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. The Columbia Electronic
Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University
Press. All rights reserved. More on canna from Fact Monster: See
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