Canna (or Canna lily, although not a true lily) is a genus of nineteen species of flowering plants, the only genus in the family Cannaceae. Cannas (particularly C. indica) are sometimes known as "Indian Shot", as their seeds are small, round, and hard like the once home-made lead shot used for shotguns before the twentieth century. The closest living relations to cannas are the other plant families of the order Zingiberales, that is the gingers, bananas, marantas, heliconias, strelitzias, etc. lily is the best name in the whole wide world. ... For other uses of the word, please see Genus (disambiguation). ... In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... Classes Magnoliopsida - Dicots Liliopsida - Monocots The flowering plants (also called angiosperms) are the dominant and most familiar group of land plants. ... Genera Canna The Cannaceae is a family of monocotyledonous plants that includes the sole genus of the Canna lilies. ... This writeup is about biological seeds; for other meanings see Seed (disambiguation). ... Lead shot is small balls of lead, traditional made using a shot tower. ... Remington pump-action shotgun held by a Florida Highway Patrol cadet shotgun, see: Shotgun (disambiguation). ... Families see text The Zingiberales are an order of flowering plants that includes many familiar plants like ginger, cardamom, turmeric, myoga, and also banana and arrowroot. ... Binomial name Zingiber officinale Roscoe Ginger is commonly used as a spice in cuisines throughout the world. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Genus Afrocalathea Ataenidia Calathea Cominsia Ctenanthe Donax Halopegia Haumania Hylaeanthe Hypselodelphys Ischnosiphon Koernickanthe Maranta Marantochloa Megaphrynium Monophrynium Monophyllanthe Monotagma Myrosma Phacelophrynium Phrynium Pleiostachya Sanblasia Saranthe Sarcophrynium Schumannianthus Stachyphrynium Stromanthe Thalia Thaumatococcus Thymocarpus Trachyphrynium The Marantaceae are a family of monocot flowering plants. ... Species See text. ... Species See text Strelitzia is a genus of five species of perennial plants, native to South Africa. ...

The species have large, attractive foliage and horticulturists have turned it into a large, brash, bright and sometimes gaudy, garden plant. In addition, it is one of the world's richest starch sources, and is an agricultural plant. Concern has been expressed that this article or section is missing information about: horticulture as used in anthropology, a label for agriculture as used in small-scale societies. ... Starch (CAS# 9005-25-8) is a complex carbohydrate which is insoluble in water; it is used by plants as a way to store excess glucose. ...

Although a plant of the tropics, most cultivars have been developed in temperate climates and are easy to grow in most countries of the world as long as they can enjoy about 6 hours average sunlight during the summer. See the Canna cultivar gallery for photographs of Canna cultivars. A noontime scene from the Philippines on a day when the sun is almost directly overhead. ... In geography, temperate latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. ... This is a gallery of named canna cultivars. ...

The name Canna originates from the Celtic word for a cane or reed [Johnsons 1856, Chaté 1866]. The Celtic languages are the languages descended from Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, spoken by ancient and modern Celts alike. ...

Botany

Canna (Foliage Group) 'Auguste Ferrier'

The plants are large tropical and subtropical perennial herbs with a rhizomatous rootstock. The broad, flat, alternate leaves, that are such a feature of this plant, grow out of a stem in a long narrow roll and then unfurl. The leaves are typically solid green but some cultivars have glaucose, brownish, maroon, or even variegated leaves. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1320x1856, 458 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1320x1856, 458 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... The tropics are the geographic region of the Earth centered on the equator and limited in latitude by the two tropics: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere. ... Subtropical (or semitropical) areas are those adjacent to the tropics, usually roughly defined as the ranges 23. ... Red Valerian, a perennial plant. ... In botany, a rhizome is a horizontal, usually underground stem of a plant that often sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. ... In botany, phyllotaxis is the arrangement of the leaves on the shoot of a plant. ... “Foliage” redirects here. ...

The flowers are composed of three sepals and three petals that are seldom noticed by people, they are small and hidden under extravagant stamens. What appear to be petals are the highly modified stamens or staminodes. The staminodes number (1–) 3 (–4) (with at least one staminodal member called the labellum, always being present. A specialised staminode, the stamen, bears pollen from a half-anther. A somewhat narrower, 'petal' is the pistil which is connected down to a three-chambered ovary. Flower of the Primrose Willowherb (Ludwigia octovalvis) showing petals and sepals A sepal is one member or part of the calyx of a flower. ... It has been suggested that Corolla be merged into this article or section. ... Stamens of the Amaryllis with prominent anthers carrying pollen Insects, while collecting nectar, unintentionally transfer pollen from one flower to another, bringing about pollination The stamen (from Latin stamen meaning thread of the warp) is the male organ of a flower. ... In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen. ... The Labellum (or Lip) is a part of an orchid. ... SEM image of pollen grains from a variety of common plants: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea), prairie hollyhock (Sidalcea malviflora), oriental lily (Lilium auratum), evening primrose (Oenothera fruticosa), and castor bean (Ricinus communis). ... Flower of the spider tree (Crateva religiosa) with its numerous conspicuous stamens The stamen is the male organ of a flower. ... The Pistil is the part of the flower made up of one or more carpels. ... Longitudinal section of female flower of squash showing ovary, ovules, pistil, and petals In the flowering plants, an ovary is a part of the female reproductive organ of the flower or gynoecium. ...

