Canna Canna
Other Common Name(s):
Other plants called Canna:
- Phonetic Spelling
- KAN-nah
- Description
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Cannas, or Arrowroot, is a tall, leafy, tropical plant with gladiolus-like flower spikes that bloom atop erect stems sheathed in large paddle-shaped leaves. Despite the common name, Canna Lily, it is not a lily. The Canna genus includes about 10 species with numerous cultivars. Commercial growers typically sell Canna plant cultivars that range from 1.5 feet tall to 8 feet tall with flower colors that include red, orange, pink, yellow, cream and some bi-colors. The foliage colors can also vary from shades of green or bronze to striped/variegated and provide ornamental value when plants are not in flower.
Cannas can be a challenge to grow. Although it is a tropical plant, most cultivars have been developed in temperate climates and are easy to grow in most countries of the world as long as they receive at least 6–8 hours average sunlight during the summer, and are moved to a warm location for the winter. They do best in moist, organically rich, well-drained soils in full sun. However, rhizomes may rot in poorly drained wet soils. In USDA zones 7 through 10, you can leave rhizomes in the ground; however in zones 5b and 6a, you should dig up the rhizomes in fall and store the bulbs over winter. The plants will sustain injury if left in the ground at temperatures below 25 degrees F. Cut the plants to the ground immediately after the first frost and lift the rhizome clumps for winter storage in a dry medium such as peat or vermiculite and store in a cool dry location than does not fall below 40 degrees F. In the spring, you can return the rhizomes to the ground, placing them 4 to 6 inches deep after threat of frost has passed. After the blooms have faded in late summer, remove the flowering stems. If you grow the plant in containers, stored them in their containers over winter. As finicky as the plant sounds, it does tolerate drought and poor soil, but prefers a rich, well-drained soil with abundant water and a site that gets full sun in the morning.
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Common diseases include aster yellows, bud rot, rust, and mosaic virus. Rabbits, Japanese beetles, caterpillars, slugs and snails have been known to chew on the foliage.
Quick ID Hints:
- Tall erect herb with giant, sheathing leaves
- Terminal racemes with large carotenoid flowers
- Fruits a prickly 3-valved capsule.
Gigantic erect, succulent herb.
utilized in massing, background plants in beds, center plant in smaller beds, container plants, highway color in beds by DOT; rhizomes need to be dug up and stored overwinter in colder climates; numerous cultivars, including dwarfs.
GLADIOLUS GROUP - staminodes broad, overlapping, flower appearing more full; more popular selections.
ORCHID GROUP - staminodes narrow, segregated, flower appearing smaller & more exotic.
Prefers full sun in rich fertile soils; intolerant of killing frosts; numerous pest & disease problems.
VIDEO Created by Elisabeth Meyer for "Edibles, Bulbs, and Houseplants" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscapes:
- Backyard Planting Corner Roadside Planting Backyard Planting
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Black Knight'
4'-6' tall, red flowers and smoky purple foliage, strong stalks - 'Brandywine' - Longwood Hybrid Canna
3' tall, heavily blooming red flowers, green foliage with red leaf margins
C. americanallis var. variegata
- 'Chesapeake' - Longwood Hybrid Canna
4' tall, yellow flowers that fade to white over time, green foliage
C. indica
- 'Lily Thai'
- 'Mrs. Pierre S. du Pont'
4' tall, pink flowers with green foliage - 'Phasion' Tropicanna® - Variegated Canna
4'-6' tall, orange flowers, leaves are green with red and yellow streaks - 'Striata' - Variegated Canna
5' tall, orange flowers, green leaves with cream colored streaks - 'Striped Beauty' - Variegated Canna
3'-5' tall, yellow buds open to cream colored flowers with pink bracts, green leaves with yellow streaks, requires overwintering
C. glauca
C. x generalis
- 'Black Knight'
- 'Black Knight', 'Brandywine' - Longwood Hybrid Canna, C. americanallis var. variegata, C. glauca, 'Chesapeake' - Longwood Hybrid Canna, C. indica, C. x generalis, 'Lily Thai', 'Mrs. Pierre S. du Pont', 'Phasion' Tropicanna® - Variegated Canna, 'Striata' - Variegated Canna, 'Striped Beauty' - Variegated Canna
- Tags:

























- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- 'Black Knight'
4'-6' tall, red flowers and smoky purple foliage, strong stalks - 'Brandywine' - Longwood Hybrid Canna
3' tall, heavily blooming red flowers, green foliage with red leaf margins
C. americanallis var. variegata
- 'Chesapeake' - Longwood Hybrid Canna
4' tall, yellow flowers that fade to white over time, green foliage
