Fungus Foot Baths Could Save Bees

Varroa on bee pupae. (Credit: Image courtesy of University of Warwick)

ScienceDaily (2008-07-28) -- One of the biggest world wide threats to honey bees, the varroa mite, could soon be about to meet its nemesis. Researchers at the University of Warwick are examining naturally occurring fungi that kill the varroa mite. They are also exploring a range of ways to deliver the killer fungus throughout the hives from bee fungal foot baths to powder sprays. ... read full article

Canna hybridizers have an extra interest in the preservation of the honey-bee, as the most prolific of pollinators in Northern Europe, and elsewhere.

Ian Cooke recognised

Earlier this month at the Hampton Court RHS Show, Ian Cooke was presented with an award to honour his lifetimes work in horticulture, the Royal Horticultural Societies Associateship of Honour.

The Associateship of Honour is given to persons of British nationality who have rendered distinguished service to horticulture in the course of their working life. The number of Associates of Honour may not exceed 100 at any one time.

Ian Cooke's award was granted for his continuous committment to ornamental horticulture, landscape design and grounds management. A former holder of a National Plant Collection of Canna , Ian worked at the University of Nottingham until his recent retirement.

Our congratulations go to Ian, who is also judging the 2008 International Canna Trial, and we hope that he will retain his long-term interest in Canna.

The Canna 'Wyoming' enigma

The Canna 'Wyoming' enigma

Revisiting Canna 'Russian Lance'

A medium sized Foliage Group cultivar; green and purple variegated foliage, large, lanceolate shaped, maroon margin, arching habit; triangular stems, coloured purple; panicles of flowers are erect, orange with a pink blush, staminodes are long and narrow, edges irregular, petals red, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules round; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is slow.

Introduced by Malcolm Dalebö, Claines Canna Collection, Worcester, England, EU in 2003. Breeding is C. 'Russian Red' x open.

Revisiting Canna 'Cleopatré'

A small Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, oval shaped, spreading habit; round stems, coloured green; spikes of flowers are open, orange-yellow with a yellow margin, throat orange, staminodes are large, edges lightly frilled, fully self-cleaning, average bloomer; seed is sterile, pollen is fertile; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white and pink; tillering is average. Introduced by A. Crozy, Lyon, France in 1895.

Fades to a pink colour, luckily the fresh orange colour lasts for several days.

Revisiting Canna 'Antonin Crozy'

A medium sized Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, oval shaped, spreading habit; oval stems, coloured green; flowers are open, carmine with a yellow margin, staminodes are medium size, good bloomer; fertile both ways, not self-pollinating or true to type, capsules globose; rhizomes are tuber-like groups, coloured white and pink. Introduced by A. Crozy, Lyon, France in 1888.

The earliest reference is Garden & Forest, 28 August 1889. Writing in the Garden & Forest in 1896, Theophilus Hatfield wrote that "Canna 'Souvenir Antonin Crozy' remains the best of all the true Crozy type, and it is doubtful if any of this year's introductions will equal it in beauty."

Synonyms: C. 'Anthony Crozy', C. 'Anthony de Crozy', C. 'Antoine Crozy', C. 'Souvenir de Antoine Crozy'

Revisiting Canna 'American Flag'

A tall Italian Group cultivar; green foliage, oval shaped, maroon margin, upright habit; oval stems, coloured purple; panicles of flowers are open, self-coloured orange-red, throat yellow, staminodes are large, fully self-cleaning, good bloomer; seed is sterile, pollen is low fertile; rhizomes are long and thin, coloured white and pink; tillering is average.

Introduced by Antoine Wintzer of The Conard & Jones Co., West Grove, PA, USA in 1902.

Revisiting Canna 'Statue of Liberty'

A tall Italian Group cultivar; purple foliage, oval shaped, upright habit; round stems, coloured purple; panicles of flowers are open, self-coloured carmine, staminodes are large, edges irregular, petals purple with farina, fully self-cleaning; seed is sterile, pollen is low fertile; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is prolific.

