The Gardener's Guide to Growing Cannas

Gardener's Guide to Growing Series | The strong forms and eye-catching colors of cannas make them perfect for planting as focal points or to help create a subtropical ambience.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
Bold and brazen, lush and lurid, cannas are in-your-face plants, which might make their garden use limited. Cooke, however, thinks otherwise and has compiled an encyclopedia of canna culture, background, and species identification to prove it. Although the typical canna may be large and flashy, more suitable as dynamic focal points or creating a tropical atmosphere, there are smaller, more demure versions that can fit into other garden settings. Indigenous to the tropics, cannas are mistakenly assumed to be difficult to grow in cooler climates; however, thanks to extensive hybridization, ornamental cannas can withstand a wide range of conditions and make excellent and easy additions to almost any garden. Cooke carefully explains the cultural requirements, from siting and soil conditions to propagation and pests. An extensive list of all the generally available forms offers canna fans a definitive reference and introduces canna cowards to the variety, versatility, and value of these garden gems. Carol Haggas
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Review
"I was quite thrilled to find [this book]."—Leanne Cook, California Garden, November/December 2002

"This book provides basic data for beginners, abundant facts for canna fanatics, lavish color photos and detailed descriptions of dozens of varieties."—Debra Lee Baldwin, Decor and Style, August 2002

From the inside flap
Cannas are among nature's exhibitionists. Their large, lush leaves are accompanied by flamboyant blooms for a long period over summer. To the gardener in cooler countries, the plants look impossibly exotic, as if they would wilt at the merest hint of a fresh breeze. However, cannas are capable of flowering prolifically in temperate climates and, although usually lifted for frost-free winter storage, will even survive outside all year round in mild areas. Their strong forms and eye-catching colors make them perfect for planting in small numbers as focal points or in bigger groups to create a subtropical ambience. Best known for their brighter hues, there are also plenty of cannas in subtle tones for a more refined effect.

In The Gardener's Guide to Growing Cannas, Ian Cooke describes just how easy it is to grow and propagate these plants. He provides information on the history of the genus, as well as its botanical makeup, its role and versatility in the garden, and its popularity worldwide.

A key feature of the book is its comprehensive A-Z of plants. The list concentrates on the hybrid forms for which the genus is famous, but there is also a selection of species, many of which are worth growing and all of which are interesting in that they have provided the genetic material for the wealth of flower and leaf colors available today. For those keen to experiment, Ian Cooke also details how hybridization is carried out and provides an insight into the world of modern canna breeders.

Illustrated with gorgeous photographs and specially commissioned botanical drawings, this is an informative and fascinating book for both established canna growers and newcomers alike.

Author: Ian Cooke,
Publisher: Timber Press, Incorporated , 2005-11-01
ISBN: 0881927074, EAN: 9780881927078