My canna lilies are super healthy looking but not flowering

9 months ago

last modified: 9 months ago

Why are they not blooming? I am in zone 5, near Toronto. They had lovely flowers last year. This year I received new rhizomes from 2 different sources. I planted them end May, same South facing location as last year, in commercial potting mix, and added some compost, same as last year. It is now end July, the plants are taller than last year (one is same variety) with very healthy looking leaves, but there are still no flowers. Other cannas in my neighbourhood have been flowering for a while. About a week ago I started giving them fertilizer with a high phosphate ratio ( middle number). What might be the cause, and what can I do to promote flowers?

The first picture shows 2 pots of my cannas this year on July 30th. No flowers and nothing that looks like it might be budding. Except for the Japanese beetle damage you can see very healthy and tall leaves in both pots, the left pot with two different varieties of cannas . The second picture is from last year mid August, shorter leaves but many flowers. No way will my cannas this year have flowers in two weeks from now. Is it possible that the potting soil I used this year could have this effect ? I asked a friend who has planted hers the same week-end I did, hers already have flowers...
I do not know the variety, these cannas were given to me by two different people.

To HU-655581242: Well, I can understand the theory that I somehow ended up with the two different varieties ( green and purple leaved) that both take a long time to bloom ( they obviously do...). I don't mind waiting longer, I just suspect they won't bloom at all...

To FrozeBudd_z3/4: I tried to overwinter my beauties from last year, unfortunately I kept them in a carton with newspaper etc, in the cold room; all canna bulbs were all moldy in spring. So I got new cannas this year. Last year I had given some of my canna bulbs to a friend. I will try to get some back from her this fall.

Featured Answer

mzdee

9 months ago

Mine took a hiatus. They didn't bloom last year, but multiplied like crazy. Just this month, one plant sent up a bloom stalk. It was worth waiting for.

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Comments (10)

north53 Z2b MB
9 months ago
Me too , doriswk. i dont have the answer.
rosaprimula
9 months ago
phosphates are really more to promote root growth - try a tomato feed - higher in potassium.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 months ago
dad grew them for 30 years... until i got tired of digging them up and storing them in the basement for him.. and never in 30 years.. did we fert them...

are your in mother earth.. or pots...

what kind of canna are we talking about.. the old standard.. or some foo foo varieties...

fert really isnt a go to remedy for every little problem in the garden... it will probably take weeks for any fert you apply now.. to have any impact...

seems a bit early for canna in my z5 MI... but i dont know if you neighbors forced them early.. or yours are just late.. but either way.. so what if they tale a few extra weeks to bloom ...

ill keep my eye out around town.. and let you know if i see any blooming..

ken
FrozeBudd_z3/4
9 months ago
Mine I grew from seed kindly given to me from a Polish canna hybridizer. Spring had been very warm and so I decided to set them out particularly early, but they just sat and sat doing nothing, was discouraging looking and wondering what was wrong. Finally, they began slowly perking up when giving them a long deep drink, I hadn't realized just how very bone dry the soil had become due to drought. Now hitting their stride and several beginning to show flower scapes tucked within the foliage, fun to see the colors and quality of blooms to come!
FrozeBudd_z3/4
9 months ago
HU-655581242, I do not think it's a matter of potting soil, but rather that you are growing different varieties than what you had last year, you currently have taller later flowering plants. Did you attempt to overwinter those beauties from last year? My guess would be that those had possibly been 'Cannova Scarlet Bronze', a particularly beautiful and abundant blooming variety.
L Clark (zone 4 WY)
9 months ago
last modified: 9 months ago
I am FAR from a canna expert, but the Cannas in the first pic look like musifolia. Musifolia is grown mainly for its foliage and takes a long time to bloom (at least for me) and the flowers are rather small and nondescript. Yours are very nice specimens, though .
L Clark (zone 4 WY)
9 months ago
last modified: 9 months ago
Here is a canna ’Wyoming’ (gotta grow canna Wyomong if you live in Wyoming, right?) It looks horrible because it was hit by hail three times, but still managed to put out a flower spike
L Clark (zone 4 WY)
9 months ago
I do not think you'll be impressed with the blooms on musifolia (I wasn't), but who cares with beautiful foliage like that!
doriswk thanked L Clark (zone 4 WY)
FrozeBudd_z3/4
9 months ago
last modified: 9 months ago
HU-655581242, for next year, to assure yourself of bountiful blooms, again I recommend the Cannova series, it comes in a wide range of colors.

Clark, I'll have to look for 'Wyoming', had seen a big beautiful display of it in my nearby town. Problem is when ordering via mail cannas can often be virused, so best to purchase potted greenhouse stock one can be sure is healthy.
doriswk thanked FrozeBudd_z3/4