Canna

Frost Tolerance: Leaves damaged at 28° F, will start new canes in March

Sun Exposure: Full sun

Origin: Central and South America, West Indies

Growth Habits: Herbaceous perennial, 3 to 6 feet tall (90-180 cm)

Watering Needs: Should be watered thoroughly once a week when blooming

Propagation: Division of clumps, seeds

Canna 'President'

Varieties:
Black Knight - Dark red flowers and burgundy foliage.
Miss Oklahoma - Large pink flowers and green foliage.
President - Bright red flowers and green leaves. 3' - 4' (See picture 2).
Richard Wallace - Yellow flowers and green foliage.
Tropicanna - Striped foliage, orange flowers (See picture 1).
Wyoming - Bright orange flowers and dark, reddish foliage.

Blooming Habits:
In Phoenix, Cannas will bloom all year if in a protected locations. Cut flowers do not keep well. Remove spent flowers, and cut the stalk to ground after all the flower clusters have bloomed to push the plant to produce more stalk.

Culture:
Plant bulbs 10 - 12 inches apart. Cover with 3 inches of soil. Cannas should be watered thoroughly once a week during bloom. For optimum performance, add a general all purpose fertilizer every four to six weeks during growing season. (10-20-10 is fine). Cut old spent flowers and seed pods to induce repeated flowering late into the autumn season. In Phoenix, cannas can be left in the ground all winter, however, clumps should be thinned every 2-3 years.

Propagation:
If you want to experiment with seeds, they need to be soaked for 24 to 48 hours, and then filed or nicked to accelerate the germination. Seeds should germinate in 8 to 12 days at 72° F.
The easiest way to propagate cannas is to divide the clumps in the fall with each division having an eye. A portion of an old tuber containing several strong buds is best. The old tubers may be divided to single eyes, but the weak eyes are likely to make weak plants. If very strong clumps are wanted, a whole tuber may be used. When separated to single eyes they are best started in 4-inch pots covered with glass. The tubers should be planted 5 inches deep. Cannas should be planted 12-18 inches apart depending on the size of the varieties used and the effect desired. In dry weather a thorough soaking of the plants once a week will insure a stronger growth.

Links:
Hart Canna: an English mail order house