The flowers are typically red, orange, or yellow or any combination of those colours, and are aggregated in inflorescences that are spikes or panicles (thyrses). Although gardeners enjoy these odd flowers, nature really intended them to attract pollinators collecting nectar and pollen, such as bees, hummingbirds and bats. The pollination mechanism is conspicuously specialized (pollen is shed on the style while still in the bud, and later pollinators alight on the labellum and touch first the terminal stigma, then the pollen). Wildflowers A flower is the reproductive organ of those plants classified as angiosperms ( flowering plants; Division Magnoliophyta). ... Red clover inflorescence (spike) An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers on a branch of a plant. ... A pollinator is the agent that moves pollen from the male anthers of a flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish fertilization or syngamy of the female gamete in the ovule of the flower by the male gamete from the pollen grain. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Subfamilies Phaethornithinae Trochilinae For a taxonomic list of genera, see: List of hummingbirds in taxonomic order For an alphabetic species list, see: Alphabetic species list Hummingbirds are small birds in the family Trochilidae, native only to the Americas. ... “Chiroptera” redirects here. ... A flower-fly pollinating a Common Daisy (Bellis perennis) Pollination is an important step in the reproduction of seed plants: the transfer of pollen grains (male gametes) to the plant carpel, the structure that contains the ovule (female gamete). ... SEM image of pollen grains from a variety of common plants: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea), prairie hollyhock (Sidalcea malviflora), oriental lily (Lilium auratum), evening primrose (Oenothera fruticosa), and castor bean (Ricinus communis). ... Flower buds have not yet bloomed into a full-size flower. ...

The wild species often grow to 2-3+ meters but there is a wide variation in size among cultivated plants; numerous cultivars have been selected for smaller stature.

Canna grow from swollen underground stems, correctly known as rhizomes, which store starch, and this is the main attraction of the plant to agriculture, having the largest starch particles of all plants. Underground stems are modified plant structures that derive from stem tissue but exist under the soil surface. ...

Canna is the only member of the Liliopsida Class (monocot family) in which hibernation of seed is known to occur, due to its hard, impenetrable seed covering. Liliopsida is the botanical name for a class. ... Orders Base Monocots: Acorus Alismatales Asparagales Dioscoreales Liliales Pandanales Family Petrosaviaceae Commelinids: Arecales Commelinales Poales Zingiberales Family Dasypogonaceae Monocotyledons or monocots are a group of flowering plants usually ranked as a class and once called the Monocotyledoneae. ... Seed hibernation, also called seed dormancy, is the ability of a seed to remain in hibernation when there is a lack of things essential to their development (water, sunlight, nutrients, etc. ...

Range

Canna sp. 'pink dancer' in Escambray Mountains, Cuba

The genus is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the New World, from the southern United States (southern South Carolina west to southern Texas) and south to northern Argentina. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (900 × 675 pixel, file size: 194 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) mine I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (900 × 675 pixel, file size: 194 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) mine I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... The Escambray Mountains are off the coast of the western shore of Cuba. ... Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ... Official language(s) English Capital Charleston(1670-1789) Columbia(1790-present) Largest city Columbia Largest metro area Columbia Area  Ranked 40th  - Total 34,726 sq mi (82,965 km²)  - Width 200 miles (320 km)  - Length 260 miles (420 km)  - % water 6  - Latitude 32°430N to 35°12N... Official language(s) No Official Language See languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 261,797 sq mi (678,051 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ...

Although all cannas are native to the New World, they have followed mankind's journey's of discovery and some species are cultivated and naturalized in most tropical and sub-tropical regions.

Canna cultivars are grown in most countries, even those with territory above the Arctic circle, which have short summers but long days, and the rapid growth rate of Cannas makes them a feasible gardening plant, as long as they get their 6 hours of sunlight each day during the growing season and are protected from the cold of winter.

