Introduced by Kent Kelly, Quality Gladiolus, Arkansas, USA.
Introduced by Kent Kelly, Quality Gladiolus, Arkansas, USA.
Introduced by Kent Kelly, Quality Gladiolus, Arkansas, USA.
Introduced by Kent Kelly, Quality Gladiolus, Arkansas, USA. An outstanding, modern, self-cleaning cultivar. Hardier than most Cannas and able to tolerate mild winters as well as heat-wave summers.
Introduced by Kent Kelly, Quality Gladiolus, Arkansas, USA.
In an effort to clear any past misconception about the origin of the above cultivar, Kent Kelly has located a brief advertisement from the Conard & Jones Co. stating that "A. Wintzer originated this cultivar and C. & J. introduced it."
"This publication is dated a least a few years after information was published by other companies offering it for sale but not claiming to be the introducer."
"Assuming C. & Jones did indeed introduce ‘The President’ there likely is no correlation between the cultivar ‘Queen of Beauty’ and ‘The President’."
"This C & J information was published in “Gardeners Chronicle of
Thanks are due to Kent for his detective work, but I think that he is being too conservative when he uses the term "assuming" to qualify the Conard & Jones claim. I have been studying their literature for over a decade and I have never encountered a blatant untruth, sometime a little exaggeration over plant qualities, but never a lie. I am happy to believe totally that Canna 'President' was raised by Antoine Wintzer, and introduced by C & J.
What now remains is to establish which is the real Canna 'President'. I have so far encountered four different plants using that name, and over the next few days I will post details and photographs of each one.
By Kent Kelly, 22 January 2009
Photograph by Quality Gladiolus Gardens, of Jonesboro, AR, USAThe President’ canna is without question one of the very best cultivars introduced ever. It has withstood the test of time and has remained both viable and productive for over 90 years. I suspect we cannot count on our hands the cultivars that match this record.
Almost without doubt, its origin lies here in the
As you suggest, to date we have not located a plant registration for ‘The President’. Like many other cultivars the present limited information likely points to it being a renamed canna.
My earliest sales listing of ‘The Present’ is an advertisement by HENRY A. DREER of
The cultivar ‘Queen of Beauty’ was registered with the Plant Registration Authority in 1905 by The Southern Floral Company along with 19 other cultivars. This plant description certainly matches the description of ‘The President’. Of course that does not definitely prove the case!
As we have previously stated, the TSFC sold ‘Queen of Beauty’ to the FRANK CUMMINGS BULBS & PLANT CO.,
For whatever reason, after 1906 I can not find any reference to C. ‘Queen of Beauty’ and even more strangely I cannot find the existence of either of these companies who were growing it. It is as they disappeared off the face of the earth! Of course this may more likely reflect on my ability to do proper searches but one would think these companies would have continued selling and advertising in the trade journals in subsequent years.
All the above information may prove of little consequence relative to ‘The President’, but for now it is what I have along with a gut feeling.
