Canna ‘Ehemannii’

(Foliage Group)

ORIGIN ANNÉE Théodore
PARENTAGE iridiflora was pollen parent and speciosa was the seed parent.
HEIGHT Tall, 2-3 metres
FOLIAGE Green
FORM Spreading
FLOWER Pink
AWARDS 1880, R.H.S. First Class Certificate, 2002 RHS ‘AGM..

Canna ‘Ehemannii’ is a tall Foliage Group cultivar; green foliage, oval-acuminate shaped, spreading habit; round stems, coloured green; flowers are pendant panicles, self-coloured carmine, staminodes are large, edges regular, labellum is carmine, petals red, blooms open in the early morning; seed is sterile, pollen is fertile; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white and pink; tillering is prolific.

From Monsieur Anneé a hybrid cross of C. iridiflora and C. indica var. warscewiczii. It was distributed by M. Kolb, Inspector of the Botanical Garden at Munich, who first distributed it as C. ‘iridiflora hybrida’, but later as C. ‘Ehemanni’ after Herr Ehemann of Stuttgart.

In 1880 this variety was awarded the R.H.S. First Class Certificate, and then in 2002 (122 years later) it was awarded the Award of Garden Merit (AGN) at the RHS Wisley trials. The two highest awards possible and earned 122 years apart. It says it all for the quality of this hybrid.

Our earliest reference to this specimen is RHS First-class Certificate (Hooper 1880).