I don't have much Canna knowledge, so for what it's worth... Here in Phoenix we get a hard frost for a few days in winter. I have some Canna that were protected and have kept going strong, flowering, healthy green. In another location the frost did some damage, but the new shoots (there's always new shoots) were protected from the larger plants. For plants to be divided I cut all the large diameter stalks, leaving 18" and under sprouts. Dividing 6' tall plants isn't easy and they're likely to die on me any ways. For plants I'm not dividing I just cut any stalks that don't look that great, which after a year of growing is most. I keep a few flowering stalks only because I like the flowers. In a few months when the current sprouts are ready to flower I'll cut those older stalks. I think new growth looks better, flowers better. In hard, long frost years I cut them all. So basically I just cut out poor performing stalks to make room for new stalks at anytime of the year. It occurs to me as I write this...I wonder if I kept cutting new growth to thin if those tubers would eventually die and reduce the need to divide? Is this something that's been tried?. I do cut to maybe 1" above the ground.

Apparently no one here is familiar with your growing conditions. I cannot imagine that cannas would not perform well for you if the soil is amended and moisture is available. Your 24 inches of soil depth should be more than adequate. I would be surprised if your canna growth would not necessitate thinning of the plants from time to time. You might consider trialing a few different cultivars to determine which suits your preferences or environment. I am very hesitant to suggest specific cultivars. Kent

Catherine, There is a canna legend that archealogists discovered an old Inca rattle that was using canna seeds as the rattled items. The seeds were planted and they grew. That would be about 500 years old Canna seed succesfully growing. However, nobody can certify this legend, I have asked about it on this board, and it could be just a verbal legend that gets passed on from generation to generation. But its a good tale. On a more uptodate note, I have grown 5 year old Canna seeds, but with a low fertility rate compared with a more recent crop. I had one sprouter out of 6 seeds planted. The seeds had been stored in ideal conditions. Regards, Malcolm

I'm no expert, but I think that unless your temperature is higher in your plant room (70 degrees or more) you won't see viable growth. Sometimes my stored rhizomes in my basement sprout at about 60 degrees, but this isn't a good thing. See "The 11 Things I've Learned About Growing Cannas" posting- I agree that it doesn't help to start early and the best thing to do is wait until you can directly plant outside for your growing season.