Any Gardeners? Peat moss question

David Agnew

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Howdy. I have some Canna Lily rhizomes that I've dug up for the first time this winter. I've only got 5 rhizomes. What I'm reading says to cover them with Peat Moss and store them in a dark, cool, place. The local Lowes has 2 choices for peat moss, a 3 cubic yard and an 8 quart size. The 3 cubic yard is regular organic peat moss I've used in the past. The 8 quart is Miracle Gro brand and "Enriched with Miracle-Gro continuous release plant food".

I don't want to buy the 3cy because that's way too much for only 5 rhizomes; I'd have to store the leftover peat. But I worry about the fertilizer mixed into the smaller Miracle Gro product.

Any woodworking gardeners have ideas?

Thanks.
 
I operate a greenhouse business and use Peat Moss/ potting soil all the time. You could probably use either one as long as you keep the peat moss dry. You could also use ProMix which is a Peat Moss and perlite mix. Next year, you could use it in your planters or garden.

If you want a small amount, try going to a local garden center or greenhouse. They might be able to sell you just the quantity you need. We do that all the time for customers.

Hope this helps, Joe
 
We've never used the peat moss, though we have heard of folks having good results with it. We lay ours on newspapers stacked inside of milk crates and keep them on our enclosed porch as we don't have a basement. Knock the dirt off of them, let them set for about three days to harden off then store them. Keep an eye on them and any that look like they're starting to rot, toss em, if they look exceptionally dry, mist them lightly. Another way is if you have a frig in the garage/shop, they do great in the vegatable crisper{s}, they don't however survive in the kitchen frig,DAMHIKT :chair: :eek: :D

Getting ours stashed on the porch this evening :thumb:
DSCF9963.jpeg
 
Thanks for the advice, guys. I'll go ahead with the Miracle Gro brand. The closest place that I know of that sells loose mulch/dirt/etc is about 3x as far as Lowes.

Ken - Are those cannas? Shape wise, they look like mine but the color is totally different. I didn't have any white at all on mine except some underground portions. They're mostly dark purple and look an awful lot like red onions... well, if red onions were 8" long. :)
 
What area do you live in? Here in coastal VA I leave mine in the ground and cover with 3-4" of shredded hardwood mulch. Any dry medium is suitable for storage if you don't want to invest in a big block of peat moss. Dry sand, sawdust, vermiculite all will work fine. Just make sure the rhizomes are dry before storing them or they will rot.
 
Yep David, they're cannas, the white you're seeing is from my sad whack & hack dividing :eek: :D, would luv to show you some photos but my ext HDD crashed and burned taking all of it's/my treasures with it...still debating on sending it off, as I've tried pretty much everything and too poor to just jump at letting the pros have a go...anyways, this year they grew over 10' tall, these have a mid to deep red flower with a non-varigated leaf coloring. We've been into planting these for about 5 yrs now. We've been here at this address since 1985 and have never been able to attract humming birds until we started planting these. Oh and of those 5 yrs planting we only lost the first yrs bulbs due to poor storage. Hope yours do well :thumb:
 
Ted - I live in zone 6b and normally do just what you do. They're on the unshaded south-side of my house so it's plenty warm even in dead winter. However, they were planted by the previous owners of my house and I've noticed over the past 5 years that they're growing closer and closer to the foundation. Two of the rhizomes I dug were actually growing against the foundation of the house. So I'm going to install a slightly raised bed and replant them 12-18" away from the foundation.

Ken - Ah, ok. I've never dug them up so didn't know what to expect. I was going to divide them in the spring. These plants only grow to 5'-6', but I like that they flower for a long time. As long as I go out once every week or two to deadhead them, they flower from when it's hot to when it's cold. July-Oct, basically. I think that's pretty neat considering I do nothing for them. No fertilizer or water other than what they get splashed when I do the lawn. They seem really hardy.
 
David I live in ohio planted these for years, dig them up in the fall let dry in the shed for a week, then put in the basement in a 5 gallon plastic tub or what ever just piled on top of each other no peat nothing. Works perfect
 
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