Cleopatra Canna introduced 1895

My grandmother always hated cannas. So until Bengal Tiger's introduction I shared her disposition. Old House Gardens is a little heirloom company dedicated to saving very rare heirlooms from extinction. I've always had this thing for mottled flowers but as you can see from this image, Cleopatra also has red and yellow petal colors split down the center from time to time. I've never seen such a thing.

Our family farm in Trenton, MO is surrounded by my father-in-law's soybean and wheat fields so herbicide drift is a big issue. And lo and behold the most reliable and best-performing plants are the cannas. So in the gardens we are planning, cannas are a big part of the picture. I hope my grandmother would approve.