NAME: Canna indica

FAMILY: Cannaceae

COMMON NAMES: Indian shot, African arrowroot, edible canna, canna

LOCAL NAMES: Idodo, ido, Gwangwama, Aberekanw

MORPHORLOGICAL DESCRIPTION: Canna indica is a long- lived herbaceous plant with large leaves up to 50cm long and 25cm wide.

USEFUL PART(s): Leaves, root, shoot, seed

GENERAL USES:

Roots are edible
young shoots are cooked and eaten as a green vegetable
A fibre obtained from the leaves is used for making paper
Smoke from the burning leaves is said to be insecticidal
seeds are widely used for jewelry

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION

Eastern and south-eastern Australia. New Zealand, southern USA, southern and eastern Africa, Hawaii

WHY IS IT GREEN?

Asthma
Malaria
Diaphoretic and diuretic
Fevers
Dermatoses

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

It can restrict water movement, cause flooding, and limit access to waterways
C. indica is regarded as an invasive species and noxious weed in other parts of the world

FUN FACT

Canna indica reproduces vegetatively from rhizomes

FURTHER READINGS

Bachheti, R. K., Rawat, G. S., Joshi, A., & Pandey, D. P. (2013). Phytochemical investigation of aerial parts of Canna indica collected from Uttarakhand India. International Journal of PharmTech Research.

Lim, T. K., & Lim, T. K. (2016). Canna indica. In Edible Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Plants. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-7276-1_3

Srivastava, J., & Vankar, P. S. (2010). Canna indica flower: New source of anthocyanins. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plaphy.2010.08.011

Srivastava, J., & Vankar, P. S. (2015). Carotenoids: As natural food colorant from Canna flowers. Pigment and Resin Technology. https://doi.org/10.1108/PRT-12-2013-0112