Introduced by Antoine Wintzer of The Conard & Jones Co., West Grove, PA, USA.

The staminoides are very fine and thin, and when the sun shines through them there are colour transformations. The bloom only lasts for a day or so, but in that time it makes its statement.

Fungus disease rampaging through UK

By Tamara Cohen, Mail Online

Although not known to affect perennial plants like Canna, it is of interest to gardeners that a fungus which can wipe out a large tree in only a year is wreaking havoc.

Experts are alarmed by the speed of the infection, already found in 52 formal gardens in the South-West and Midlands.

The Government has called for urgent measures to halt the spread of Phytophthora kernoviae, which can rapidly destroy plants including wild rhododendrons and European beech.

It is a close relative of so-called 'Oak Disease' - Phytophthora ramorum - which devastated California's oak population and has already infected hundreds of Britain's trees and shrubs.

Emergency measures to control the fungii are likely to include uprooting rhododendrons and around 15 species from gardens in high-risk areas.

Burning of infected plants has so far failed to control the kernoviae fungus, which was discovered in Cornwall in 2003 and since rampaged across the country.

The spread of the related ramorum fungus, first detected in 2002, has seen almost 800 trees felled in sites across England and Wales, according to Defra.

The disease has recently reached beyond gardens and woodland for the first time, by infecting native Bilberry bushes on heathland in Cornwall.

Jeff Rooker, minister for Farming and Animal Health said: ''Despite five years of emergency action, Phytophthora kernoviae and Phytophthora ramorum have continued to spread in the nursery trade and wider envirnoment.

"We now know that they have the potential to cause significant harm to businesses and the natural landscape, and we need to decide on a policy for future management."

Phytophthoras are the same family of fungii whuch caused the Irish potato famine, and there are fears the disease could devastate rural industries.

The National Trust has seen 14 of its gardens infected, and is urgently creating a living archive of rare shrubs and plants which may not survive.

As the disease orginiated abroad, experts fear rare British plant species, which have no natural immunity to it, may be wiped out.

The exotic rhododendron ponticum, imported from Asia by the Victorians, is widely blamed for introducing the fungii to the UK.

But once it has taken root in an area, the disease can spread rapidly through new 'host' plants, which could include common garden trees and shrubs.

A Defra consultation paper published this month warned that healthland, woodland and other habitats could be under threat for decades if the fungus is not controlled.

Revisiting Canna 'Star of India'

A small Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, ovoid shaped, spreading habit; oval stems, coloured green; flowers are open, orange-red with a narrow yellow margin, staminodes are narrow, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not self-pollinating or true to type, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white and pink.

Introduced by S. Percy-Lancaster, Alipore Cannas, Calcutta, India.

The earliest reference is by Sydney Percy-Lancaster, "An Amateur in an Indian Garden", 1927. In the collection of the Royal Agri-Horticultural Society , Alipore, Calcutta, India. Dr. Khoshoo & Dr. I. Guha: Evolution of Cultivated Canna, 1966.

Canna sales at Claines

I was planning to follow up the two previous pollination articles with several articles relating to hand-pollination. However, that will have to wait a day or so, as other events have intervened.

As regular bloggers will be aware, last season we suffered a terrible growing year, where we had hardly any worthwhile light during the summer floods, and just enough in the late summer and Autumn (Fall) to start recovering. As a result we had bad foliage on almost every one of our Cannas. The symptoms of stress due to lack of light and Canna virus are identical, as the Canna has a limited vocabulary!

After talking this over, we came to the conclusion that we should not sell any rhizomes last winter, as we had no idea whether they had virus or not. We still went ahead and produced a catalogue of the Collection, but clearly stating that there would be no mail-order sales.

