Canna x generalis 'Borneo' (Canna)

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Canna

Description

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Family Cannaceae

Herbs perennial . Stems erect , robust . Rhizomes tuberous . Leaves alternate, spirally arranged , large, veins pinnate and parallel, base sheathing . Inflorescence a terminal raceme or panicle of showy, 1- or 2-flowered cincinni. Flowers bisexual , asymmetric , mostly large. Sepals 3, green, free , persistent . Corolla lobes 3, green or colored , basally connate into a tube and adnate to staminodes. Staminodes and stamen in 2 whorls: outer whorl with (2 or) 3 conspicuous , petaloid staminodes, usually red or yellow; inner whorl with a reflexed staminode (labellum), narrower than outer staminodes, and a fertile stamen; filament petaloid; anther 1-loculed, adnate to apical margin of filament. Ovary inferior, 3-loculed; ovules numerous per locule; placentation axile . Style petaloid. Fruit a capsule, 3-valved, usually warty. Seeds many, globose ; endosperm copious ; embryo straight.

One genus and ten to twenty species: tropical and subtropical America; one species (introduced ) in China.[1]

Genus Canna

Herbs, rhizomatous , 1--2[--5] m , forming small to large monotypic stands. Leaves green [bronze or magenta in hybrids and cultivars], often glaucous [lanuginose]; blade narrowly ovate to narrowly elliptic , 20--70 cm ´ 15--30 cm, base gradually or abruptly tapered, apex acute to acuminate. Inflorescences: peduncles green [magenta], often glaucous; bracts green [magenta], often glaucous; primary bracts to 30 cm, secondary bracts to 20 cm; floral bracts 0.5--3 ´ 0.3--1.5 cm, papery . Flowers nearly sessile, subtended by pedicel bract; sepals usually green [magenta], often less than half size of petals; petals sharply reflexed or not, green or brightly colored , 4--15 cm, generally shorter than staminodes; staminodes pale yellow to deep crimson red; labellum 3--9 ´ 4--10 cm; ovary green [magenta]. Capsules brown, 1.5--6 ´ 2--4.5 cm, warty, becoming papery. Seeds 5--25[--75] per capsule, medium to dark brown or black, 4--10 ´ 4--8 mm.

Species 10: tropical and subtropical Americas with some species naturalized and many cultivated hybrids.

Until recently taxonomists recognized more than 50 species in Canna, but that number has now been reduced to ten (P. J. M. Maas 1985; P. J. M. Maas and H. Maas 1988) based mainly on new concepts of biogeographical history, the extent of hybridization during cultivation, and the plasticity of morphological features, especially in the highly polymorphic species C. indica.

Little has been published regarding pollination of these plants . The two North American species with pale yellow flowers, Canna glauca and C. flaccida, flower at dusk and may be pollinated by hawkmoths. Several neotropical species with bright red or orange flowers are hummingbird-pollinated. Nectar, which accumulates at the base of the floral tube , is the apparent reward in all cases. Pollen is shed from the bisporangiate anther onto the adjacent style before the flower opens (secondary pollen presentation), which usually results in self-pollination ; thus, greenhouse-grown plants readily set seed. The large seed size and lack of reward for potential animal dispersal agents suggests that seeds are dispersed by gravity and water. Seeds can germinate and produce reproductive shoots in a single growing season .

Both Canna flaccida and C. glauca, as well as several Central American species, are hosts to the larva of the skipper butterfly Calpodes ethlius (Cramer), ), which builds protective tents by folding or rolling the apices of the leaves.

The most common use of Canna by Europeans and North Americans is as ornamentals . Both the hybrids and some species are grown for their striking foliage and large, delicate flowers. Two hybrids commonly grown in both temperate and tropical zones are C. Ã—generalis L. H. Bailey and C. Ã—orchioides L. H. Bailey. The former is apparently a cross between C. indica and C. glauca, or C. iridiflora Ruiz & and Pavóon and the latter between C. Ã—generalis and C. flaccida (L. H. Bailey 1924; J. W. Donahue 1965) . These hybrids are usually sterile , although they may persist in cultivation.

The seeds of Canna indica are used as beads (especially for rosaries) and in gourds to form rattles . The rhizomes are used to make a form of arrowroot. The vegetation and rhizomes have been used as medicinals for both humans and domesticated animals.[2]

Physical Description

Flowers: Bloom Period: April, May, June, July, August, September. • Flower Color: magenta

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 4-6' tall.

Biology

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Growth

Culture: Space 18-24" apart.

Soil: Minimum pH: 6.1 • Maximum pH: 6.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11. (map)

Taxonomy

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Domain: Eukaryota () - Whittaker & Margulis,1978 - eukaryotes
- Kingdom: Plantae () - Haeckel, 1866 - Plants
  - Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae () - Cavalier-Smith, 1981
    - Phylum: Tracheophyta () - Sinnott, 1935 ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - Vascular Plants
      - Subphylum: Euphyllophytina ()
        Infraphylum: Radiatopses () - Kenrick & Crane, 1997
        Class: Spermatopsida () - Brongniart, 1843
        Subclass: Commelinidae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Superorder: Zingiberanae () - Takhtajan Ex Reveal, 1992
        Order: Zingiberales () - Grisebach, 1854
        Family: Cannaceae () - A.L. de Jussieu, 1789 - Canna Family
        Genus: Canna () - C. Linnaeus, 1753 - [Greek kanna, reedlike plant]
        Specific epithet: x generalis 'Borneo'
        Cultivar: Borneo
        Botanical name: - Canna x generalis 'Borneo'

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Canna

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 570 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

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Notes

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Contributors

Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.

Identifiers

Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 956763

Footnotes

Delin Wu & W. John Kress "Cannaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 24 Page 378. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
"Canna". in Flora of North America Vol. 22. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

Canna x generalis 'Borneo'

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Description

Family Cannaceae

Genus Canna

Physical Description

Size/Age/Growth

Biology

Growth

Taxonomy

Similar Species

Members of the genus Canna

More Info

Further Reading

Notes

Contributors

Identifiers

Footnotes