Va-Va-Voom is what you'll experience when the Canna 'Kreta' struts her stuff in the landscape! Those showy blooms of deep red petals pop against the backdrop of the contrasting green leaves. Not to mention the onlookers this one attracts, but it also brings in the hummingbirds! A crowd gatherer for sure!

Care of Canna 'Kreta'

Plant it in the spring (after your last frost date) and enjoy the blooms throughout early fall. Full sun to partial sun will give it plenty of warmth to unveil all its exotic repeat blooms. Leave plenty of growing room to spread 2-3 feet and grow 4-5 feet tall. Water this beauty thoroughly on a weekly schedule and fertilize with a high nitrogen foliar fertilizer twice per month. Adding soil amendments when planting will help fertility too. Deadhead spent blooms to promote new buds and flowers throughout the season.

Overwintering your Canna 'Kreta'

In planting zones 8-11, they can be kept to overwinter in the ground, but lower zones will need to dig up and store them. When storing, remove the stalks and soil carefully and divide the rhizomes. Dip the rhizomes in powdered sulfur as a natural fungicide for storage. Lay the cannas as a single layer on a bed of peat moss or shavings in a cardboard box. Provide ventilation around them. Store in a root cellar, basement, or garage where temperatures stay at 45°F-50°F and the humidity level is at 50%.

Dividing the Canna 'Kreta'

In warmer zones, divide in the spring every two or three years by digging the bulbs up and spacing them every 24 inches. Prep the garden bed for planting with plenty of organic matter and root hormone mixed into it. Cannas reproduce 3 to 5 fresh rhizomes for each one you grow so soon, there will be enough for a privacy hedge or to share with family and friends.

Combination Planting

Contrasting colors and textures always help make a standout in the garden. Try combining your Canna 'Kreta' with Iris pallida Variegata Silver or our Caladium 'Miss Moffet!' The chartreuse against the pinkish-red veining will create a great contrast between the two.

When you get yours in the ground and have that first va-va-bloom, please send us pictures and tag us with the hashtag #livelyroot! We can't wait to see it!