Origins

Canna (Crozy Group) 'Alberich', Pfitzer 1949

"The first Cannas introduced to Europe were C. indica L., and although they all came from the East Indies, they originated from the American continent. Charles de l'Ecluse, who first described and sketched C. indica in his Histoire des plantes rare observées en Espagne, published in 1576, indicates this origin, and states that it was given the name of indica, not because the plant is from India, in Asia, but because this species was originally transported from America: "Quia ex America primum delata sit"; and at that time, one described the tropical areas of that part of the globe as the Western Indies; English speakers still call them the West Indies. Image File history File links Canna_Alberich_20030824_014. ... Image File history File links Canna_Alberich_20030824_014. ... The Indies, on the display globe of the Field Museum, Chicago The Indies or East Indies (or East India) is a term used to describe lands of South and South-East Asia, occupying all of the former British India, the present Indian Union, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and... The Americas is an alternative name in the English language for the continent of America, to distinguish it from the United States of America, which is often just called America. ... Nymphea from Rariorum plantarum historia Charles de LEcluse, LEscluse, or Carolus Clusius (Arras, February 19, 1526 - Leiden April 4, 1609), seigneur de Watènes, was the Flemish doctor and pioneering botanist, perhaps the most influential of all 16th century scientific horticulturists. ... The Caribbean or the West Indies is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. ...

Much later, in 1658, Pison made reference, in his Histoire naturelle du Brésil, to another species which he documented under the vulgar name of 'Albara' and 'Pacivira', and which resided, he said, in the shaded and damp places, between the tropics; this species is Canna angustifolia L., (later reclassified as C. glauca L. by taxonomists). The Pishon is mentioned in the Biblical Genesis (2:11) as one of four rivers branching off from a single river within Eden. ...

Without exception, all Canna species that have been introduced into Europe can be traced back to the American continent, and it can be asserted with confidence that Canna is solely an American genus. If Asia and Africa provided some of the early introductions, they were only varieties resulting from C. indica and C. glauca cultivars that have grown for a long time in India and Africa, but not from species growing in a spontaneous state.

The penultimate argument to the assertion that Canna is a South American genus is the fact that it is certain, as it is pointed out by Lamarck, in his Botanical Encyclelopédie, that "Cannas were unknown to the ancients, and that it is only after the discovery of the New World, that they made their appearance in Europe; whereas if the soils of India or Africa had produced some of them, they would not have waited until the 1860’s, to make an entry into the European gardens." Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de Lamarck (August 1, 1744 - December 28, 1829) was a major 19th century naturalist, who was one of the first to use the term biology in its modern sense. ... Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ...

The final argument is that Canna seeds have never been discovered by archeologists in the Old World, and the hard shells of Canna would have ensured that some would have survived in the right conditions. Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans, Asians, and Africans before the voyages of Christopher Columbus; it includes Europe, Asia, and Africa (collectively known as Africa-Eurasia), plus surrounding islands. ...

Uses

Canna (Italian Group) 'Yellow King Humbert'

• Some species and many cultivars are widely grown in the garden in temperate and sub-tropical regions. Sometimes, they are also grown as potted plants. A large number of ornamental cultivars have been developed. They can be used in herbaceous borders, tropical plantings, and as a patio or decking plant.
• Internationally, cannas are one of the most popular garden plants and a large horticultural industry depends on the plant.
• The canna rhizome is rich in starch, and it has many uses in agriculture. All of the plant has commercial value, rhizomes for starch (consumption by humans and livestock), stems and foliage for animal fodder, young shoots as a vegetable and young seeds as an addition to tortillas.
• Agricultural Cannas have the potential to be a rich producer of biofuels because of its outstanding starch production, and ability to thrive in temperate climates as well as the tropics. This is a young area of research and we have to wait for research results before commenting further on this use.

Detail of the seed pods and seeds. The seeds are used for jewelry and musical instruments.

• The seeds are used as beads in jewelry.
• The seeds are used as the mobile elements of the kayamb, a musical instrument from Réunion, as well as the hosho, a gourd rattle from Zimbabwe, where the seeds are known as "hota" seeds.
• In remoter regions of India, cannas are fermented to produce alcohol.
• The plant yields a fibre - from the stem - it is used as a jute substitute.
• A fibre obtained from the leaves is used for making paper. The leaves are harvested in late summer after the plant has flowered, they are scraped to remove the outer skin and are then soaked in water for 2 hours prior to cooking. The fibres are cooked for 24 hours with lye and then beaten in a blender. They make a light tan brown paper.
• A purple dye is obtained from the seed.
• Smoke from the burning leaves is said to be insecticidal.
• Cannas are used to extract many undesirable pollutants in a wetland environment as it has a high tolerance to contaminants.

Image File history File links Canna_YKH_1075. ... Image File history File links Canna_YKH_1075. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (768 × 1024 pixel, file size: 165 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Self made image composed of two self-made photographs, by Robert Uyeyama File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (768 × 1024 pixel, file size: 165 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Self made image composed of two self-made photographs, by Robert Uyeyama File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version... A bead is a small, decorative object that is pierced for threading or stringing. ... Jewelry (the American spelling; spelled jewellery in Commonwealth English) consists of ornamental devices worn by persons, typically made with gems and precious metals. ... A kayamb The kayamb is a flat musical instrument used in the Mascarene Islands to play sega and maloya music. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... A pair of hosho. ...

