Celosia (cockscomb flower) profile

Cockscomb flower, scientific name Celosia, is an annual herb native to Africa, tropical America and India. Cockscomb flower likes full sunshine, hot and humid, not frost resistant. Cockscomb flower is intolerant of barren, like loose fertile and well drained soil. It is cultivated all over the world.

Cockscomb Flower Picture

Characteristics of Cockscomb Flower

Cockscomb flower is an annual herb, plant height 40-100 cm, erect stout stems, alternate leaves, long ovate or ovate-lanceolate, fleshy spikes terminal, fan-shaped, kidney shaped, oblate, etc., natural flowering season from summer to autumn to frostfall. cockscomb flower commonly used seed reproduction, growing season like high temperature, full light and dry air environment, drought resistance is not cold resistance, strong reproduction ability. Harvest the flowers in autumn when they bloom and dry them in the sun. Leaves of Cockscomb flower are ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, entirely. Inflorescences are terminal and axillary, flat cockscomb - shaped. The flowers of the Cockscomb flower are white, light yellow, golden yellow, light red, red, purple, brown red, orange red and other colors.Utricle ovate, seed black lustrous.

Cockscomb flower stems red or bluish white;Leaves alternate stems, leaves deep red, emerald green, yellow green, red green and other colors; The flowers are clustered at the top and resemble the crest of a cock, flat and thick and soft, and grow on the plant in the shape of an inverted broom. The color is also rich and colorful, purple, orange yellow, white, red and yellow phase miscellaneous color. Seeds of Cockscomb flower are small, purplish black, hidden in the corolla villi. Cockscomb flower plants are tall, medium and short. The short one is only 30 cm tall, the tall one is up to 2 m tall, and the Cockscomb flower is 2.4 m tall in Dalian in 2009.

Cockscomb flowers are spikes, often flat and thick, in the shape of a cockscomb. The length is 8 ~ 25cm, the width is 5 ~ 20cm, the maximum diameter is 40cm. Upper margin is broad, creases, densely linear scales, lower end tapering, often remaining flat stem. The surface is red, purplish red or yellowish white;Most florets are densely grown below middle, and the bracts and perianth segments of each flower are membranous. Fruit cover crack, seed flat round kidney - shaped, black, shiny. The body is light and pliable.No odor, light taste.

Cockscomb flowers have a longer flowering period and can bloom from July to December.

Cockscomb Flower Growth Conditions

Cockscomb flower likes warm and dry climate, afraid of drought, like sunshine, not waterlogging resistance, but the soil requirements are not strict, general soil garden can be planted, is the current development of courtyard economy in a new way, people of vision might as well try. Cockscomb flower doesn't have to be very good, just planted in the soil.

How to Grow and Care for Cockscomb Flower

Planting Cockscomb Flower

Plant two to four shoots in the spring. When planting Cockscomb flower, it should be slightly deep planting, leaving only cotyledon on the soil, and make pot soil slightly dry, induce inflorescence to appear at an early date. After inflorescence, change to a 16 cm pot. Before turning over the pot, water should be poured. If you want to get large flower heads, you can change the 23cm pot again.  At the same time, pay attention to the matching pot. Small potted low - growing species, large potted high - growing species such as phoenix tail and cock crown. For low and much branched varieties, the heart should be picked after colonization to promote branching. Erect, branching varieties do not have to pick the heart.

Cockscomb Flower Light & Temperature Care

Cockscomb flower likes warm, don't cold. Get plenty of light during the growing season, at least four hours a day. The suitable growth temperature is 18-28 ℃. When the temperature is low, the growth is slow, and the planting forest dies after winter.

Cockscomb Flower Fertilizing & Watering

The basin soil for Cockscomb flower should be fertile, with fertile loam and cooked manure mixed in half. During the growth period must be properly watered, but the basin soil should not be too wet, moist and dry is appropriate. Prevent barren or late flowering. Growth later add phosphate fertilizer, and see more sunshine, can promote the growth of robust and large inflorescence. In the mature stage of the Cockscomb flower seed should be watered less fertilizer water, to facilitate the seed mature, and make a longer time to maintain the color of colorful.

