Tuesday, October 31, 2006

The Quick Growing Cana Lily

The Cana Lily is a fast growing plant that can grow up to 8-10' high in a single summer. This plant grows from a bulb that should be planted just underneath the surface exposing the top of the bulb. These bulbs can hold water for a very long period of time. The Cana Lily doesn't even need to be watered over the wintertime when it is kept inside. The Cana develops a red flower that comes out of the top of the plant in the late summer to early fall.












The Cana Lily bulbs should be dug up in the winter time, and kept inside over the winter in harsh climate areas. You can simple clip the dead shoots off to just leave the bulbs like you see below. I suggest keeping them in a black plastic garbage bag. Make sure they are fairly dry before you store them. Don't water them at all over the winter they will spring back to life after exposed to the sunlight.
In some areas down South the bulb can be left in the ground, and will come up every year like any other perennial. If you would like to purchase Cana Lily bulbs you can do so through my website here!

41 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:01 PM

    I love cannas! Especially the peach/coral ones! To die for.

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  2. I don't think I am familar with those ones. I was just introduced to theses cana lilies this year... I will have to check them out.

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  3. Anonymous1:16 AM

    Someone planted one here in the rainforest 20 years ago. The birds spread the seeds like wildfire and now it's becoming a major pest, choking everything else to death. The flowers aren't redeeming enough to cover this major problem.
    Watch out!
    http://www.blogcharm.com/newilluminati

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  4. New Illuminati thanks for the warning on that... They really did grow quite a bit this here, but since I am in Michigan I don't think I need to worry too much. I had to digg them up and they are in my basement now until spring.

    Jessica thanks for the kind words... you can find out more about generating traffic at my site
    http://promotingyoursite.blogspot.com

    or you can check out the group
    http://groups-beta.google.com/group/promotingyoursite

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  5. Anonymous9:23 AM

    My Cana Lilies leaves are brown and spotted. I live in central Florida. We keep them well watered. They are still flowering but they look like they are dying what should I do?

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  6. If they are flowering it means that they are at the end of their life cycle... It is possible that that is the problem. Since you are in Florida you don't need to dig up the bulbs, you should just be able to leave them in the ground and the cana lillies will come up again next year. It is also a possibility that they are getting too much sun...

    Those are they two suggestions I have for you. Please let me know if this helps...

    1greenthumb

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  7. Anonymous5:47 PM

    I'm in Delaware..and a first timer with a cana..should I dig up the bulbs?

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  8. I would say yes although if you have a bunch of bulbs you can always leave one or two in the ground and see what happens next year. If that is the case I would suggest that you lay a little mulch around the bulbs to keep them from the elements.

    The ones you store inside you should keep in a black plastic bag in a dark dry area. If you let these bulbs even get a little bit of light they will start sprouting out : )

    Try to leave just a little bit of soil around the bulbs when you store them and periodically check out them throughout the colder months. I hope this helps! Feel free to send us your pics as well if you would like to display them on this site...

    1greenthumb

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  9. 1greenthumb HELP! I am new to gardening and I planted these last summer. I live in the NW, they bloomed beautifully. I didn't know I was suppose to dig up the bulbs. I did cut the shoots down and cover them up. The coldest I think we got here was 32 degrees and lots of rain, no snow. Do you think they will grow again? Oh I hope so they were my pride growth for someone with a brown thumb.

    Alicia

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  10. Alicia,

    I would say that you should be fine, if it only got down to 32 I wouldn't be too worried about it. Here in Michigan we get plenty of snow, and I think we have hit 0 degrees so that is the kind of climate that the canas cannot handle.

    If not though I guess this is how you live and learn : ) We still have a bunch left at our online store if need be. Let me know how it works out for you!

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  11. Anonymous8:47 AM

    I've planted canna lilies this year for the first time wondering if I should cut off the flower after it has bloomed and died to promote new flowers?? Thanks Andrea

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  12. Andrea,

    I am not actually sure if this will help grow new Canna Lily Flowers. I have not tried that before. Perhaps someone else could answer your question. If I had to guess I would say that cutting it will not grow new flowers because when the canna lily is blooming it is near the end of the growing season anyways.

    Sorry I couldn't help... If you do try it out I would appreciate if you let me know if it does work : ) Thanks!

    1greenthumb

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  13. Yes, cutting the flowers off will promote more flowers to grow - just like a rose bush.
    Though, sometimes it seems like the flowers start to sprout out of where the leaves connect to the stalk O_o;; still pretty, though. lol

    We kept our Canna's blooming for about 1-2 months here in Illinois, and they attracted hummingbirds :-)

    One morning a hummer flew to a flower that was within arms reach of me and hovered for a while before taking off - quite a nifty thing to see before going to work, heh.

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  14. Anonymous7:11 PM

    Hello i am new to cana's I live in Canada and have started them indoors when should i move them outside? will frost hurt them?

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  15. I would wait until after the last frost to plant them outside. Don't forget in the late fall to dig the canas back up too : )

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  16. Anonymous2:19 PM

    When buying cana bulbs, what is the normal size of the bulb? Do you get more blooms from a larger bulb or does the bulb size not matter?

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  17. Bulb size certainly matters when it comes to the size of the plant, but you would be surprised, often a smaller bulb will double in size under the ground in a single growing season. At this point you can always split them up if they become too large. But for a rule of thumb I would go with a bigger bulb if you want a bigger plant : ) Hope this helps! You can always buy them at my store too if you like... I still have a bunch I haven't planted into the ground yet...

    http://maludan.googlepages.com/cana

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  18. Laura4:19 PM

    I was just given come bulbs.. I live in Niagara falls canada, so as you can imagine it is pretty harsh weather here during the winter. I was wondering if they would do well in a pot? and if so, can I just bring the whole pot inside for the winter?

