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Wild Species

discolor var. rubripunctata

Canna discolor var. rubripunctata Nob.Tanaka
Wild Canna

ORIGIN , 2001
HEIGHT Tall, 2-3 metres
FOLIAGE Green
FORM Branching
FLOWER Multi-coloured

Canna discolor var. rubripunctata Nob.Tanaka is a tall species; green foliage, oval shaped, branching habit; spikes of flowers are erect, yellow heavily spotted with red, staminodes are long and narrow, blooms open in the early morning; seed is sterile, pollen is fertile; rhizomes are thick, up to 7 cm in diameter, coloured white and purple; tillering is prolific.

Wild Species

jacobiniflora

Canna jacobiniflora T. Koyama & Nob. Tanaka

Wild Canna

ORIGIN Introduced in 1985
HEIGHT Small, under 1 metre
FOLIAGE Green
FORM Branching
FLOWER Red

Canna jacobiniflora T. Koyama & Nob. Tanaka is a small species; green foliage, small, oval shaped, branching habit; triangular stems, coloured green; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured scarlet, staminodes are long and narrow, edges regular, petals red with farina, fully self-cleaning, blooms open in the early morning; fertile both ways, self-pollinating and also true to type, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured pink and purple; tillering is average.

This is a wild species that has not adapted to a temperate climate and its winters. It is used to growing 52 weeks of the year and if you cannot bring it indoors over a cold winter to continue growing there, then it is pointless trying to treat it like a cultivar, as it will not survive such treatment.

Canna jacobiniflora
References
Claines Canna Collection 2006
A recent discovery by Dr Tanaka, growing wild in Argentina. Scarlet coloured flowers over green leaves. Size: Medium Flower: Scarlet hooded blooms Foliage: Green Origin: Discovered by Dr. Nobuyuki Tanaka in 1985 growing wild in Argentina.
Wild Species

liliiflora

Canna liliiflora Warsc. ex Planch.

syns. brittoni, Lily Canna, Scented Canna, White Canna
Wild Canna

HEIGHT Giant, over 3 metres
FOLIAGE Green
FORM Spreading
FLOWER White
FLOWERING Late bloomer

Canna liliiflora Warsc. ex Planch. is a giant species; green foliage, very large, acuminate shaped, spreading habit; spikes of flowers are reflexed, self-coloured white, staminodes are medium size, fully self-cleaning, late bloomer, blooms open in the early morning; fertile both ways, self-pollinating and also true to type; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white; tillering is slow.

The name means lily-flowered, a native of Bolivia. Flower 10-13cm. (4-5″) long, honeysuckle-scented. Leaves large, Musa-like, oblong, acuminate. Stems stout, erect. Height 2-3 metres (6-10 feet). The only white species, and the only canna with scent, but very difficult to grow in a temperate climate, only a few documented instances of it being successfully grown outside its native environment.

Canna liliiflora

The illustration is from Flore des serres et des jardins de l’Europe by Charles Lemaire and others. Gent, Louis van Houtte, 1855, volume 10 (plate 1055-1056).

Our earliest reference to this specimen is RHS Journal of 1899-1900.

Pollination of liliiflora - Maas
C. liliiflora: According to Vogel (1969), who studied this species in the field (as C. brittonii), the flowers are pollinated by bats. The inflorescence reaches well above the leaves. The flowers are erect, whitish and funnel-shaped, the floral tube is basally thick-walled and curved so that the entrance to the flower is horizontal. Two staminodes form the ‘upper lip’ of the flower, the third one along with the petaloid stamen suggests the ‘lower lip’, while the 4th staminode and the stigma are positioned at the left side of an eventual pollinator. In bud the pollen has already been deposited on the style (secondary pollen presentation). Upon entering the flower, the pollen is transferred from the style to the left side of the pollinator (antero-laterally). Septal nectaries secrete a considerable amount of nectar into the base of the floral tube and constitute a reward for the pollinating bats, which are attracted by a herbaceous-soapy scent to visit the flower.