However, we also had the plants from last year that we knew were not affected by virus. These we planned to pot up and sell as growing plants this summer. Over the winter we cleaned and packed about 1,000 rhizomes of these plants. However, during bad weather the electricity supply was cut overnight, and we lost to frost nearly all of the rhizomes we had in our store.

As a result, we have nothing left to sell at present, and all we are left with is the stock plants of the collection, that we are still growing on. We hope that by August we should know what is affected by virus and which is clear, and therefore saleable in the future.

Natural pollination of Cannas

Canna News: Natural pollination of Cannas

The flower parts

Understanding the parts that make up a Canna flower.

Revisiting Canna 'Pringle Bay'

A small Italian Group cultivar; variegated foliage, oval shaped, spreading habit; panicles of flowers are open, self-coloured pink, staminodes are large, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not known if true to type, not self-pollinating; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured pink and purple.

A true dwarf canna, with attractive, delicate, pale pink flowers. However, its main attraction is the bright variegated foliage, green, bronze and pink.

Terence Bloch reputedly introduced it from South Africa and named it 'Pringle Bay', after where it originated from in that country. Somewhat mysteriously, the name 'Pink Sunburst' now seems to be the preferred name, but the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants stipulates that this is simply a synonym of the original name.

Synonyms: C. 'African Sunset', C. 'Pink Sunburst', C. 'Technicolor'

Revisiting Canna 'Dr. Nansen'

A medium sized Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, oval shaped, spreading habit; triangular stems, coloured green; panicles of flowers are open, cream speckled with old-rose, staminodes are medium size, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not self-pollinating or true to type, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white; tillering is average.

Revisit Canna 'Duchess de Montenard'

A medium sized Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, oval shaped, spreading habit; round stems, coloured green; spikes of flowers are open, yellow with red spots, staminodes are medium size, edges irregular; fertile both ways, not self-pollinating or true to type, capsules round; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white and pink; tillering is average.
Introduced by A. Crozy, Lyon, France. The earliest reference is by Prof. L.H. Bailey, in Garden & Forest of 1893.

Revisiting Canna 'Valbonne'

A medium sized Crozy Group cultivar; green foliage, oval and cupped shaped, upright habit; flowers are open, self-coloured rose-red, staminodes are medium size; fertile both ways, not self-pollinating or true to type; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured pink and purple; tillering is prolific.


Introduced by Vilmorin-Andrieux in 1941.

Q&A Why so many Cannas the same?

Question.
Why do some Cannas that look the same have different names?

Answer.
In the absence of a Canna Society or registry for hybridizers, many Canna cultivars have been claimed, renamed, and even patented by nurseries or companies that had nothing to do with developing that cultivar.

Some Canna are also very generous with producing "sports,"which are mutations that can be propagated and sold as a new variety. The classic example is Canna 'Yellow King Humbert', which has produced many new all purple foliage plants with red flowers. The same sport may occur spontaneously at different nurseries and each might claim it as a new introduction and give it their own name. This causes a lot of confusion for Canna enthusiasts!

At Claines Canna we try to list the common alias for each variety in the description.

Revisiting Canna 'Kansas City'

A small Crozy Group/Variegated Group cultivar; green and yellow variegated foliage; panicles of flowers are open, yellow with red spots, staminodes are medium size, edges irregular, fully self-cleaning; seed is sterile, pollen is sterile; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured white; tillering is average. Introduced by Jim Waddick, USA.


Synonyms: C. 'Ty Ty Golden Ribbon', C. 'TyTy Golden Ribbon'

That's why there's no growth!

In repsonse to my request yesterday for ideas why we have experienced little growth in our Cannas, Nick Broughton wrote to state that "In my experience, and that of some nurserymen I know who grow cannas, they do not get into serious growth until minimum night-time temperatures are consistently 10C or above, virtually irrespective of how warm the days. Growth is modest or non-existent if minima at nights are regularly below 8C. So far this year, night-time minimum temperatures from May here in Norwich, England have been variable and often below 8C."