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  19. Anonymous1:08 PM

    MY FRIEND HAS A CANNA LILY IN HER BACK YARD PLANTED VERY CLOSES TO HER HOUSE. IT IS ABOUT 6 TO 8 FT IN HEIGHT. CAN SHE TRANSPLANT THIS OR DIVIDE IT OR WILL THIS HARM IT ? WE CERTAINLY DO NOT WANT TO HARM IT IN ANY WAY. .
    THANKS.

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  20. Anonymous,

    Yes after the canna lily dies off for the season you can dig up the bulbs underground and divide them. They will just break into pieces without much effort than just replant them after winter and they should do just fine. If you live in a warm climate where you don't have to dig up the bulbs in winter just replant the newly divided bulbs in different locations.

    I hope this helps : )

    1greenthumb

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  21. Anonymous9:18 PM

    Can you grow or restart canalillis after they have been potted for hospital. I have one here and was wondering if it is possible

    How would I do this

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  22. Yes you should be able to restart it... If it has a shoot growing out of it that is still alive just go ahead and transplant it into the ground. If it has a dead or dieing shoot just snip it off and plant the bulb in the ground. It should grow a new one since we are still so early in the season... I hope this helps...

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  23. Can I do anything with the seed pods that form on the plants to bring me new plants?

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  24. To tell you the truth I have never grown Canna Lilies from the seeds, but that doesn't mean it can't be done. Just remember that you can break up the bulbs and multiple them this way... much quicker and easier, but let me know if it works out for you : ) Good luck!

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  25. Anonymous5:06 PM

    i have a canalilly thats still in its originl contaner and i left for 3 weeks and no one was watering it. i put it out with plenty of water in inderect sun light its still alittlebit green and im wondering can it come back.

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  26. Yes I would think that it will come back as long as the bulb under the ground didn't die.... Just keep watering it and you should see a new Cana Lily shoot come out soon... Good luck : )

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  27. Anonymous12:09 PM

    Do the flowers from the Cana Lily provide any nutrition for Hummingbirds? We see one visit on occasion but the flowers have no smell.

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  28. Hmmm... Good question, I am not sure if they provide anything for Hummingbirds, they could just be attracted to their coloration, but I am really not sure. Maybe someone else knows...

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  29. Anonymous4:27 PM

    can u use a hps light to grow cannas

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  30. I would assume so... But I am not sure how well it will work... When I dig up these cannas in the winter and put them in a black bag if anything is exposed it will start growing with the littlest bit of light.

    Let me know if it works out for you!

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  31. I live in San Diego. The first year I planted the cannas, they grew well and flowered. Year two was dismal. They have great soil, afternoon sun, plenty of water...should I feed them to encourage growth and flowering this year?

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  32. Anonymous10:57 PM

    I planted my canna lily bulbs about 4 weeks ago ang they have yet to emerge. I am in michigan. Is it possible that they are dead and will not grow or do they tend to come up later when the weather warms up a little. It is may 23. art

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  33. I am in Michigan as well and they should start to really come up very soon... If you buried them in the ground it will take a little longer for them to come up... I like to leave the top of the bulb exposed and this will really make them take off... Best of luck...

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  34. Anonymous8:40 AM

    what kind of fertilizer can you use on the canna lilly ? is miracale grow safe for them ? we live in ny and have tried for 2 years to grow them and have not yet been succesful this year we actually have leaves growing but there still small and we planted it about a month or 2 ago

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  35. I would wager that miracle grow is safe, but I can't say for sure... I never use any fertilizer on them actually... Just water them every once in a while and they seem to take care of themselves...

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  36. Anonymous5:23 PM

    I live near Raliegh NC and we don't take our lillies in for the winter. I actually transplanted the ones I have from a home closer to the East Coast of NC and mine have thrived! As a metter of fact, they have multiplied so much that I am going to have to see if my neighbors want any of them when they die back for the winter.

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  37. Anonymous11:17 AM

    I received cana 2 small cana lillies from a friend who moved away to another state. I planted them in pots about June 7th and for a month they grew and bloomed beautifully. For the last few weeks I noticed spotting and complete browning of the leaves. There seems to be black grainy residue in the new ones that are still growing and on their leaves. What is this and why do they appear diseased?

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  38. Anonymous8:09 PM

    Is this realtime

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  39. Trying to answer the question about growing them from seed....
    Yes, you can grow them from seed. But there's a slight trick to it. And that being, since the outer shell of the seed is rock hard, it helps to soak the seed for 24 hours, beginning with Hot Water. Then, after the soaking, carefully scratch a deep nick into the outer shell. Use something along the lines of a fingernail file to do this.
    The reason I say carefully is, first, watch your fingers. And, you don't want to get too deep as to injury the 'embryo' of the seed itself. But after achieving this, you can and will have all the canna's you wish to have.

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  40. I should have added that you simply plant the seed in warm soil and wait. Before too long you will have a baby canna lily growing. And they do and will grow rather quickly.
    I now live in Georgia, where after moving here from Wisconsin, and bringing the seeds with me from there, I planted several seeds (without nicks) and actually forgot about them. Then after reading about Nicking The Seed, I did that.
    The Nicked Seeds sprouted, and it wasn't too long, after the ground became really warm, that the first of the seeds sprouted as well. I now have lots of Hometown Cannas to enjoy!
    The nicest part is that while I had to dig and store them each fall in Wisconsin, I simply leave them in the ground down here.

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  41. Anonymous8:34 PM

    I have seeds and bulbs for Red variety canas if anyone wants to swap bulbs with me, I want yellow ones...jerri2222@aol.com

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