When to plant cannas outside

I received several cannas last season, and have stored them in a rubbermaid container in the basement for the winter (I'm zone 5). I just checked on them, and several have sprouted with tall shoots and leaves! I don't have enough room to pot them all up and keep them indoors now. Can I put them outside in the garden before the last frost date, which is May 15th here?

Elija~I plant my cannas in late April or early May when the ground can be worked (when the yard is not squishy and there is no mud when I dig 3-4 inches down) I soak the stored canna tubers in a a bucket of water for 1-2 hours before planting and the growth just helps me to plant it in the right direction and at the right soil level.

Thanks garden6. I hope mine make it another month. When I took the cover off the container the other day, they literally popped out - the shoots being so tall! Perhaps I can move the container to the garage now where it will stay cooler now, but shouldn't go below freezing. Hopefully, that will keep them "on hold".

Elijah~You're welcome! I think they will be fine and you'll have gorgeous cannas this Summer! Keeping them on the cool side might help....

Keep them protected. You know our Chicagoland weather can turn nasty still in April.

Thank you all. I just can't wait for gardening to begin in earnest here!

Will cannas survive the winter in the ground here in Central Virginia? If so it would really help me out since my better half has four HUGE pots of them I have to drag in and out every fall/spring. We've had these for well over 10 years. Found the black plastic pots with them in it in a pile at the dumpster. They were growing strong and blooming when we "rescued" them, but that was in the summer. Someone apparently ripped them from their home and discarded them. They're in 30" clay pots now and have to be wheeled around!
If they won't survive in the ground I'll just leave them in the pots and start paying some kid in the neighborhood to do the dirty work! I'm only 40 but some 10 year old has a WHOLE lot more energy than I!

tyler, what zone are you in? i've seen cannas survive in missouri on the south side of a home, heavily mulched for winter, so i would think yours would be fine in the ground.

Tyler~ What zone are you? If you're not close to zone 7, you may have to hire that 10 year old...if you want your cannas to be reliable and return each Spring, Here on the prairie, I had one forgotten canna tuber to return, but it was under heavy mulch. You can always experiment with a few extra cannas ( under heavy mulch) and see if they will return for you. Or you can dig the tubers up after a killing frost and overwinter them in a garage or basement instead.

Track ~you and I posted nealy the same time...but then I am a slow hunt and peck type of gal! LOL! Nice to see we had similar thoughts! ;0)

yes, lol, similar thoughts are always a good thing!
even a "killing" frost won't really kill cannas. it's the ground freezing that does them in. we have killing frosts here every year and this year we had below freezing temps for many, many weeks. our ground never freezes but even if it would, it wouldn't last long enough to kill a canna.

Track~ must be nice...this past winter was so long even the pumpkins got tired of sledding and playing in the snow!

yes, it's nice...what more can i say? lol

I'm in Zone 7, I guess by looking at the DG map. I'm a Rose! And this past winter was the worst for quite some time. I know from doing construction work in the past that in Virginia the "frost line" is only about a foot to 18 inches.And I think that's a gross over-estimate. The ground NEVER freezes that hard or that deep here. I wonder of that's like the "100 year" or "500 year" deal like when you're talking about flood zones.
I suppose I could try a few and just pile on the leaves like we do with the Hydrangea. They come back every year with no problems.

Definitely worth a try and you get to save on hiring the 10 year old! Enjoy your cannas! ;0)