Classification of Cannas

Species

In the last three decades of the 20th century, Canna species have been categorised by two different taxonomists, Paul Maas, from the Netherlands and Nobuyuki Tanaka from Japan. Both reduced the number of species from the 50-100 that had been accepted previously, and assigned most to being synonyms. Inevitably, there are some differences in their categorisations, and the individual articles on the species describes those differences. In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... Taxonomy (from Greek ταξινομία from the words taxis = order and nomos = law) may refer to either a hierarchical classification of things, or the principles underlying the classification. ... Paulus Johannes Maria Maas is a botanist from the Netherlands and a specialist in the flora of the neotropics. ... Nobuyuki Tanaka is an economic botanist at the Tokyo Metropolitan University and at the Makino Botanical Garden in Kochi prefecture, Japan. ... Synonyms (in ancient Greek syn συν = plus and onoma όνομα = name) are different words with similar or identical meanings. ...

See also Canna species synonyms. Binomial name Canna coccinea Blanc. ... Binomial name Canna compacta Rosc. ... Binomial name Canna discolor Lindl. ... Binomial name Canna flaccida Salisb. ... Binomial name Canna glauca L. Canna glauca is a species of the Canna genus, a member of the family Cannaceae. ... Binomial name Canna indica Canna indica is a plant belonging to the family Cannaceae, a native of the Caribbean and tropical Americas that is also widely cultivated as a garden plant. ... Binomial name Canna iridiflora Ruiz. ... Binomial name Canna jacobiniflora T. Koyama & Nb. ... Binomial name Urb. ... Binomial name Canna liliiflora Warsc. ... Binomial name Ruiz & Pav. ... Binomial name (Roscoe) Tb. ... Binomial name Sims Canna pedunculata is a species of the Canna genus, belonging to the family Cannaceae. ... Binomial name (Roscoe) Hook. ... Binomial name Canna tuerckheimii Mill. ... Canna species synonyms are the inevitable consequence of the difficulty of communication up to the late part of the 19th century. ...

Horticultural Cannas

Canna (Crozy Group) 'Theresa Blakey'

See the Canna (Plant) Gallery for photographs of Canna cultivars. Image File history File linksMetadata Canna_TheresaBlakey_1061. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Canna_TheresaBlakey_1061. ... This is a gallery of named canna cultivars. ...

Cannas became very popular in Victorian times as a garden plant and were grown widely in France, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the USA and have recently experienced a renewed interest and revival in popularity. There were once many hundreds of cultivars but many of these are now extinct. A cultivar is a cultivated variety of a plant species. ...

In recent years many new cultivars have been created, but the genus suffers from having many synonyms for many popular ones. Most of the synonyms were created by plant growers attempting to market their stock. Research has accumulated over 2,300 cultivar names, however, many of these are simply synonyms.

Canna x annaei André.

Canna x hortensis Guill.

The first hybridisation of Cannas was performed in 1848 by a gentleman gardener, Monsieur Théodore Année of Passy, France. He was rapidly joined by many other enthusiasts and professional horticulturalists as Canna hybrids enjoyed rapid popularity in France. Amongst the professionals was the rose breeder Monsieur Pierre-Antoine-Marie Crozy (1831-1903) of Avoux & Crozy, La Guillotière, Lyon, France, who first started hybridising Cannas in 1862 and continued introducing new canna cultivars at a rapid rate until his death in 1903, giving his name to a whole new group of floriferous Canna cultivars. Crozy aîné (French for "elder"), as he was universally known, was succeeded by his son, Michel Crozy (1871-1908). Pierre-Antoine-Marie Crozy (1831-1903) [also called Crozy aîné -- French for elder] A partner in Avoux & Crozy, La Guillotière, Lyon, France. ...

Canna (Italian Group) 'Austria'

Canna × generalis L.H.Bailey

Canna × orchiodes L.H.Bailey

In the early 1900's, Professor Liberty Hyde Bailey defined, in detail, two garden species (C. x generalis and C. x orchiodes) to categorise the floriferous Cannas being grown at that time, namely the Crozy hybrids and the ‘orchid-like’ hybrids introduced by Carl Ludwig Sprenger in Italy and Luther Burbank in the USA, at about the same time (1894). The definition was based on the genotype, rather than the phenotype, of the two cultivar groups. Inevitably, over time those two floriferous groups were interbred, the distinctions became blurred and overlapped, and the Bailey species names became redundant. Pseudo-species names are now deprecated by the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants which, instead, provides Cultivar Groups for categorising cultivars. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2048x1536, 1028 KB) Summary Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2048x1536, 1028 KB) Summary Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Liberty Hyde Bailey. ... Carl Ludwig Sprenger was a German botanist, born on 30 November 1846 at Güstrow, Mecklembourg and died 13 December 1917 on the island of Corfu. ... Luther Burbank - c1902 Luther Burbank - The Wizard of Horticulture Luther Burbank (March 7, 1849–April 11, 1926)[1] was an American botanist, horticulturist, and pioneer of agricultural science. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Individuals in the mollusk species Donax variabilis show diverse coloration and patterning in their phenotypes. ... In computer software standards and documentation, deprecation is the gradual phasing-out of a software or programming language feature. ... The International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP) regulates the naming of cultivars, cultivar Groups and graft-chimaeras. ...

