canna

canna [Lat.,=cane], any plant of the genus Canna, tropical and subtropical perennials, grown in temperate regions in parks and gardens for the large foliage and spikelike, usually red or yellow blossoms. Today, most cultivated cannas are hybrids, but two species are found wild in the S United States, one called Indian shot because of the hard shotlike seeds. C. edulis, Queensland arrowroot, is cultivated in the tropics for its rootstock, a commercial arrowroot starch. Canna is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Liliopsida, order Zingiberales, family Cannaceae.

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canna

Any of the tropical herbaceous plants that make up the family Cannaceae, of the ginger order (Zingiberales), containing a single genus with about 55 species, found from southeastern North America through South America. Cannas have rhizomes with erect stems growing to 10 ft (3 m) high. The green or bronze leaves are spirally arranged. The flowers are asymmetrical. Spotted variations of the scarlet, red-orange, or yellow flowers sometimes occur. The genus Canna is widely grown for ornamental use. C. edulis, from Peru, has edible, starchy rhizomes.