Emerging root from a soaked Canna seed

After a couple of days in soak, they need to be planted.  They can either be planted in individual cells trays or in 3 – 4 inch flower pots. Using individual seed trays removes the need to prick the seeds out.  Untangle all their roots and plant individually when they are a bit older.   However  the germination success rate seems to suffer.  So if you only have a limited amount of seeds I would plant them in plastic flower pots.  I would also only plant a maximum of  4 or 5 to a pot.  This is to reduce the headache of untangling the plants when they need their own pots.

seed ready for soaking

once you have chipped all the seeds they need to be soaked.  This is where your small stemless glass comes in. Cover the seeds in water and leave for about 48 hours.  If you forget about them for an extra few days it does not seem to matter.They just start to grow in the glass.

Method

First step in growing Tropical Canna’s from a seed involves chipping the seed.  Canna seeds have a very hard coating which wears down over time in a moist environment.  If you simply planted the seeds, whole, germination will be more unpredictable.  By chipping the seed you are in control of timings.

A certain amount of pressure needs to be applied to scratch the seed coating. Don’t go too deep, just until you can see the white inside.

This may take a little practice.  The seeds have a tendency to slip off  fingers and all over the place.