum and dad are down at the moment. We’ve never seen it before and didn’t expect anything.”

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Russell, 43, said he and his wife Maria started growing the tree in 2017 two years after they moved into their house.

Since then, they have been trying to add more tropical plants to their garden.

The Argus: Russell's exotic-inspired gardenRussell's exotic-inspired garden (Image: Russell Flawn)

The banana tree first started flowering around five weeks ago then bananas appeared two weeks ago.

According to the Royal Horticultural Society, banana trees “rarely flower or fruit” in the UK but may do so in a heated greenhouse or conservatory.

Bananas are generally grown in tropical regions such as South and Central America as well as India, China and Africa.

To produce fruit, trees need temperatures over 15 degrees Celsius and, ideally, over 27 degrees.

Russell said that the ability for the banana tree to fruit may be partially due to increasing temperatures caused by climate change.

He added: “The last three years have been way hotter. We are getting more of a Spanish climate of late which is great for the garden but I hope it’s not because of climate change.”