In more recent times there have been several firms and individuals who have made major contributions to the cultivar range, Messrs Wilhelm Pfitzer of Stadt Fellbach in Germany produced over 300 new cultivars up until the early 1950's, while Messrs Vilmorin-Andrieux in France produced a considerable number of new cultivars during the last century. Wilhelm Pfitzer was 40 years of age in 1844, when he gave up his learned profession to open a nursery, in his own name, on parental property at Militärstraße, Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, EU. He founded a family firm that exists to this day and which...

Although thought of primarily as Rose Hybridists, the US firm of Conard Pyle Co. also contributed large numbers of cultivars in the early part of the 1900's, under the guidance of it's chief hybridist Antoine Wintzer, and more recently we have had a new collection of Conservatory Group and Aquatic Group cultivars originated by Dr Armstrong of Longwood Gardens, Pennsylvania, USA. Conard Pyle Co, the world-famous horticultural house, based for over 100 years in West Grove, Pennsylvania, USA, and the introducer of the Peace rose, did not always specialise in rose production, but at one time was the leading Canmna grower and hybridiser in the USA. // 1855 Alfred Conard formed... Conard Pyle Co, the world-famous horticultural house, based for over 100 years in West Grove, Pennsylvania, USA, and the introducer of the Peace rose, did not always specialise in rose production, but at one time was the leading Canmna grower and hybridiser in the USA. // 1855 Alfred Conard formed... Dr. Robert Armstrong, Longwood Gardens newly appointed Geneticist, began a canna breeding program in 1967, when it was realized that cultivars available at that time were not suitable for use on display in the Gardens. ... One of the premiere botanical gardens in the United States, Longwood Gardens consists of 1,050 acres (4. ... Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Area  Ranked 33rd  - Total 46,055 sq mi (119,283 km²)  - Width 280 miles (455 km)  - Length 160 miles (255 km)  - % water 2. ...

Meanwhile, the Agri Horticultural Society of India, located in Kolkata, firstly under the Secretaryship of Percy Lancaster in 1892 and later that of his son Sydney Percy-Lancaster, raised the Alipore Canna Collection, which dominated canna throughout that continent. Over 100 new varieties are known to have been raised by the society during that period, as well as importing the latest favourites from Europe and the USA. The Agri Horticultural Society of India was founded in 1820 by William Carey on the Alipore Road, Kolkata. ... ,   (IPA: [] Bengali: কলকাতা) (formerly, in English contexts,  ) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. ... Sydney Percy-Lancaster, F.L.S., F.R.H.S., M.R.A.S. was born on July 19, 1886 at Meerut, India. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Animated, colour-coded map showing the various continents. ...

Agricultural Cannas

Canna achira is a generic term used in South America to describe the cannas that have been selectively bred for agricultural purposes, normally derived from C. discolor. It is grown especially for its edible rootstock from which starch is obtained, but the leaves and young seed are also edible, and achira was once a staple foodcrop in Peru and Ecuador. Little explored, is the possibility of its rich starch content being used to produce biofuel. Achira may refer to: Canna (plant), also called achira Achira, Greece, a city in Aitolia-Acarnania Category: ... Binomial name Canna discolor Lindl. ... Grafting is a method of plant propagation by which one woody plant is mechanically attached to another so that the two eventually fuse together. ... Starch (CAS# 9005-25-8) is a complex carbohydrate which is insoluble in water; it is used by plants as a way to store excess glucose. ... For articles on specific fuels used in vehicles, see Biogas, Bioethanol, Biobutanol, Biodiesel, and Straight vegetable oil Sugar cane can be used as a biofuel. ...

Farming Varieties

There are some named agricultural varieties, and published comparative studies have involved:

• C. 'Thai-purple'
• C. 'Thai-green'
• C. 'Japanese Green'
• C. 'Chinese Purple'

Canna (Agriculture Group) 'Edulis Dark'

Many more traditional varieties exist world-wide, they have all involved human selection and so are classified as agricultural cultivars. Traditionally, Canna edulis has been reputed to be the variety grown for food in South America, but there is no scientific evidence to substantiate the name. It is probable that edulis is simply a synonym of C. discolor, which is grown for agricultural purposes throughout Asia. Image File history File links Canna_Edulis_2003072001_0014. ... Image File history File links Canna_Edulis_2003072001_0014. ...

In the Andes, the rhizome can be harvested within 6 months from planting out and the yields range from 13 - 85 tonnes per hectare, with 22 - 50 tonnes being average, though larger yields are obtained after 8 - 10 months.

Most cultivated forms do not produce fertile seed. There are also sterile triploid forms, these contain a significantly higher proportion of starch, though their cropping potential is not known.

