Carinas as Decorative Bedding Plants 



By Antoine Wintzer. 



The Canna as a summer bedding and decorative plant 

 is annually increasing in popularity, and deservedly so, 

 as the modem produced Canna is tlie most adaptable and 

 generous plant in the floral world. In this beautiful plant 

 we have a combination of good qualities ; it is a free and 

 healthv grower, a line looking plant if it never produced 

 a flower, the foliage is magnificent on many varieties, 

 and the color, richness and brilliancy of its flowers beau- 

 tiful bevond description. 



A modem field of Cannas in full bloom is a sight never 

 forgotten; for a distance of half a mile or more such a 

 field beautifies tlie surrounding landscape. 



It is a plant especially adapted to our changeable 

 -\merican climate. It recovers quicker after a severe 

 wind or rainstorm tlian any other blooming plant, because 

 it is continually renewing itself from its strong growing, 

 vigorous sprouts from the root, and each of these sprouts 

 soon develop strong branching flower spikes, each one 

 producing from 50 to 150 or more individual flowers 

 from four to seven inches in diameter. Some varieties 

 in good soil produce from ten to eighteen of these stalks 

 in a season. Just imagine over l.COO large blooms on 

 a single clump in one season ! 



\\\\tn Cannas start to bloom in June or July they keep 

 it up continuously until stopped by frost. Last season 

 thev were fine until the third week in October and were 

 in full bloom at the time we dug them for winter storage. 



The months of May and June are the best seasons in 

 this locality to plant Cannas. The writer has planted 

 them as late as Uie middle of July, but would not ad\'ise 

 doing so only where it is desirable to quickly cover a bare 

 piece of ground, and in that case pot grown plants only 

 should be used. 



Sometimes persons move into new houses late in the 

 spring, they are often at a loss for want of something to 

 plant to cover the bare ground and make a good show 

 in a few months. In such case there is nothing that can 

 equal the Canna. 



Perhaps you are one of these late movers, who may 

 have been anticipating with pleasure and longing to 

 move into the new home ; there were delays and it was 

 not completed as soon as promised by the builders. 



.\t last vou move in, and you do wish to see that bare 

 ground quickly covered. Perhaps you figured on plant- 

 ing a Privet or Japan Barberr}- hedge along the front 

 or side of your ground, but it is too late and it will have 

 to he delayed until the next fall or spring. Right here 

 is where the Canna can be used to best advantage. There 

 are a number of beautiful tall growing varieties of the 

 Orchid flowering class that will grow from 7 to 8 feet 

 and in rich soil even 9 feet high, with magnificent foliage 

 and producing flowers from 6 to S inches in diameter, 

 and all this in a few short months. 



I will name the best varieties in this class: 



Wyoming, large orange, bronce foliage. 



yeiv York, large scarlet, bronce foliage. 



King Humbert, orange scarlet, bronce foliage. 



Louisiana, crimson, green foliage. 



Mrs. Carl Kelsey. z-arious shades, green foliage. 



Uncle Sam. orange scarlet, green foliage. 



The above varieties are all good and will give you the 

 best material for a summer hedge or division line fence, 

 and nothing finer or more ornamental can he desired and 

 all at a ven,- reasonable cost. 



In fall when the cannas are dug up and the clumps 

 taken into winter quarters, the ground in which they 

 were planted will be in best possible condition to plant 



a hardy hedge, or. if desirable, it can be planted with 

 Tulips, Hyacinths or other hardy bulbs. 



In addition to the foregoing varieties of Orchid flower- 

 ing varieties tliere are over one hundred varieties of the 

 Gladiolus flowering and garden tj'pes. These are more 

 dwarf in their habit of growth, ranging in height from 

 2 to 6 feet, and comprising all shades of color from white 

 to darkest crimson, some mottled and margined with 

 difterent colors and shades, giving a unique and chang- 

 ing effect. These varieties can be used in bed and masses, 

 in fact anywhere where tliere is room for a plant. Cannas 

 are more universally planted in our public parks than 

 any other bedding plants, and since the latest produc- 

 tions of the Canna breeders are becoming known the 

 beauty and size of the blooms is a pleasant surprise and 

 revelation to many who have been accustomed to see 

 only the old and inferior varities of this noble plant. 

 r>elow I will give a list of some leading varieties, includ- 

 ing a mmiber of novelties nearly all of American origin : 



Olympic, 



Splendor, 



Meteor (IVintser's), 



Beacon, 



Duke of Marlboro, 



Patrie, 



Conite de Sachs, 



Triumph, 



William Saunders, 



Conoivingo, 



Mrs. Geo. A. Strohlein, 



Brandxxcine, 



Mt. Etna, 



Chautauqua, 



Rosea Gigantea, 



Mrs. Alfred F. Conard, 



Mrs. Woodrozi' Wilson, 



Martha Washington, 



Hungaria, 



^Crimson and scarlet, green leaf. 



^Crimson and scarlet, 

 bronze leaf. 



ira-c.'a. 

 Venus, 

 J'irginia, 

 Betsy Ross. 

 J 1 'abash, 

 Hiazcatha, 

 Minnehaha. 

 Eastern Beauty. 

 Evolution. 



California, i ^ . ,- 



Indiana, f range, green leaf 



San Diego, 

 Queen of Holland, 

 Juanita, 

 Cloth of Gold, 

 Blanche Wintzer, ~\ 

 Mont Blanc, > 



Alsace, J 



Buttercup, 

 Brilliant, 

 Gladiator. 

 Elizabeth Hoss. 

 Florence Vaughan. 

 Richard Wallace. 

 Kate F. Deemer. 

 Golden Gate, 

 .hme Addams. 

 Director Holtcc. 



^ Pink shades, 

 green foliage. 



Pink shades, 

 bronce foliage. 



\ Orange shades, 

 I bronce leaf. 



JFhiie shade, 

 green leaf. 



Yellozc and spotted ycllozv. 



green leaf. 



