Tropicanna Canna is sick

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

I have 2 now in different places in my yard that look terrible. I am not talking about the ratty winter appearance but the weird coloration of the leaves. I thought it was mites but I have done everything to rid them of mites but lick them off, so it is not that. It started this last summer and has persisted.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Thumbnail by Kell
San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

Close up

Thumbnail by Kell
Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a)

kell funny meeting you here! Cannas get a virus which cause leaf yellowing. It is most likely that, once got you should destroy all infected material before it travels to all your cannas. There was a National Holder of cannas here that had to destroy all of their cannas. Sorry......

Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a)

Here's some info

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0704/canna_viruses.asp

Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a)

A note from Urban Jungle here

A word on Canna virus. Very little is known about Canna virus. It manifests itself in rust coloured streaks on the leaves. Sometimes these leaves are slightly distorted and puckered. Like many plants under stress, virused cannas will flower very early in the season and before the plant is full height. Over the years the canna will loose vigour and become increasingly unsightly. It is spread by sap sucking insects. I have heard it said that Cannas may have the ability to outgrow the virus but in my experience I haven’t found this to be the case. Some would advise (and this is a very bitter pill to swallow) to burn all your cannas and start again. If the thought of this is beyond the pale, at least destroy any known infected material and keep any new introductions well away from your potentially infected stock. I am staggered by the blatant ignorance and neglect of garden centres who display for sale quite obviously virused plants each year.

Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a)

This is the National Collection site

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/iankcooke/Hello.html

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

Thank you, Janet!! They will be gone by tomorrow night. You know HD had a whole shipment that looked like mine last summer. That was when I thought it was mites.

Do you think I should toss the pots, ceramic so it kills me. I have plants lined up waiting for a pretty pot. Or do you think bleach soak will kill it off?

Vancleave, MS(Zone 8b)

Kell I would bleach them and then soak them in fungicide to just to be safe. I was just reading up on canna viruses last week from a big Nursery out your way. Said they had to have all cannas tested and any which carried the disease had to be destroyed and they no longer sell those varieties
Alice Harris(Abutulon)spelling) can give you the best info I am sure. She raises and sells canna

This message was edited Feb 23, 2006 12:38 AM

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

Well shoot. And I had to go buy some. I wonder if any other kinds of plants can get it.

Thanks Donna! I have that Physan 20. Maybe I will use the pots for coleus this year.

Keaau, HI(Zone 11)

OK...do you think it is really a virus...or just Rust. I had to give up growing Canna here because with all the rains, they got Rust and I am not willing to go around spraying whatever it was...BT, Wettable Sulpher, Wetable Copper...I forget. I have too much else to do.

Could be the rains you have been getting.....

Lincoln, United Kingdom(Zone 8a)

I haven't as yet heard of canna getting rust, if they had a whole shipment they had no right selling them! If you read the articles they do mention brown patches down the veins i think, which kells has. Whatever it is, not worth the risk. I don't know whether the pots would be infected, the virus would live in the plant leaves, but to be safe I would disinfect with whatever you think suitable, and use them for something else. Perhaps as a safety precaution keep the pots away from other cannas. I think some varieties are more prone than others, and I have also read about certain varieties not being stocked because of that.

kell you should go back to HD and throw it at them, threaten bad publicity as you saw the whole stock like it, and see what happens! I'm sure you can do it, I would.

Toledo, OH(Zone 5b)

Hi Kell, I have some rizomes of tropicanna canna I could trade if your interested, I've grown these for at least two years with not a problem. Let me know.
Dan

Thumbnail by diamond123
San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

I didn't even know canna could get anything much less virus and rust. I have had them for years in the front garden with nothing but a few snail bites. Amazing. I rarely plant them here because they go nuts. They will fill my small front plot in a year. My DH hates digging them out too.
But the variegated ones call my name...........LOL!!

Carol too bad, with all your property, you could have huge stands of them.

Thank you Dan for your offer, but I still have one clump in a different area unaffected.

Hulbert, OK(Zone 7a)

Hello folks,

What a wonderful and informative thread about Canna!

I'm going to add the link to this page to a current thread for those
of us asking for a Canna forum. Hope you'll join us:

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/580182/

Fredericksburg, VA

my Cannas haven't put in an apperance yet, should I replace them or give them more time??
Thanks

Lakeland, FL(Zone 9b)

Replace they should be up And Cannas do Get Rust Paul

Fredericksburg, VA

Thanks, shucks, now I have to make another trip to my second favorite place LOL.

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

I have the same exact problem on mine. I bought it from Horn Canna Farm, and they just told me: "fertilize it, all cannas get virus".

Lakeland, FL(Zone 9b)

Try Cuting the Cannas to the Ground let theam regrow Paul

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

Paul, has this worked for you before? I'm willing to try that.

Lakeland, FL(Zone 9b)

yes they will still have the virus but it wont show as bad paul

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

OK, thanks...

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

I still see terribly virused ones for sale in nurseries all over here. I won't buy them anymore because the virus is so contagious and just ruins the appearance of them. They get so ugly looking. Not worth risking the ones I have that are doing so well.

If you have others robcorreia, I would toss the sick ones ASAP if they have the Canna Yellow Mottle Virus.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canna_virus

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

Don't you guys thing the vendor should replace the diseased cannas for us? What has been your experience so far? I'm upset at the thought of loosing at least 6 or 7 cannas that are showing these symptoms...