Animal fodder

The rhizomes and leaves are good fodder for cattle and pigs and it is grown for this purpose in Hawaii, where it is harvested 4-8 months after planting. Fodder growing from barley In agriculture, fodder or animal feed is any foodstuff that is used specifically to feed livestock, such as cattle, sheep, chickens and pigs. ... Capital Honolulu Largest city Honolulu Area  Ranked 43rd  - Total 10,931 sq mi (29,311 km²)  - Width n/a miles (n/a km)  - Length 1,522 miles (2,450 km)  - % water 41. ...

Human consumption

Canna is still grown for human consumption in the Andes and also in Vietnam and southern China, where the starch is used to make cellophane noodles. Planes view of the Andes, Peru. ... Also known as bean thread noodles. ...

Edible qualities

Rootstock - actually a rhizome, this can be eaten either raw or cooked. It is the source of canna starch which is used as a substitute for arrowroot. The starch is obtained by rasping the rhizome to a pulp, then washing and straining to get rid of the fibres. This starch is very digestible. The very young rhizomes can also be eaten cooked, they are sweet but fibrousy. The rhizome can be very large, sometimes as long as a person's forearm. In Peru the rhizomes are baked for up to 12 hours by which time they become a white, translucent, fibrous and somewhat mucilaginous mass with a sweetish taste. The starch is in very large grains, about three times the size of potato starch grains, and can be seen with the naked eye. This starch is easily separated from the fibre of the rhizome. Binomial name Maranta arundinacea L. Arrowroot, or obedience plant, (Maranta arundinacea) is a large perennial herb of genus Maranta found in rainforest habitats. ...

Young shoots - these can be cooked and eaten as a green vegetable and are quite nutritious, containing at least 10% protein.

Seeds - the immature seeds are cooked in fat in tortillas.

Cultivation

Canna (Miniature Group) 'Oberon'

Cannas grow best in full sun with moderate water in well-drained rich or sandy soil. Cannas grow from perennial rhizomes but are frequently grown as annuals in temperate zones for an exotic or tropical look in the garden. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (813x726, 82 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (813x726, 82 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Loess field in Germany Surface-water-gley developed in glacial till, Northern Ireland Technically, Soil forms the pedosphere: the interface between the lithosphere (rocky part of the planet) and the biosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere. ... Ginger rhizome A rhizome is, in botany, a usually underground, horizontal stem of a plant that often sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. ...

The rhizomes are marginally cold hardy but may rot if left unprotected in freezing conditions. In areas which go below about −10 °C in the winter, the rhizomes can be dug up before freezing and stored in a protected area (above +7 °C) for replanting in the spring. Otherwise, it is recommended that Cannas are protected by a thick layer of mulch overwinter.

Pests

Cannas are largely free of pests but in the USA plants sometimes fall victim to the Canna Leaf Roller and the resultant leaf damage can be most distressing to a keen gardener. Although referred to as the Canna Leaf Roller, there are actually two different creatures that go under that name. ...

Slugs and snails are fond of Cannas and can leave large holes in the leaves, preferring the tender young leaves that have not yet unfurled. Red Slug, Arion rufus - red color form Slugs are gastropod mollusks without shells or with very small internal shells, in contrast to snails, which have a prominent coiled shell. ... The name snail applies to most members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells. ...

Disease

Canna are remarkably free of disease, compared to many genus. However, they may also fall victim to canna rust, a fungus resulting in orange spots on the plant's leaves, caused by over moist soil. Cannas are also susceptible to certain plant viruses, some of which are Canna specific viruses, which may result in spotted or streaked leaves, in a mild form, but can finally result in stunted growth and twisted and distorted blooms and foliage. For the fictional character, see Fungus the Bogeyman. ... Stop editing pages god ... The Canna genus is susceptible to certain plant viruses, which may result in spotted or streaked leaves, in a mild form, but can finally result in stunted growth and twisted and distorted blooms and foliage. ...

Propagation of Canna

Sexual propagation

Canna fruit (green) and ripe seed pods

Seeds are produced from sexual reproduction, involving the transfer of pollen from the stamen of the pollen parent onto the stigma of the seed parent. In the case of Canna, the same plant can usually play the roles of both pollen and seed parents, technically referred to as a hermaphrodite. However, the cultivars of the Italian Group and triploids are almost always seed sterile, and their pollen has a low fertility level. Mutations are almost always totally sterile. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1548x1305, 250 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1548x1305, 250 KB) Summary Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Close-up of an Echinopsis spachiana flower, showing both carpels and stamen, making it a complete flower. ... SEM image of pollen grains from a variety of common plants: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea), prairie hollyhock (Sidalcea malviflora), oriental lily (Lilium auratum), evening primrose (Oenothera fruticosa), and castor bean (Ricinus communis). ... Stamens of the Amaryllis with prominent anthers carrying pollen Insects, while collecting nectar, unintentionally transfer pollen from one flower to another, bringing about pollination The stamen (from Latin stamen meaning thread of the warp) is the male organ of a flower. ... Look up stigma on Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The 1st-century BC sculpture The Reclining Hermaphrodite, in the Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Massimo Alle Terme in Rome A hermaphrodite is an organism that possesses both male and female sex organs during its life. ... Polyploidy refers to cells or organisms that contain more than two copies of each of their chromosomes. ... SEM image of pollen grains from a variety of common plants: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea), prairie hollyhock (Sidalcea malviflora), oriental lily (Lilium auratum), evening primrose (Oenothera fruticosa), and castor bean (Ricinus communis). ... This article is about mutation in biology, for other meanings see: mutation (disambiguation). ...