C. indica
- 'Lily Thai'
- 'Mrs. Pierre S. du Pont'
4' tall, pink flowers with green foliage - 'Phasion' Tropicanna® - Variegated Canna
4'-6' tall, orange flowers, leaves are green with red and yellow streaks - 'Striata' - Variegated Canna
5' tall, orange flowers, green leaves with cream colored streaks - 'Striped Beauty' - Variegated Canna
3'-5' tall, yellow buds open to cream colored flowers with pink bracts, green leaves with yellow streaks, requires overwintering
C. glauca
C. x generalis
- 'Black Knight'
- 'Black Knight', 'Brandywine' - Longwood Hybrid Canna, C. americanallis var. variegata, C. glauca, 'Chesapeake' - Longwood Hybrid Canna, C. indica, C. x generalis, 'Lily Thai', 'Mrs. Pierre S. du Pont', 'Phasion' Tropicanna® - Variegated Canna, 'Striata' - Variegated Canna, 'Striped Beauty' - Variegated Canna
- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Canna
- Family:
- Cannaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Cannas are used in agriculture as a rich source of starch for human and animal consumption.
- Life Cycle:
- Bulb
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Tropical east and west Africa, Central and South America
- Wildlife Value:
- Cultivars with red blooms attract hummingbirds. Host plant for Brazilian Skipper caterpillar and moth.
- Play Value:
- Attractive Flowers
- Colorful
- Screening
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wildlife Larval Host
- Particularly Resistant To (Insects/Diseases/Other Problems):
- Tolerates drought, poor soil, wet soil, heat, and humidity.
- Bulb Storage:
- For Zones 6 & 7, harvest rhizomes in fall, dry, and store in dry peat or vermiculite at 41-50 degrees F (5-10 degrees C). Mulch in Zone 8.
- Edibility:
- Canna root is a source of edible starch.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 1 ft. 6 in. - 8 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 1 ft. 6 in. - 6 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Bulb
- Perennial
- Habit/Form:
- Clumping
- Erect
- Maintenance:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Wet
- Available Space To Plant:
- 12 inches-3 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7b, 7a, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10b, 10a
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Green
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- A 3-valved, prickly capsule, often warted. Many rounded seeds with very hard endosperm.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Cream/Tan
- Gold/Yellow
- Orange
- Pink
- Red/Burgundy
- Variegated
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Panicle
- Raceme
- Spike
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Fall
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Lipped
- Flower Petals:
- 2-3 rays/petals
- Colored Sepals
- Flower Size:
- 3-6 inches
- Flower Description:
- Gladiolus-like flowers that bloom atop erect stems sheathed in large paddle-shaped leaves. What appears to be the petals are actually modified stamens. Available in many colors: rose, pink, red, yellow, orange, salmon, and bicolored. Terminal, bracteated raceme. Asymmetrical, bold carotenoid pigments of red to orange to yellow; sepals 3, short, glaucous. petals 3, narrow, united into a basal tube; staminodes (petal-like stamens) 4, three broadly obovate overtopping petals, showy, one with remenant of anther sac or minute lobe; stamens 1, petaloid with solitary marginal anther. Typically blooms from July to October.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gray/Silver
- Green
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- Variegated
- Leaf Feel:
- Fleshy
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Leaf Type:
- Sheath
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Rosulate
- Leaf Shape:
- Elliptical
- Lanceolate
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Leaves are large, broad, pinnately nerved, with a distinct midrib. Alternate, simple, sheathing, 2-ranked, gigantic, to 2' long x 4-12" wide, green to reddish-purple, or yellowish variegated; blade broad elliptic to lanceolate, acute, broadly cuneate to round, entire. May have a glaucous coating. Foliage colors vary from shades of green or bronze to striped/variegated and provide ornamental value when plants are not in flower.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Erect, 1-5' tall, often reddish-purple.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Container
- Pond
- Pool/Hardscape
- Riparian
- Vertical Spaces
- Walkways
- Landscape Theme:
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Rain Garden
- Water Garden
- Design Feature:
- Accent
- Border
- Hedge
- Mass Planting
- Screen/Privacy
- Small groups
- Attracts:
- Hummingbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Drought
- Heat
- Humidity
- Poor Soil
- Salt
- Wet Soil