Canna Lily

[slk59]

Has anyone ever tried to dig up a canna lily and pot it as an indoor houseplant?

[lavender]

I've never tried it but since they are tropical bulbs and probably don't need that dormant period as do our tulips and daffs, I suppose it might be possible. The large 4 or 5 foot cannas might be a bit much but there are some smaller ones around that might be worth a try. One of the local merchants gets 'Tropicana' in the middle of every summer. It has pretty variegated leaves and only gets to be about 2 feet tall. That would be my choice for a trial run.

You would need a very sunny place for it and there is the possibility that, as the days got shorter, it would go dormant anyway. Dormancy is triggered by different factors. I don't know what it is in a canna.

[jettavwdrvr]

I have never been successful in translating my cannas. Mine very rarely bloom. I'm not 100% sure if cannas are suitable for indoor planting, unless you have a steamy and sunny sunroom.

[Petee]

You would probably have to be happy with the appearance of the foliage because they don't bloom on a regular basis.

[tuangels]

Speaking of cannas, Petee the canna that I bought from your summer sale is gettiong ready to bloom(been watching and waiting all summer!) I know that it is late in the year and soon to frost, my question is when should I dig it up for next year?  It is going to bloom beautifully if we don't get a hard frost soon(praying that we don't!) and I want to be able to plant it next year again, so should I wait or should I dig it up soon?

[goo]

Had a beautiful tiger canna a number of years back as a gift (in a pot from a florist).  I dug up the tubers and removed as much soil as I could and stored them in my basement over winter - dry, cool storage.  I planted them the following year but they never prospered, wasn't worth the trouble (for me).  Probably planted them in a poor sun location.

[lavender]

Had a beautiful tiger canna a number of years back as a gift (in a pot from a florist).  I dug up the tubers and removed as much soil as I could and stored them in my basement over winter - dry, cool storage.  I planted them the following year but they never prospered, wasn't worth the trouble (for me).  Probably planted them in a poor sun location.

There are hundreds of kinds of cannas, many of them now are hybrids. Some grow better than others. The ones that we grow on the embankment and at the library produce massive clumps of tubers each year. I've had a couple of the mini ones that I've tried to grow in pots and/or in the ground that never did much of anything. You are right some of them just don't prosper here and it isn't worth the trouble to baby them.

Tuangels, we always leave the cannas in until a hard freeze takes them down. I usually don't dig until late October. It seems to work fine as I can barely move the clumps I dig up.

[slk59]

The canna I have was the free bulb from the plant sale earlier this year (at BMP).  Was this from the library/embankment? I didn't get it in the ground til mid summer so didn't get anything more than a couple leaves.  I think I'll just dig it up next month and try again next year.

[Petee]

Cannas benefit from a long summer so get them into the ground as soon as possible in the spring, maybe even start them in a pot a few weeks early.  It seems like the larger they are, the longer it takes them to bloom.

 

If you have one not blooming yet, then give it all the time you can till a frost kills off the top.  Then dig it, knock off most of the soil and let it dry inside or a dry place for a couple of days.  

 

Use some sort of a solid container, I use a Rubbermaid plastic storage bin, and layer the bottom with about 2 inches of peat moss.  Add a 2 inch layer of roots or any bulb you want to save till spring.  I put different ones in onion bags with a marker so I know what they are.  Add 2-3 more inches of peat moss and bulbs till you run out stuff to save.  Nothing should be wet or have soft spots.  That encourages molds and spoilage.  

 

Put the entire container in a cool, but not freezing, totally dark room till spring.  

 

Try to plant your Canna outside earlier next year, like right after the last expected frost and you will get flowers earlier.

[lavender]

The canna I have was the free bulb from the plant sale earlier this year (at BMP).  Was this from the library/embankment? I didn't get it in the ground til mid summer so didn't get anything more than a couple leaves.  I think I'll just dig it up next month and try again next year.

I know that some of the free cannas that were given out at the Down to Earth Garden Club spring plant sale were from the pots at the library. There were some nice orange ones in there. One of the group picked up a nice selection of different varieties on-line one fall.

I never get the ones on the embankment out until late. There is just too much going on in the early spring. What I do is pot them up early and just let them grow until they are a decent size and everything is up on the embankment. That way I can put them in the empty spots. They usually bloom before the frost.

[Petee]

Cannas benefit from a long summer so get them into the ground as soon as possible in the spring, maybe even start them in a pot a few weeks early.  It seems like the larger they are, the longer it takes them to bloom.

 

If you have one not blooming yet, then give it all the time you can till a frost kills off the top.  Then dig it, knock off most of the soil and let it dry inside or a dry place for a couple of days.  

 

Use some sort of a solid container, I use a Rubbermaid plastic storage bin, and layer the bottom with about 2 inches of peat moss.  Add a 2 inch layer of roots or any bulb you want to save till spring.  I put different ones in onion bags with a marker so I know what they are.  Add 2-3 more inches of peat moss and bulbs till you run out stuff to save.  Nothing should be wet or have soft spots.  That encourages molds and spoilage.  

 

Put the entire container in a cool, but not freezing, totally dark room till spring.  

 

I forgot to say that I have successfully overwintered them in a pot in a cool but bright area.  Then you can just set them out as soon as the weather is nice.

 

Try to plant your Canna outside earlier next year, like right after the last expected frost and you will get flowers earlier.