Pollination

The species are capable of self-pollination, but most cultivars require an outside pollinator. All cannas produce nectar and therefore attract nectar consuming insects, bats and hummingbirds that act as the transfer agent, spreading pollen between stamens and stigmas, on the same or different inflorescence. Self-pollination is the activity that arises when a flower has both stamen and pistils. ... A pollinator is the agent that moves pollen from the male anthers of a flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish fertilization or syngamy of the female gamete in the ovule of the flower by the male gamete from the pollen grain. ... In Greek mythology, nectar and ambrosia are the food of the gods. ... Orders Subclass Apterygota Symphypleona - globular springtails Subclass Archaeognatha (jumping bristletails) Subclass Dicondylia Monura - extinct Thysanura (common bristletails) Subclass Pterygota Diaphanopteroidea - extinct Palaeodictyoptera - extinct Megasecoptera - extinct Archodonata - extinct Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Infraclass Neoptera Blattodea (cockroaches) Mantodea (mantids) Isoptera (termites) Zoraptera Grylloblattodea Dermaptera (earwigs) Plecoptera (stoneflies) Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets... For the flying mammal see bat. ... Subfamilies Phaethornithinae Trochilinae For a taxonomic list of genera, see: List of hummingbirds in taxonomic order For an alphabetic species list, see: Alphabetic species list Hummingbirds are small birds in the family Trochilidae, native only to the Americas. ... Flower of the spider tree (Crateva religiosa) with its numerous conspicuous stamens The stamen is the male organ of a flower. ... Amaryllis style and stigmas A carpel is the outer, often visible part of the female reproductive organ of a flower; the basic unit of the gynoecium. ... Red clover inflorescence (spike) An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers on a branch of a plant. ...

Genetic changes

Since genetic recombination has occurred a cultivar grown from seed will have different characteristics to its parent(s) and thus should never be given a parent’s name. The wild species have evolved in the absence of other Canna genes and are deemed to be ‘true to type’ when the parents are of the same species. In the latter case there is still a degree of variance, producing various varieties or minor forms (forma). In particular, the species C. indica is an aggregate species, having many different and extreme varieties and forma ranging from the giant to miniature, from large foliage to small foliage, both green and dark foliage and many different coloured blooms, red, orange, pink, and yellow and combinations of those colours. Genetic recombination is the process by which a strand of DNA is broken and then joined to the end of a different DNA molecule. ...

Asexual propagation

Micropropagation of Canna

Division of plant parts

Outside of a laboratory, the only asexual propagation method that is effective is rhizome division. This is done by using material from a single parent, and as there is no exchange of genetic material such vegetative propagation methods almost always produce plants that are identical to the parent. After a summer’s growth the horticultural Canna can be separated into typically four or five separate smaller rhizomes, each with a growing nodal point (‘growing eye’). Without the growing point, which is composed of meristem material, the rhizome will not grow. Image File history File links Micropropagation. ... Image File history File links Micropropagation. ... Production of new individuals along a leaf margin of the air plant, Kalanchoë pinnata. ... A meristem is a tissue in plants consisting of unspecialized, youthful cells (meristematic cells) and found in zones of the plant where growth can take place - the roots and shoots. ...

Micropropagation

Micropropagation, or tissue culture as it is also known, is the practice of rapidly multiplying stock plant material to produce a large number of progeny plants. Micropropagation using in vitro (in glass) methods that produce plants by taking small sections of plants and moving them into a sterile environment were they first produce proliferations that are then separated from each other and then rooted or allowed to grow new stem tissue. The process of plant growth is regulated by different ratios of plant growth regulators or PGRs, that promote cell growth. Many commercial organizations have attempted to produce Canna this way, and specifically the “Island Series” of Cannas was introduced by means of mass produced plants using this technique. However, Cannas have a reputation of being difficult micropropagation specimens. In vitro culture of plants in a controlled, sterile environment Micropropagation is the practice of rapidly multiplying stock plant material to produce a large number of progeny plants, using modern plant tissue culture methods. ...