Cockscomb Flower Propagation

Cockscomb flowers are sown and propagated in spring when the temperature is between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius. Before sowing, some cake fertilizer or barnyard manure and compost can be applied in the seedbed. Sowing should be done with some fine soil in the seeds. Because cockscomb flower seeds are small, cover them with 2-3 mm of soil, not deep. Before sowing, the soil in the seedbed should be kept moist. After sowing, a fine eye watering can be used to spray a little water, and then shade the seedbed. Do not water it for two weeks. Generally 7-10 days can emerge seedlings, seedlings to grow 3-4 pieces of true leaves can be thinned once, pull out some weak seedlings, too dense seedlings, seedlings to 5-6 cm high when the root soil should be transplanted and transplanted.

Disease Control of Cockscomb Flower

Cockscomb Flower Leaf spot

The disease mostly occurs on the leaves of the lower part of the Cockscomb flower. The pathogen is a fungus of the subphylum falcifolia. The mycelia and spores overwinter in the plant residues and soil, and are spread by means of wind and rain, irrigation, and splashing water.

1. At the beginning of the disease spot is a small brown spot, after the expansion of the disease spot is round to oval, dark brown to purplish brown edge, the inside is grayish brown to gray white.

2. In humid weather conditions, pink mildewy matter, i.e. conidia of pathogenic bacteria, appears on the plaque.

3. In the late stage of disease leaf wilting or spots dry warm I fall off, resulting in perforation.

Prevention and control technology

1. Remove diseased leaves of Cockscomb flower in time.

2. At the early stage of the disease (disease spots appear on the lower leaves of the Cockscomb flower), use 0.2 ~ 0.5% potassium permanganate solution; Or 50% methyl tobujin wettable powder 1000 times liquid; Or 50% denonium wettable powder 500 times liquid spray prevention.

3. Avoid continuous cropping in affected areas. It is better to rotate with other plants or crops at intervals of 2-3 years.
Read More: How to grow and care for Cockscomb flower.

Species of Cockscomb Flower

Cockscomb flower species can be divided into broomstick comb, face comb, mandarin duck comb, tasseled comb and so on, depending on the morphology of inflorescence.

Harvest the autumn flowers when they are in full bloom and dry them in the sun.

1. Globular: a species with a particularly compact and globular corolla, known as the "long-standing Cockscomb flower", is common in flower beds and cut flowers.

2. The feathery flower: the flower shape is feathery, the corolla is flame like, the color is bright, whether the flower bed cultivation or does the cut flower, is very pleasing.

3. Lance type: the corolla resembles the conical shape of fir tree, the spikelet is short and tight, there are particularly suitable for cutting flowers of the high species and suitable for flower beds of the vigorous species.

Distribution of Cockscomb Flower

Cockscomb flowers are native to Africa, tropical America, and India.

Cockscomb flowers in China are mainly distributed in anhui, Beijing, fujian, gansu, guangdong, guangxi, guizhou, hainan, hebei, heilongjiang, henan, Hong Kong, hubei, hunan, jiangsu, jiangxi, jilin, liaoning, Inner Mongolia, ningxia, qinghai, shaanxi, shandong, shanxi, sichuan, Taiwan, xinjiang, Tibet, yunnan, zhejiang.

Cockscomb flowers are widely cultivated throughout the world.

Main value of Cockscomb flower

Cockscomb flower is named for its red, flat inflorescences that resemble a bird's comb, and is known as the "bird of flowers". High type varieties for flower borders, flower beds, or a good cut flower material, cut the vase can keep more than 10 days. Cockscomb flower can also be made of dried flowers, not withered for a long time.

Cockscomb flower has good resistance to sulfur dioxide and hydrogen chloride, and can play a multiple role in greening, beautifying and purifying the environment. Cockscomb flower is suitable for plant and mine greening, and can be regarded as a public ornamental flower against pollution of the environment. High stem species can be used for flower border, embellish the outer edge of trees, as cut flowers, dried flowers, etc. Cockscomb flower (C. Kristasta var, Pyramidalis), native to India, with erect, branched stems and spikes.It is also widely used.

There are many species of Cockscomb flower, with three plant types: tall, medium and short. The shape has the comb shape, the torch shape, the pompous ball shape, the feather shape, the fan shape and so on; The color has bright red, orange yellow, dark red, purple, white, red and yellow color and so on; The leaf color is deep red, emerald green, yellow green, red green and so on extremely good-looking, become the common flower bed in summer and autumn.

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