Canna 'Gabriel'

A spreading herbaceous perennial with upright stems that grow up to 1m tall and wide.

Coral-pink lily like flowers are produced throughout summer and into autumn and contrast well to the broad bright green leaves.

Prefers a sheltered site in full sun to partial shade with free draining soil. They will tolerate drier soils though.

Always choose healthy well-grown plants and plant after autumn rains. Before planting ensure the root ball is saturated and remove the planter bag or pot with minimal root disturbance. Trim any broken roots and plant at the same level as in the container. Dig a hole twice the diameter of the root ball and firm in and water once planted. Make sure plants are watered well until established if planting in a drier period. Plant with some general slow release fertiliser and then every spring apply an organic based fertiliser such as blood and bone at a handful per square metre as new growth begins. Plant approximately 60cm apart. If planting rhizomes in pots, fill a large pot to within 6 inches of the top with a well-draining potting mix into which you can add perlite to help with drainage. If your pot is large you can plant two or three canna rhizomes in each pot. Backfill your pot or hole with additional soil until the rhizome and roots are well covered. Gently firm the mix around the base and water in well.

Apply mulch annually to benefit soil health improve moisture retention and suppress weeds. Mulch also helps to protect the rhizomes from the winter temperatures in colder areas. In a home garden it is important that spent stems are removed at ground level as soon as the flowers finish because the stem starts to die back at that stage making the clump increasingly tatty and unattractive so give them regular grooming to keep them looking good and encourage new growth. The entire clump should be cut back to ground level in June or July when flowers finish and lifted and divided every 3 to 5 years as this helps maintain vigour.

Like all members of the ginger family cannas are greedy growers give them plenty of fertilizer every spring and summer to ensure the clump remains vigorous.

In climates where the ground freezes hard in the winter, you may dig up your plants in autumn after the first frost let them air dry for a few days and store the rhizomes in a cool dry place in a paper bag. You may get lucky and manage to preserve them for next spring planting.

Cannas in Auckland can suffer from rust in summer when there is high humidity. The affected stems should be cut back and burnt if possible. Rust spores are wind-borne so if the material is left on the ground or composted then it could re-infect the plants. They are also susceptible to fungal leaf spot again this is best removed and burnt. Caterpillars and earwigs can be troublesome often chewing flowers and foliage in summer.

Perennial Garden