So, I looked back at the last months predictions, and by Jove it looks like Nick is right! Thank you for sharing that knowledge with us. Tonight is predicted at 8C, then onwards we have nightly temperatures averaging about 13C.

We have had very few nights so far here in Worcestershire where temperatures exceeded 10C. This is another factoid that needs to enter the ever-growing Canna virtual cyclopedia!

Why no growth?

The weather this year has been even stranger than we have learned to expect of late. It fluctuated so much during April and early May that we were reluctant to commit the collection to planting outdoors until near the end of May.

However, we are now asking why we have experienced such little growth. A month after planting outside in well fertilized beds, we can see little new growth. The plants that were blazing away inside the polytunnel have gone on strike! A few have started new stems, and a few have produced some very weak flowers, but no real growth.

During the month of June we had some good days for sunlight, the watering was intensive, the plants have been dosed with seaweed fertilizer, both liquid and solid and they have had one dose of Miracle-Gro. Perhaps we have given the Cannas an environment that is too nutritious? Unheard of, this is a plant used in sewage schemes because of its ability to thrive in such circumstances and is renowned as a hungry feeder!

Time will tell, and we will report it here.

Floods on their way again

Parts of Britain were deluged by nearly a month's rainfall in just a few hours today as freak summer weather brought chaos across the country.

Downpours sparked flood warnings nationwide as forecasters predicted nearly two inches of rain in the worst-affected areas.

South west England, the south west Midlands, where we live, and south east Wales are expected to suffer the heaviest rainfall, and flood warnings have also been issued in Devon.

The Environment Agency has warned that residents living near the Rivers Tamar, Torridge and Walden face likely flooding of their homes and businesses.

Other parts of south west England and the Thames region have been put on flood watch and warned to expect flooding of low-lying land and roads.

With weather experts warning that a summer monsoon season was now part of the UK weather pattern, it looks like it will become harder to grown tropical and sub-tropical plants in this climate. Plants need light, and weeks on end of rain means no sunlight during that period.

Let's try and be philosophical about this latest weather outrage... we don't have to do any watering!

Revisiting Canna 'Guttermanni'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; dark foliage, oval shaped, branching habit; triangular stems, coloured purple; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured orange, staminodes are long and narrow, edges irregular, petals purple, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured pink and purple; tillering is average.

Synonym: C. 'Sparks'

English summer washout

The English summer is heading for a total washout, with little chance of any long periods of sunshine. This follows bad weather at Wimbledon last week.

Most of the country will be drenched by thundery showers all this week – and forecasters predict that could set the pattern for the rest of the month and beyond.

The miserable outlook even led one forecaster to warn that this summer could be among the wettest on record.

Jonathan Powell, of Positive Weather Solutions, is quoted as saying there was an “unsettled picture” for July and August. “Whereas we may have a few days of fine weather, there will be no lengthy spells of sunshine or sustained warm temperatures,” he said. “That is because, once again, Atlantic weather systems will continue to deliver wet, windy conditions and average temperatures.”

Dave Elliott at the Met Office agreed. “Rainfall is looking above average or similar to average for the rest of the summer, with the temperatures nearly average or a touch below,” he said. “Last year was a pretty bad summer as well – a lovely April and September but fairly unsettled in between.

“This year we’ve not had a prolonged warm, dry spell. We’ve had several nice days but not a couple of weeks at a time. You have to go back to 2006 for a glorious summer, hot, dry and sunny.”

So, what does that mean to Canna gardeners. I would suggest that you keep a reasonable spacing between your plants. I have always liked the jungle effect achieved when the foliage intertwines, but this year we should not risk any plant not getting whatever sunlight is available. My youngest daughter used to describe the intertwining as the plants kissing, and I feel bad about having to increase the spacing.

A regular feeding with Miracle-Gro will ensure that whenever light is available the Canna engine can fire on all cylinders and produce as much growth as is practical during a poor-light summer. Really, it is a case of not wasting any days of reasonable light, it takes light, water and nutrients to produce plant growth and so when light is available it pays to ensure that the other essentials are there in abundance.

