a canna selection

After somewhat less than a century cannas have a comeback.
Now they are more widely wanted for the flowers, although their reputation is more for the foliage and the overall appearance.
Flowers can be delicate, like the C. 'Panache', one of our favorites, but tend to be brash too.
The foliage can be special. Another of our favorites, C. 'Pretoria' or 'Bengal Tiger', has each leaf marked with yellowish green stripes.
People who like big leafs tend to buy Musa (banana) or Colocasia (elephant ears). Canna also can have large leaves.

The picture shows the leaf of a C. Pretoria, with a length of more than 40cm.

The canna we select combine nice flowers with good foliage, range from tall to small size.

Canna 'Stuttgart' (syn. C. Striata)

A tall cultivar, with smaller orange flowers. What strikes the most is the variegated leaf, which is long and slender.

The variation is special, elegant, and each leaf differs.
It thrives in open shadow, no direct sunlight, needs the moist conditions of our pots.

The picture shows this canna, over 2m high, with different variagation and flowering.

More detailed photos

Canna 'Panache'

A smaller canna (leaves reach up to 1m), with rather compact rooting, so it makes a neat 'clump'. A real favorite! Not only is it beautiful as a whole, it has narrow, glaucous-green leaves.
The flowers are soft apricot, shading to deep pink in the throat, and grow in open trusses.

More detailed photos

Canna 'Pretoria' (syn. Bengal Tiger, Striatum)

This is a special one. It's also rather small (leaves reach up to 1.5m), and has a remarkable foliage.
It not only has yellowish green veins, as seen in the picture on the right (column 1).
The production of chlorophyll (the green stuff) varies with the intensity of the light. In full sun leaves tend to be light green, with soft vein-contrast.
When placed in open shadow, the leaves have more chlorophyll and the veins are more pronounced.
Once the leave has been formed, the amount of chlorophyll doesn't change with changing light conditions.
This emphasises our findings : many canna's are more decorative if not placed in full sun. As can be seen in the image, the leaves produced more in the summer have a lighter colour.

More detailed photos

A small canna, and varies a lot in color of the leaves. As mentioned with C. Pretoria, the amount of sunlight plays an important role.
Why it sometimes has been called 'psychedelic' is seen in the next pictures : Splendid!
The flowers are orange, like C. Pretoria.
The variation in leaves : from darker green to bright red.

And the effect of the bright red leaves, the light from behind them :


No photoshop, no enhancement!

Is a rather small canna, from the Longwood series, and produces nice red flowers, with a yellow heart.
The leaves are very narrow, is a good seed producer.



It's also known as a water canna (like the most here) and in a pond, can have another color; both the leaves AND the flowers :

Our latest addition. Has slender blue-green glaucus leaves, stays compact, and has soft pale salmon, iris-like flowers.
And the global appearance is very neat.

We test them, decide end of 2008 if we include some in our gamma.
The list :
'Robert Kemp', 'Thai Princess' (syn. Rose Garden)
thanks Karchesky Cannna!
'Orange Punch', 'Tropical sunrise', 'Ra'

'Journey's End'

'Milk Festival'

We also have hybrids we don't use, like one with yellow flowers (Richard Wallace), and in 2008 more and more new ones :
We're propagating Burgundy Blush, Musafolia, Peach, Marabout.

A beautiful combination for wet conditions is a red (here C. 'Durban') or burgundy canna with variegated Bulrush (Typha latifolia 'Variegata') :

And haha, also with smooth meadow-grass (e.g. for football fields); Poa pratensis :

Our display at the Appeltern Gardens 2007 (The Netherlands) had this remarkable composition with C. 'Panache' :

Lots of these photos and more are included in our non commercial, big screensaver, adapted for all screens.

temperature
to page about surviving freezing conditions

pledge
Each plant for sale has proven at least the year before that it behaved well (good foliage, good flowering), and the divisions or offspring (seeds) must have at least 2 shoots with more than one leaf.
The history of the plant is well documented and can be shown when asked for.

And here's a page of observed infections. We're severe in digarding suspicious plants.