Celosia
(from kelos, burnt; in reference to the burnt-like appearance of the flowers of some species). Cockscomb. ORD. Amarantaceae. Erect, glabrous or pilose herbs. Flowers white or coloured, shining, hermaphrodite, bracteate and bracteolate, crowded in spikes or panicles; perianth five-parted; the segments equal, spreading, glabrous. Leaves alternate, petioled. We give cultural directions of C.cristata (Cockscomb), and under the same treatment the other varieties will thrive admirably, except that they must never be kept dry, and must be encouraged by shifting as often as necessary. It is useless to attempt growing this with any success without heat. A good specimen plant should be not more than 9in. high, and quite as wide over the top of the flower-head, which should also be as thick as possible, and of a dense colour. Seeds must be sown in March or April, in pans of well-drained, rich, sandy soil. After sowing, the pans should be placed in a hotbed, with a night temperature of 65deg., rising to about 70deg. with sun heat, and a moist, but not stagnant, atmosphere should be maintained. As soon as the seeds germinate, they should have plenty of light, and a little air; and care must be taken that the soil does not become dry. The pans must be kept near the glass. When the plants are large enough to handle, they should be potted off into small 60-sized pots, the cotyledons or seed leaves being kept close to the soil. The pots must be placed in a position close to the glass, in a frame where the same conditions are maintained as above mentioned, allowing a rise of 5deg. or 6deg. in the daytime. They should be grown as quickly as possible, and be kept rather dry, to induce flowering. As soon as the heads show, so that the best-formed ones can be selected, they should be shifted into 5in. pots, giving a good soaking before repotting. They must again be placed close to the glass, and the pots plunged to their rims in ashes or cocoa-nut fibre refuse, on a hotbed. Water must be sparingly administered, and more air admitted. If large heads are required, another shift may be given before they are too large, and 7in. pots should be used for this final potting. When these are filled with roots, liquid manure may be given about twice weekly. Moderately firm potting is necessary. The best soil to grow Celosias in is half-rich sandy loam, and half-rotten cow and stable manure mixed, with a good dash of silver sand. There are several excellent sorts, among which may be named Tom Thumb and Sutton's Prize Dwarf.
The other species differ from C. cristata in having large plumes of inflorescence, which form pyramidal masses of colour. Many sorts have a graceful pendent habit, which renders them objects of great beauty, when well grown. This is easily accomplished if treated in the same way as recommended for the Cockscombs. Frequent syring-ings are needed to keep down thrips and red spider.
C. argentea (silvery).* fl. white; inflorescence dense, spicate. l. narrow, very shortly stalked or sessile. Tropical Asia.
C. a. linearis (linear) only differs from the typical C. argentea in its narrower linear leaves. India, &c.
C. cernua (drooping). A synonym of C. cristata comosa. C. cristata (crested).* Common Cockscomb. fl. dark red; spike oblong, compressed; common peduncle striated. l. ovate, acuminate; stipules falcate. Asia, 1570.
C. c. coccinea (scarlet) differs from the common Cockscomb in the crowded pyramidal arrangement of the inflorescence, narrower leaves, and short stamens. It will grow well in a lower tempera-ture than required for the type. (B. R. 1834.) C. c. comosa (hairy). fl. scarlet or purplish; spikes arranged in a pyramidal drooping panicle. l. stalked, ovate. h. 1ft. to 2ft. India, &c., 1810. SYN. C. cernua. (A. B. R. 10, 635.) C. c. variegata (variegated) differs from C. cristata (the wild type, from which the Garden Cockscomb has been developed) only in its variegated leaves. C. Huttonii (Hutton's).* fl. red, in ovate spikes. l. crimson or claret-coloured. h. 1ft. to 2ft. Java, 1871. A very fine-foliaged stove plant, of bushy, pyramidal habit.
C. pyramidalis (pyramidal).* fl., colours various; and instead of forming a crested mass, as in C. cristata, they assume a more normal form in elegant plants. h. 1 1/2 ft. India, 1820. There are a great number of varieties of this species, all of which are very ornamental, and, in a small state, are suitable for table decoration.