Note Micropropagation techniques can be employed on specimens infected with Canna Virus and used to dis-infest plants of the virus, it is possible to use a growing shoot tip as the explant, the growing tip is induced into rapid growth, which results in rapid cell division that has not had time to be infected with the virus. The rapidly growing region of meristem cells producing the shoot tip is cut off and placed in vitro, with a very high probability of being uncontaminated since it does not yet have contact with the sap of the plant, the sap moves the virus around the plant. In this way, healthy stock can be reclaimed from virus contaminated plants. Groups I: dsDNA viruses II: ssDNA viruses III: dsRNA viruses IV: (+)ssRNA viruses V: (-)ssRNA viruses VI: ssRNA-RT viruses VII: dsDNA-RT viruses A virus (from the Latin noun virus, meaning toxin or poison) is a microscopic particle (ranging in size from 20 - 300 nm) that can infect the...

References

• Bailey, L.H. - Canna x generalis. Hortus, 118 (1930); cf. Standley & Steyerm. in Fieldiana, Bot., xxiv. III.204 (1952).
• Bailey, L.H. - Canna x orchiodes. Gentes Herb. (Ithaca), 1 (3): 120 (1923).
• Chaté, E. - Le Canna, 1866.
• de l'Ecluse, Charles - Histoire des plantes rare observées en Espagne, 1576.
• Grootjen, C. J. and F. Bouman. 1988. Seed structure in Cannaceae: Taxonomic and ecological implications. Ann. Bot. (Oxford) n. s. 61: 363--371.
• Johnson's Gardner's Dictionary, 1856.
• Khoshoo, T.N. & Guha, I. - Origin and Evolution of Cultivated Cannas. Vikas Publishing House.
• Lamarck, Jean-Baptiste - Botanical Encyclelopédie.
• Kress, W. J. 1990. The phylogeny and classification of the Zingiberales. Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 77: 698--721.
• Kress, W. J. and D. E. Stone. 1982. Nature of the sporoderm in monocotyledons, with special reference to the pollen grains of Canna and Heliconia. Grana 21: 129--148.
• Lerman, J. C. and E. M. Cigliano. 1971. New carbon-14 evidence for six hundred years old Canna compacta seed. Nature 232: 568--570.
• Maas, P. J. M. 1985. 195. Cannaceae. In: A. R. A. Görts-van Rijn, ed. 1985+. Flora of the Guianas. Series A: Phanerogams. 1212+ volsfasc. Königstein. VolFasc. 1, pp. xx--xx69--73 .
• Maas, P. J. M. and H. Maas. 1988. 223. Cannaceae. In: G. Harling et al., eds. 1973+. Flora of Ecuador. 5660+ volsnos. Göteborg. VolNo. 32, pp. 1--9.
• Percy-Lancaster, S., An Amateur in an Indian Garden. 1927.
• Pison - Histoire naturelle du Brésil, 1658.
• Rogers, G. K. 1984. The Zingiberales (Cannaceae, Marantaceae, and Zingiberaceae) in the southeastern United States. J. Arnold Arbor. 65: 5--55.
• Segeren, W & Maas, PJM - The genus Canna in northern South America (1971), Acta Botanica Neerlandica. 20(6): 663-680.
• Tanaka, N. 2001. Taxonomic revision of the family Cannaceae in the New World and Asia. Makinoa ser. 2, 1:34–43.
• Woodson, R. E. Jr. and R. W. Schery. 1945. Cannaceae. In: R. E. Woodson Jr. et al., eds. 1943--1981. Flora of Panama. 41 fasc. St. Louis. [Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 32: 74--80.]
• Yeo, P. F. 1993. Secondary pollen presentation: Form, function and evolution. Pl. Syst. Evol., Suppl. 6: 204--208.

Triloki Nath Khoshoo (1927-2002) was trained as a botanist, and he became secretary of the Department of Environment, Government of India (1982-85). ... Sydney Percy-Lancaster, F.L.S., F.R.H.S., M.R.A.S. was born on July 19, 1886 at Meerut, India. ...

External links

• The Canna Group, the premier Canna forum on the web.
• Cannaceae in Flora of North America
• Canna × generalis from Floridata
• Canna indica: Indian Shot
• "Colorful Cannas" By Cynthia W. Mueller, from the November-December 2001 issue of Horticulture Update
• International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS).
• Uher Jiří, Svitáčková Běla. A preliminary synopsis of Canna Descriptors.
• PRINCE, LINDA M.* and W. JOHN KRESS. Smithsonian Institution, NMNH - Botany, MRC-166, Washington, DC 20560-0166. - Species boundaries in Canna (Cannaceae): evidence from nuclear ITS DNA sequence data.
• Plants for a Future.
• Reappraisal of Edible Canna as a High-Value Starch Crop in Vietnam
• Royal General Bulbgrowers' Association (KAVB), the ICRA for the Canna genus.

See also

• Agriculture
• Botany
• Canna gallery
• Canna virus
• Cannaceae
• Flower
• Gardening
• Horticulture