Yes they will cross pollinate but you will get some really nice colors that way. I take a large flat platter out to the garden and cut the the seed heads and lay them on the platter. Allow them to dry further and then tap them against the platter. The seed are tiny and usually rust colored. Its difficult to tell the difference from the chaff. It's also difficult to tell just when to harvest the seed but they set alot of seed so even if you are a little late you will still get plenty of seed. I winter sow mine. In the spring I will transplant to 4 inch pots and keep them potted up all summer because they are so small. I plant them out in the fall and in the spring I have nice sized plants. Mine have never self sowed in the garden. Don't know why. They are easy winter sowers. Have fun.

You can do a search for "canna seed" in the search box and likely get good information. You do need to know that the seed capsule needs to dry (turns brown) so the seed inside will fully mature. There are a number of hybrid cultivars that are sterile and "will not" produce viable seed. This is typically indicated by the size of the contents of the seed capsule. Mature canna seed is about the size of a green pea but will be brown to jet black. If the contents look like small mustard seed, fertilization was incomplete or unsuccessful. Please remember that hybrid cannas do not breed true and the offspring will not be a clone of the parent. Do not call the hybrid canna seedlings by the parentÂs cultivar name. The below link is very useful. http://growingcannasfromseed.blogspot.com/2009/03/growing-cannas-from-seed-can-be.html Kent

When the seed pods are completely brown and dry and can be easily divided. However, note that the majority of cannas grow from bulbs and most are hybrids and either sterile or won't breed true. Just something to keep in mind. ;) Check out the previous discussion linked below for more details. Here is a link that might be useful: Canna seeds discussion

Canna seeds are tough. For best germination, they should be nicked. To nick them, you can use a file, a grinder, or even a drill to drill into the seed a little. You just want to break the hard surface of the seed just enough to see a little bit of the creamy white interior of the seed. After nicking, soak the seed in water for a day or two. You should see the seeds swell as they soak up the water. Then plant in moist soil. Keep the soil moist and warm and your seeds will sprout. If started early, like during winter in a greenhouse, cannas grown from seeds can bloom the first year. However, the seeds from the hybrid cannas do not produce plants like the parent plant. They usually revert back to the small flowered type with traits of both the wild canna and the parent. Once in a great while, you may get lucky and a viable canna will grow from one of those seeds, but it doesnt happen often.