Canna Seeds?

I'm very new to the seed collecting game. I noticed seed pods on my cannas tonight. Does anyone know if cannas come true from these? If so, I'd like information on how to collect and store these, and when best to plant them. Thank you!

I'm gald I saw your question here. I was going to ask the same thing.

~julie~

From what I've read, if they are the hybrid Cannas - no - they do not come true, but they may produce something interesting. Species Cannas should produce true.

I've also read that you need to cut or nick the hard seed coating to get them to sprout.

We usually cut all our Canna stalks down as soon as the flowers fade to encourage new stalks and more flowers. I think this year I'll let one or two make seed and see what I get from them.

Collect the seed when the pod looks brown. You will see it start to split open. I store mine in a dish for a few weeks to make sure they are good and dry. Then I'll bag them in paper and just store at room temp until I'm ready to plant around the first week in February. Any sooner here and they will get leggy. I use cuticle clippers and nick the seed coat, soak in warm water for 24 hours and then I plant. This year I used Rockwool as my planting medium and had great luck with it. Good luck. I've had some nice looking cannas from seed.

Well, Brugie and maggidew, thank you both so much! This is the first year of collecting seeds from ANY of my plants. I'm so glad to have help from all you folks on DG. Without you I'd be lost!

One question. What is Rockwool? I know I've heard that before, but it escapes me. Thanks again!

It is a growing medium that is used mostly in hydroponic growing systems, I believe. If you do a search for it either her on on the web, you will get some great information about it. I just did a search here on Daves and came up with a lot of reading material for you.

http://davesgarden.com/forums/search.php?search_text=Rockwool

Thanks so much, Brugie!!

I have canna's planted now for two years in a satalite dish and have plenty of green pods but never have produced any seeds. They just shrivel up and fall off. They grow wonderful and flower. Any help as to what they need. Thanks Ted

TARogers, I think you and I are having the same kind of luck with our seeds. I purposely broke off one of the pods (unless THAT *is* the "seed") the other day to look inside. Sure enough, there were little bitty "seeds"...but none of the pods turn brown before they vacate the premises. :-)

~julie~

A satellite dish? That's a new one! I've seen planters out of all kindsa things, but not a satellite dish! Is it one of those old ones that's so huge? That would make a GREAT raised bed! My mom wanted to make one out of an old bathtub here in our yard-I said NO WAY!!!!

Some cannas are sterile like Tropicanna. I believe they are pollinated by flies, but I'm not sure. I was told that pollination should take place early in the morning to beat the flies to the job, if you are looking for a certain cross. I probably should have looked this up before typing it. Hope I'm not too far off.

The seeds will look brown and will be about the size of a good pea. Would have worked good with the pea shooters boys had when I was a kid. lol

second year for the dish.

Gosh, TAR, that was one heck of an idea! That thing looks great with those cannas in it. I wonder what it would be like to make a waterpond/fountain with one? Are ther solid, or do you think they would hold water??

They are solid fiberglass but have a big hole in the center. To lmake a pond you would have to line it with plastic.

Hmmm. The little hamster on the wheel inside my head is running faster, faster... :)

Some of the seeds that I have collected from one of my cannas are brown and some are white. Most are brown.

Are the white ones not dry yet?

My experience has been that once the pods (they look like fuzzy garlic cloves) turn brown & start to open, you can harvest the seeds. The seeds resemble little brown balls. I have stored seeds up to a year. I have never soaked or nicked any of the seeds that I've planted. I just put them in the ground in a well draining area and here they come! On a side note, I've purchased a canna from a nursery and it flowered, but never produced any seeds. I've also been given seeds by a relative from a canna that flowers a salmon color. The first year it bloomed salmon. The next and successive years, it bloomed cherry red! These plants are easy to grow and beautiful; however, there is a pest I think called the canna leaf roller that can do some pretty hefty damage to the leaves. I had to cut mine almost to ground level one late summer because of them.

I have been collecting seed from my very tall bronze leaf cannas in my backyard this year. I started with ONE plant given to me at a plant swap. Now I have at least a dozen nice plants! I'm really excited about trying to grow some from seed over the winter (right time to plant them, correct?), and happy to hear you don't have to go thru all that fuss, although I might do just a FEW to insure success (and I'll mark them so I can record the results).

As for cannas having or not having seeds.... I had that problem last year with some of mine. I had several nice dwarf bronze leaf cannas that bloomed a gorgeous coral color... never set one seed all of 2003. THIS year, however, I not only had at least 2-1/2 times the plants... they're producing a few seeds... not a LOT, but at least a dozen, I'd say. And I've dropped a few in the bed there, so we'll see how they do in a natural planting method (I guess that's what you'd call it).

oooh! forgot to say that mine have also been PLAGUED with that vermen leaf roller thing! grrrrrrrrrrrrr! I have no idea what to do about them... has anyone tried spraying them with soap & water? or cayenne pepper and water?

Supposedly pepper spray works, but only if used early in the growing season before the infestation gets to well established.

http://www.wes.army.mil/el/aqua/apis/biocontrol/html/geshna_c.html

Has anyone noticed if they seed better in the sun or shade. I have not gotten any seeds from mine and they are in under shade trees. Got some coming from the Co Op from eyes and am making a new raised bed for them where I cut a tree down. Should have sun all day almost.

TAR, while mine that were in the sun DID produce the most seeds, they were also the most prolific in general. I started with ONE canna in that bed late last spring. This fall I will be trimming back TWELVE tall cannas!

On the other hand, the cannas I had started from [Wal-Mart] bulbs were slow to come up, bloomed just ok last year and had a moderate amount of reproduction over the winter. However, they produced NO seeds last year and only about a dozen this year. These get morning sun until the house shields the bed from any afternoon direct sun.

Hard to say, I guess, but my bet would be full sun. I'll be able to let you know for sure next year because I'm pulling my dwarf [Wal-Mart] cannas out of the front beds and replacing them with the tall ones I had out back.

TAR...I have my canna bed rather strangely located, part of the bed gets a few more hours of sunlight than the other. I have planted the bed with mostly the same varieties. I can speak from my own experience...MORE SUN! The part of the bed that gets less sun are shorter, fewer flowered at all, and so far the seeds aren't "catching."

Last night I got my very first seeds...in fact, it's the first time I ever noticed the actual mature seeds on my cannas. (I got pics too! :-)) They are SO cool...the seeds, not the pics...the pics are good, but not "cool." LOL

Shazbot...I'm SOOOOO glad you started this thread...I've learned a lot here.

~julie~

What if you don't nick them..... I only soaked them....... : - (