Canna (plant)

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Canna (Canna, or sometimes confusingly, "Canna lily") is a genus of nine or ten species of flowering plants, the only genus in the family Cannaceae. The genus is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the New World, from the southern United States (southern South Carolina west to southern Texas) south to northern Argentina.

The plants are large tropical and subtropical perennial herbs with broad flat leaves that grow out of a stem in a long narrow roll and then unfurl. The flowers are typically red, orange, or yellow or any combination of those colors. The wild species often grow to 2-3+ meters but there is a wide variation in size among cultivated plants; numerous cultivars have been selected for smaller stature. The leaves are typically solid green but some cultivars have brownish, maroon, or even variegated leaves. The flowers attract hummingbirds. All cannas are native to the New World, although some species are cultivated and naturalized in other tropical regions. Cannas (particularly C. indica) are sometimes known as "Indian Shot", as their seeds are small, round, and hard like bird shot. They are used as pearls in jewellry and as the mobile elements of the kayamb, a musical instrument from Réunion.

Species

Canna flaccida Salisb.
Canna glauca L.
Canna indica L. (syn. C. lutea, C. edulis, C. coccinea, C. lambertii, C. sylvestris)
Canna iridiflora Ruiz & Pav.
Canna jaegeriana Urban. (syn. C. pertusa)
Canna latifolia Mill. (syn. C. tuerckheimii)
Canna liliiflora Warsc. ex Planch.
Canna neglecta Steud.
Canna paniculata Ruiz & Pav.

Hybrids

Canna x hortensis Année
Canna × generalis L.H.Bailey
Canna × orchiodes L.H.Bailey

The first hybridisation of Cannas was performed in 1848 by a gentleman gardener, Monsieur Théodore Année of Passy, France. He was rapidly joined by many other enthusiasts and professional horticulturalists as Canna hybrids enjoyed rapid popularity in France. Amongst the professionals was the rose breeder Monsieur Pierre-Antoine-Marie Crozy (1831-1903) of Avoux & Crozy, La Guillotière, Lyon, France, who first started hybridising Cannas in 1862 and continued introducing new canna cultivars at a rapid rate until his death in 1903, giving his name to a whole new group of floriferous Canna cultivars. Crozy aîné (French for "elder"), as he was universally known, was succeeded by his son, Michel Crozy (1871-1908).

In the early 1900's Professor Liberty Hyde Bailey defined, in detail, two garden species (C. x generalis and C. x orchiodes) to categorise the floriferous Cannas being grown at that time, namely the Crozy hybrids and the ‘orchid-like’ hybrids introduced by Carl Sprenger in Italy and Luther Burbank in the USA, at about the same time (1894). The definition was based on the genotype of the two cultivar groups. Inevitably, over time those two floriferous groups were interbred, the distinctions became blurred and overlapped, and the artificial species names became redundant.

Cultivation

Cannas grow best in full sun with moderate water in well-drained rich or sandy soil. Cannas grow from perennial rhizomes but are frequently grown as annuals in temperate zones for an exotic or tropical look in the garden. The rhizomes are somewhat cold hardy but may rot if left unprotected in freezing conditions. In areas which go below about −10 °C in the winter, the rhizomes can be dug up before freezing and stored in a protected area (above +7 °C) for replanting in the spring.

Upon their introduction to cultivation, cannas became very popular as a garden plant and were also grown widely in France, Hungary and the United Kingdom during Victorian times and have recently experienced a renewed interest. There were once hundreds of cultivars but many of these are now extinct. In recent years many new cultivars have been created.

Cannas are largely free of pests but the plants sometimes fall victim to Canna leaf rollers, or Brazilian skippers, the larval stage of a butterfly that cuts the leaves and rolls them over to live inside while pupating (the lesser canna leaf roller will sew the leaves shut before they can unfurl). Affected leaves can be cut off and destroyed or unrolled and cleaned (removing the caterpillar), though some gardeners prefer to use Bacillus thuringiensis, insecticidal soap, or the chemical malathion to kill the pests. In areas with a freezing winter the leaf roller is not typically a pest. Slugs are fond of cannas and can leave large holes in the leaves, preferring the tender young leaves that have not yet unfurled.

Cannas may also fall victim to canna rust, a fungus resulting in orange spots on the plant's leaves. Rust infestation is facilitated by overmoist soil. Cannas are also susceptible to certain plant viruses, which may result in spotted or streaked leaves.

Food use

Canna rhizomes are edible and rich in starch and were once a staple foodcrop in Peru and Ecuador. However the rhizomes can be quite fibrous and must be steamed or boiled for hours to soften for consumption. When cooked they have a taste resembling sweet potato.

Canna is grown for human consumption in the Andes and also in Vietnam and southern China, where the starch is used to make cellophane noodles.

Image:Cannalily.JPG Image:Canna lily cm.jpg Image:Cannalilylg.jpg

External links and references

[Cannaceae] in Flora of North America
[Canna × generalis] from [Floridata]
[Canna indica: Indian Shot]
["Colorful Cannas" By Cynthia W. Mueller, from the November-December 2001 issue of Horticulture Update]
[Reappraisal of Edible Canna as a High-Value Starch Crop in Vietnam]

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