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Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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Posted by Eric_OH 6a (My Page) on Mon, Oct 20, 03 at 8:51
| Well, maybe a little north of marginal.
Most of my cannas are in cool storage indoors now. I decided to leave one planting in the ground to see if it would overwinter in the equivalent of upper zone 6 with plenty of mulch.
So the question is, anyone with experience/luck in getting cannas to overwinter in the ground from z. 6 on north, and any tips on accomplishing this successfully (re drainage, type and thickness of mulch, offerings to voodoo gods etc.)? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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Hi Eric....
I also Live in Ohio..near the Indiana border...so you know I am totally Z5! I have a friend...who threw cannas across the fence last year..down near a creek..because she didn' know what to do with them..she had so many! Lo and behold...they survived!!! Came up on their own! And of course...bloomed!
So based on that...I would say..it's definitely worth a try! Good luck! |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| You must have a woman from the coven spread a thick layer of mulch over the cannas in order for them to bear flowers the following year. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| Mulch. Lots of mulch. Mounds of mulch. Better yet, put a couple of bales of hay over them as soon as they die down. With plenty of protection and a mild winter, they just might make it. But in your zone, it's probably easier (and certainly more reliable) to just dig them up to overwinter indoors and replant in the spring. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| Thanks for the responses (even the mystic voodoo one). Having spent several hours over a couple of days digging up tubers, removing attached soil, allowing them to dry, filling plastic bags with peat and soil mix, adding tubers, attaching labels and hauling them over to the cool cellar crawl space area to overwinter (I grew a lot of cannas this year), I question the "easy" part of the equation - reliable, yes, except for certain fussy types like 'Australia'.
So when I was left with just a big clump of 'Crimson Beauty' to dig up, I decided enough was enough and it was time to experiment. They'll get a good thick blanket of mulch and will just have to tough it out. If they don't make it, I'm out one inexpensive, misnamed variety ('Crimson Beauty', or at least what I have, is actually orange-red). I also suspect that there is variability in hardiness among canna varieties, although I have seen little to nothing about this in print. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| I live on the border of zone 6/7. I have not had luck overwintering them outdoors, probably because of our very clay soil. I suspect they get too wet and rot. I've had problems with a lot of other types of bulbs rotting too. If I ever get enough soil amendment in there, maybe I'll have better luck. I do see other gardens in my area where cannas do overwinter fine. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| I have had luck with the red species type. But I moved this year and am up higher in elevation but do have much drier less clayey soil (good and bads) so I am gonna dig up parts of some and leave some, along with my hedychiums, I hope to god they make it!! I still haven't had a frost yet so maybe there is a warm halo around my house! |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| Some varieties seem to be more rot-prone than others. It's hard to keep them over winter in 7-a in clay soil and marginal with sandy loam, except near the house. I've found hedychium to be more moisture tolerant. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| Last fall I performed several experiments leaving all my cannas in the ground and using several different levels of protection. The Cannas closest to my house fared the best. Everything else had 6-8 inches of mulch and it seemed the only parts that survived were in the center-most part of what I mulched. My soil is heavy clay although it was a very wet winter, but I think it was the cold rather than moisture that killed them. There also seemed to be a higher percentage of survival in areas that received more sunlight throughout the day. This year I will add even more mulch extending it outward more and hope for more survivors. On a side note I always collect several hundred canna seeds throughout the summer in case of a hard winter and to see if I can generate any new variations. |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| Don't know if this will help but it works here in SE MO. When you cut the leaves from your cannas, just lay them on top of the bulbs. You can add some straw mulch if you're going to have a hard winter. Don't know what the leaves have to do with it, but this has worked when heavy mulch without the leaves didn't. Got this tip from an old time canna grower that said she never dug a canna.... |
RE: Overwintering cannas outdoors in marginal climates
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| I have a neighbor who has left his in the ground for many years. They are on the south-facing wall, against the house, and come back each spring. I asked him how he mulched them, to keep them from freezing, and he stated he didn't mulch them. They are yellow-blooming ones that he originally planted about 12" deep. |
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