This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Canna species ID ?


Earlier this year, a friend in New Zealand sent me seed of a Canna
which is becoming naturalised there - especially around the
Christchurch area.  Apart from suggesting it was some kind of species,
he could not give any more info as to its identity.  Virtually all of
the seed has germinated and I now have a couple of dozen pots of it,
bristling with growth and coming into flower.  I cannot get an
accurate ID on this species although gut felling tends me to think in
terms of C. braziliensis.  A description of it follows but bear in
mind, it is flowering in its first year and dimensions and habit may
be somewhat atypical of a mature plant :

O/A Height: 	1 metre, a rather slender plant.

Leaves:		Green slightly matt textured, paler beneath, rather	
		narrowly lanceolate, to 30cms long & 10cms wide.

Inflorescence:	Densely flowered, simple, bracted and not branched at
		this stage.

Flowers:		Small, to 6cms long.  3 greenish sepals, 	
		petals forming a flaring tube.  Upper 3 petals red to
		4 cms long and 1 cm. across, erect, slightly recurving
		towards the tips.  Lower two petals forming a tube, 	
		bottom 'lip' petal being red with yellow mottling, 
		4 cms long and 0.05cms across.  The upper petal of the
		'tube' being slightly greenish yellow with pale red
		mottling, 3 cms. long and 0.04cms across.

If anyone here recognises this, I would be very grateful for a name.
I can try and send a video snapshot of the flower if that would help.

TIA
David Poole



Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index