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Cannas are tropical herbaceous perennials with brilliant flowers in reds, orange, pink, peach and yellow—many spotted. Also called Indian Shot, they flower more or less all the year round in our gardens in northern India. The leaves are broad and come in shades of green to dark brown ones as also variegated ones like "Nirvana" which make the plant highly ornamental even when there are no flowers. Till a few decades ago, cannas were generally cultivated in extensive beds in gardens or in double rows along the water channels. Single coloured beds of varieties like the gladiator (yellow with red dots), Cupid (pink) and sunspot were often seen in large beds and gave a bright appearance to the whole garden with flowers lasting 10 to 12 weeks. However, with decreasing size of gardens, the cultivation of cannas got a back seat till they staged a come back and are planted in lesser numbers in borders, corners, near ponds and water bodies or even in tubs for their long flowering quality and beauty of foliage. They are now available in tall, medium and dwarf varieties to suit the need of the gardener. The cannas require a deep rich friable soil and beds need to be trenched about 2 `BD ft. deep. A good amount of well-rotted farmyard manure, preferably in a ratio 1:2, should be mixed with the soil. Enough sharp sand should be added to keep the soil open. Tubers should be planted, after the soil has settled down, about 15 inches apart. Usually gardeners prefer planting three pieces at one point and flooding the beds. Thereafter, water freely during growing period. Feeding with liquid manure just before the buds appear helps further. Planting is generally done during spring and monsoons and the plant starts flowering within two months. The spikes should be cut off when the flowers wither away, as seed formation is detrimental to the plant. Propagation is done by seeds and tubers. Seeds need to be soaked in water for 24 hours and the seed coat is chipped and sown in standard compost. However, mostly Cannas are propagated by division of mother plants keeping a bud or two and the leafy spikes which are cut back to a uniform height after planting. Canna beds or clumps require replanting every third year after letting the plants starve for a month before lifting. Plants are dug out as soon as the leaves start withering and stacked under a shady corner. The beds are trenched and manured well and after they are prepared, tubers from the stack are separated, keeping a part of stem with it, and planted. And thus goes on the cycle of the stately growth of Cannas unfolding large oblong leaves and spikes of richly coloured flowers, 2-4 feet tall, offering various opportunities to the garden lover. In colder climates
planting is done in February-March giving excellence of colour through
summer and the fleshy roots need protection from frost.
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