Revisiting Canna 'Liervalii'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; purple foliage, oblong shaped, maroon margin, spreading habit; round stems, coloured purple; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured orange-red, staminodes are long and narrow, edges irregular, fully self-cleaning, outstanding bloomer; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is prolific. Introduced by Lierval, rue de Villiers, au Thernes, France, EU. in 1860.

Synonym: C. 'Red Bird'

Revisiting Canna 'Mystique'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; purple foliage, lanceolate shaped, upright habit; round stems, coloured purple; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured cherry-red, staminodes are long and narrow, edges regular, petals purple with farina, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules globose; rhizomes are long and thin, coloured purple; tillering is prolific. Introduced by Kew Gardens, London, England, EU.
Awards: Canna Trial 2002, AGM after trial at Wisley 2002, submitted by Great Dixter.

Synonyms: C. 'Ibis', C. 'Old Red'

Revisiting Canna 'Purpurea Floribunda'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; purple foliage, large, oval shaped, spreading habit; round stems, coloured purple; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured redcurrant, staminodes are long and narrow, edges regular, petals red, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating; rhizomes are thick, up to 7 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is prolific.

Synonyms: C. indica 'Purpurea', C. 'Purpurea'

Introduced by A. Crozy, Lyon, France in 1887. The earliest recorded reference is the Wilhelm Pfitzer Catalogue of 1890.

This hybrid has been the sire/siress of many great foliage plants. If you want to discover the pleasures of creating new Canna foliage plants, then this one is a great starting point.

Revisiting Canna 'Rubra Perfecta'

A medium sized Foliage Group cultivar; dark green and red variegated foliage, ovoid shaped, maroon margin, branching habit; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured orange-red, staminodes are long and narrow, labellum is orange-red, stamen is orange-red, style is red, fully self-cleaning, good bloomer; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 7 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is prolific.

Introduced by Théodore Année, Passy, France, EU in 1861.

Revisiting Canna 'Rubra Superbissima'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; green and purple variegated foliage, transparent margin, branching habit; oval stems, coloured purple; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured orange, staminodes are long and narrow, edges regular, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules globose; rhizomes are thick, up to 3 cm in diameter, coloured purple; tillering is prolific.

Introduced by Théodore Année, Passy, France, EU in 1862.

Describe Cannas: Plant shape

The overall shape of Cannas varies considerably, from the upright habit of the aquatic species and cultivars, to the drooping foliage of Canna 'Russian Lance'. The terms we have used at Claines Canna to describe our collection are:

• Upright - erect in carriage or posture.
  

• Branching - to stretch out in a semi-perpendicular manner, approximately 45 degree angle.

• Spreading - to stretch out in a horizontal manner.
  
• Arching - to form an arch.
  <
• Drooping - to hang or incline downward.
  
  

Canna 'Russian Lance', with it's drooping foliage

Revisit Canna 'Stuttgart'

A tall Foliage Group cultivar; green and white variegated foliage, oval shaped, upright habit; half-round stems, coloured green; spikes of flowers are erect, self-coloured apricot, staminodes are long and narrow, edges regular, fully self-cleaning; fertile both ways, not true to type, self-pollinating, capsules round; rhizomes are long and thin, coloured white; tillering is prolific. Introduced by Bob Hayes of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, USA.

Has a synonym 'Striata', but this is patently not correct as that is a separate and distinct cultivar correctly named C. 'Bengal Tiger'.

The variegation is due to mutation in meristematic tissue of an otherwise normal plant. The mutation involved the loss of the chloroplasts in the mutated tissue, so that part of the plant tissue has no green pigment and no photosynthetic ability. This mutated tissue is unable to survive on its own but is kept alive by its partnership with the normal, photosynthesising tissue.