Northern California, United States(Zone 9a)

I tossed most of mine too, they just looked bad. I have one left that I got from Doss, isolated in a large pot next to the house, so far it still looks good.

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

Such a shame Sue, isn't it that this virus has just run rampant thru the canna world.

Robcorreia, if you got virused canna from your vendor, chances are many of their canna are virused. It is very contagious and it sounds like they have not tested their plants and destroyed the infected ones. There is a huge wholesale nursery here that keeps selling infected plants to nurseries all over here. I can't understand it.

According to San Marcus growers "In Britain Ian Cooke destroyed his National Collection because much of it was infected with a virus. In the United States the Canna Yellow Mottle Virus has sweep rapidly through collections and nurseries across the county."


http://www.smgrowers.com/info/canna.asp

Northern California, United States(Zone 9a)

Lowes and HD frequently get the Tropicana in and they look horrible!

Winnsboro, TX

Late last year I had some cannas that really started looking TERRIBLE. I grow several different cannas and I really like the leaves more so that the blooms. So this was not something I could live with. I cut everyone of them to the ground and burned all the leaves. I then treated the stalk nubs with the Bayer's 3 in 1. The cannas grew back and looked fine. So far this year I have not seen any signs of whatever the problem was last year. It also got rid of the leaf rollers. I drenched the ground so all the soil around the canna roots was treated and they could soak up the solution.

If you are having any kind of problems with your cannas I would strongly suggest you give this a try before destroying them all. Then if it doesn't help then you might consider getting rid of them.

I sincerely hope this helps some of you. I know I wouldn't know what to do without my old faithful cannas blooming.

Happy Gardening, Marian

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

Thanks Marian, I put Bayer on my palms too, so this sounds like worth trying!

Winnsboro, TX

Hi Robcorreia,
You know we all live in different areas so what works one place may not work as well in another state or country. I've been very happy with the results I've been getting from using that product.

Canna leaves are so tropical looking to me. Who on earth wants to look at yucky looking leaves on ANYTHING much less a canna? I've been using the Bayer 3 in 1 on alot of my different plants and trees and everything seems to be doing alot better. Since they absorb the chemicals through their roots and it has 3 systemic products it is a fertilizer, insecticide, and disease controler. Best part as far as I'm concerned is you don't have to spray it. You can just mix it up in a watercan and pour it on the ground next to the plants you want to protect. Also provides protection for up to 6 weeks. Of course you probably want to use it about every 4 weeks if you can. That way, if you have a big growth spurt you still have plenty of chemical in the plant to protect it. Or that might just by my way of thinking. LOL

Good Luck and let's do everything we can to protect our beloved cannas.

Happy Gardening, Marian

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

I went to a nursery yesterday and there was a big pot of diseased canna. Tropicanna is a common one that gets virused. From all I have read, sadly, there is no cure for the virused ones. I wonder if you have something else wrong with your cannas. Bayer 3 in 1 is not anti viral but will kill some insects and some fungal diseases.

Make sure you sterilze your clippers before you use them again.

Thumbnail by Kell
Mesa, AZ(Zone 9b)

Likely it was just the addition of the fertilizer that relieved the symptoms of virus, a good healthy dose of compost will do the same thing, relieve the symptoms.

San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b)

Which kind of canna virus did that worked for Azreno?

Mesa, AZ(Zone 9b)

My understanding is all. The symptoms show up when the plant is under stress.....remove the stress and the symptoms go away, canna isn't cured but looks good. Lots of fluids and a good diet :o)

It is silly to be tossig cannas at this point when nearly every canna is suspected of having a virus to some extent.

San Diego, CA(Zone 10b)

How sad huh? This weekend I took a deep breath and trimmed all the diseased ones to the ground. I am praying that they will come back healthier looking for me! Another tell-tale sign I heard, is that the virused cannas will flower prematurely. This was happening to mine...*sigh...*

(Cissy) San Jose, CA(Zone 9b)

Hi :) I am new to Canna. I have one Tropicanna Canna and one "regular" canna. Each in it's own big pot right next to each other. So far, each is fine.......at least by site. Where can one find this Bayer's 3 in 1? I've not heard of it. BTW, I bought the Tropicanna Canna at HD and the "regular" Canna at Summerwinds nursery.....both here in San Jose.

Thanks!

BTW, Calif_Sue......which HD did you buy your's from?

Cissy

Northern California, United States(Zone 9a)

I don't know where I originally got mine, I have never seen cannas at HD that weren't virused though, they all get them from the same sources.
HD also carried the Bayer 3 in 1 but it won't do anything for virus'.

(Cissy) San Jose, CA(Zone 9b)

Thank you, Sue. So far, so good regarding our Tropicanna. Good to know where to buy the Bayer stuff too. Have a great week!

Cissy

Palm Beach Gardens, FL(Zone 10b)

Just found this chat, and boy is this depressing. I too, love the cannas and was wondering what was wrong with my Tropicanas. I thought it was mites or something,(very new to gardening) so I used an organic spray that said it handled allot of diferent pests, they would look better for a while, but then it came back. Unfortunately, I just planted some new bulbs/tubers. Mine to not seem to have the striping, just have a yellowish dust/stuff on the underside of the leaves. Could it be something other than virus? Should I dig up the new ones to be on the safe side?

Northern California, United States(Zone 9a)

The dust could be something like mites? Nothing to do with the virus which is internal.

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