I recently bought this plant at wal-mart with no name tag and without instructions on watering... What IS it first off? and does it look healthy?...the stalk seems to be turning browner
It looks like a banana tree plant or some relation to it. They can get huge, Eileen or Toni will know for sure, they know just about every plant between the two of them.
It certainly looks like a banana tree to me too (family Musaceae). Your plant looks fairly healthy but remember it's a tropical plant and not a run of the mill house plant. Also they grow to be very large plants in a fairly short period of time.
Also, I Googled Banana tree plant & found this picture of one at 2 years old: http://www.farfareastcreatures.com/coloringbook/images1/bana-2y-old.jpg My Grandmother planted ONE in the corner of her back yard by the shore of her lake & now the entire corner is covered in Bananna TREES (plural) at least 20 of them.
I have mine in a pot now but am really wondering where to put it as they do get lots of pups from the roots.
Banana plants tend to go a bit brown quite quickly - they need a lot of moisture and humidity, I think - but yes, lots of little shoots come up through the soil to replace the shrivelled ones :-D
