Typically, canna rhizomes do not rot in warm water but do rot in cold water.

See

http://www.usna.usda.gov/Gardens/faqs/aquaticsfaq2.html

But how should I be watering newly planted cannas...Do I water in and then wait until I see growth?

I live in San Jose, Ca and it's been hot. I've watered my established cannas every three-four days. But several newly planted rhizomes have rotted. I'm not family with watering newly planted rhizomes in the heat...it seems the first dries out and I water, but I think I must be over watering. I just needed a general rule of thumb for watering newly planted rhizomes.

Thank goodness you finally clarified your location; I was
wondering why anyone would be planting cannas at this time of the year, while
most of us are concerned with preparation for our winter storage.

You failed to mention the source of your new canna rhizomes
which may be your problem. In your warm weather environment and planting at the
proper depth you will not likely be able to overwater your cannas; the problem
likely lies somewhere else. You might detail the soil conditions, fertilizers
or mulches use. Do you have a photo of the area or your other cannas?

Kent

I've been waiting to hear from you Kent as you are the Obi Wan of cannas. Thank you for the response and I will take some pictures when I get home from work.

I pretty much exclusively buy from Brian Williams of Brian's Botanicals and Alice Harris of Karchesky Cannas.

I have planted rhizomes with little to no foliage and think I'm over-watering after planting new rhizomes. I use a combination of high quality potting/soil mix, compost, and peat moss. I have planted from early spring until now and have had them rot out on me at different times. I use a 10-10-10 fertilizer as well.

I got hit really bad with the mosaic virus from a person I bought cannas from on the Internet from Prague and it nearly wiped out all my cannas...I waited a year and re-started my collection this year. But for some reason I think I'm over watering my newly planted rhizomes all season long.

Any advise and/or insight would be greatly appreciated coming from you.

Bryan

Here are the photos of the soil

We have already implied that it is not overwatering.

Very likely your rhizomes were beginning to rot before you planted them. I often see this when I plant rhizomes in pots. The rot spreads within the infected rhizome but does not spread much from one rhizome to another within the same pot. For example, this pot was packed with rhizomes but only one grew:

http://www.general-cathexis.com/images/PottedDurban.jpg

Let me emphasize that what appears to be potting soil actually includes about 25% rotted canna rhizomes and yet one rhizome thrived amidst all of this rot.

That's good information for me to look out for prior to planting.

Regarding my initial question however, what is the rule of thumb in planting new rhizomes and how frequently do I water new rhizomes.

A good rule of thumb is to start all of your cannas in pots and plant them in the ground only after they look good and healthy. Potted cannas can be kept in a shallow tray of water and watered from the top occasionally to keep fertilizer salts from accumulating on the surface. The only disadvantage is that roots will grow out of the bottom of the pots which will break when you transplant. After planting in the ground, keep the soil always moist. The best time to water any plant is in the morning just before sunlight hits it. The worst time to water is at sunset.

Now, maybe, you can return the favor by describing in detail how you lost all of your cannas to virus because I have no experience with canna virus contagion. Did the virus symptoms spread from one canna to the ones planted next to it or what?

Thank you for the advise...I will start doing this process immediately. So I had around 30-40 different varieties...all healthy and without blemish. I bought what I thought was a beautiful and rare white with pink speckled canna from an Ebay seller "carcun.xkclr" that he proclaimed was healthy. When it sprouted I noticed lightly variengated stripes...which I thought was part of the leaf. Within three months all the new growth from my surrounding cannas starting getting this striping in the leaves. I thought I had removed all the infected ones but j was wrong and several others got hit. After countless hours of research and calling different agencies I found it spreads through leaf sucking insects; aphids. I ended up pulling all of them and replaced all my dirt/soil. I have about 130 feet of raised bedding along my fence line. Come to find out most bagged rhizomes you find at Home Depot, OSH, etc sell packaged rhizomes that are highly infected. Watch out for anything packaged from Canada and Holland.

so now I only buy from Alice Harris from Karchesky Canna and Brian Williams of Brian's Botanicals.

Here's a where I received a lot of help and tips. Called them several times and put in a few orders as well.

http://youtu.be/wKJ5_0QFFpg

Bryan,

I do not
want to keep beating a dead horse: I think the above threads indicate a rhizome
issue and not a watering problem.

I appreciate
the video link to VF Cannas. I had not seen that. I am aware of the work being done there and have
a copy of most of their published work concerning canna virus elimination
efforts.

If possible
could you clarify if you are presently growing some cannas or did all this year’s
rhizomes/plants rot? Was this year’s major issue with sources consisting of packaged
rhizomes?

Do you happen
to have a link to VF Cannas site that has phone numbers or price list?

Regards,

Kent

To clarify...I am currently growing cannas...roughly 20 healthy growing cannas. But about 15 have rotted. There's no consistency in regards to which are rotting; two of the same canna from the same seller, but one won't make it and rots. Secondly, the major issue came from a rhizome purchased on Ebay from a seller oversees last season...I've been trying to re-grow this year.

I started this tread to obtain a basic step by step in planting new rhizomes how frequently to water.

the forwarding info on VF canna is...

www.VFCanna.com

(405)744-7895

heres they're selections

The 15 that rotted are not of the 20.

Bryan, thank
you for the links to VF Canna. I hope to find time to visit with them in the
future.

I hope you
are comfortable with knowing there is no extra special effort needed when
planting cannas. You have a good location, good soil conditions and great
climate. All you need is healthy rhizomes or plants to start.

I always
like to remind gardeners that on occasion some cultivars (primarily new or
recent introductions) prove to be genetically inferior to many of the other cultivars.
They may grow and bloom fantastic in the breeder’s location but their hidden
genetic makeup hides their ability to winter store, tolerance of bacteria or
fungal infection along with many other potential issues. We the gardeners are
simply the proving grounds for the selection of the best of the best.

Best to you,

Kent

Did you see aphids on your cannas? In over 20 years, I don't remember ever seeing aphids on my cannas. The only manifestation of a pest problem are chewed holes in the leaves of my Pink Sunburst; I suspect slugs. But, I have had aphid infestations on other plants and they are difficult to eradicate. The most effective pesticide that I tried was made to kill aphids and nothing else. Its name is Pirimor 50 W. See http://www3.syngenta.com/country/ke/en/products/insecticides/Pages/pirimor50wg.aspx .

Also, it wouldn't hurt to increase the soluble silicate content of your soil. This might make canna cell walls tougher and more difficult for insects to penetrate. If you can find a local source (otherwise, shipping charges are too high), parboiled rice hulls (PBH) are good for this purpose. You can replace part or all of your peat moss with PBH. See

http://www.riceland.com/pages/rice-hull-products/

Or, there is a silicate based lawn fertilizer that I have also used on cannas, Excellerator, see http://cm.harsco.com/Uploads/Files/Excellerator_Turf_Fall_Product%20Information%20Bulletin.pdf