• slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
Growing-Cannas-THUMB.jpg

Growing Cannas

Is it OK to leave canna lilies in the ground over winter?  And when they are done blooming what are the funky looking little balls where the flowers used to be?  They are filled with very hard black balls. Are these, or any part of the plant poisonous? 

Canna lilies are hardy in zones 8 to 11.  That means gardeners in colder zones need to treat them like annuals or move them indoors for winter.  Northern gardeners can save their cannas from year to year by storing the rhizome, thick fleshy root-like structure, in a cool dark location.  Dig the plant in fall after a light frost.  Set it in a warm dry place to cure.  Gently remove any soil and cut off the foliage.  Pack in peat moss or sawdust and store at 45 to 55 degrees.

The funky looking balls are seed pods.  The hard round things inside are seeds.  These black seeds are so hard that the West Indies natives used them as shot giving these plants another common name Indian shot.  One of the ornamental cannas’ relatives the Queensland Arrowroot (Canna edulis) was used as food and is an ingredient of arrowroot starch.  I wouldn’t recommend munching on your cannas but I could find no reference stating they were poisonous.

Related

Upcoming Live Events
& Webinars


Feb. 12, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Organic Insect Pest Management for Vegetable and Flower Gardens

Register here

Feb. 14-16, 2025
NARI Milwaukee Spring Home Improvement Show
West Allis, WI

Feb. 19, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Strategies for Managing Invasive Plants

Register here

Feb. 26, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Create a Beautiful Shade Garden

Register here

Feb. 27, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
How to Select Rain Garden Plants

Register here

March 12, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Grow Pollinator-friendly Spring and Summer Flowering Bulbs

Register here

March 19, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Be a Waterwise Gardener
Register here


March 22, 23, 29, 30, 2025
REALTORS Home & Garden Show
West Allis, WI

March 26, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Succession Planting & Crop Rotation

Register here

March 27, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Rain Garden Q & A

Register here

April 2, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Container Gardens for Sun & Shade
Register here


April 10, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Reinvigorate Your Rain Garden
Register here


May 7, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Vertical Gardening
Register here


May 15, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
7 Steps to Managing Water on Your Property

Register here

June 4, 2025
FREE WEBINAR:
Attracting Hummingbirds

Register here

WATCH ON-DEMAND WEBINARS

Learn More

Book an Appearance

Learn More

Enter to Win 3 Collections of Longfield Gardens
Dahlia Bulbs

ENTER NOW