The warm regions of Africa, America and Asia, where it is a perennial plant, are considered the birthplace of celosia. In our climate, such a beautiful flower as celosia, the cultivation of which is quite simple, is considered an annual.
From the Victorian language, "celosia" is translated as "humor, stupidity." Indeed, if you look at the faces of people looking at this flower, you will certainly see a smile. And in Greek, "celosia" means "fire", precisely speaking of the appearance of flowers, the color of which is similar to the tongues of flame.
Her flowers deserve much attention. Be sure to touch them, they are surprisingly soft. The cockscomb is similar to velvet with spikes on its sides. The flowers are practically indestructible, remaining in the same shape and texture even during heavy rains.
The plant belongs to the Amaranth family. There are about 60 types of celosia. According to the shape of the flower, it can be of three types - in the form of feathers, comb and spikes. The most common color of the flower is red, yellow, cream, orange, pink and purple. It blooms from June until the first frosts. By the way, celosia, the cultivation of which is quite possible in our region, is of dwarf varieties (about 20 cm) and giants (from 60 cm and even 100 cm).
Celosia is one of the most attractive flowers in the garden. It blooms only in sunny places, the soil must be fertile, rich in minerals. The flower requires regular watering during the growing season, preferably with a weak solution of fertilizer for flowering plants. Very sensitive to dry air.
It should be noted that celosion is comb, the cultivation of which is similar for other species of this plant, belongs to the Plumosa group, which consists of hundreds of tiny flowers in the form of fluffy and patterned ridges.
How is celosia bred? Growing this flower will not create additional difficulties. It is easy to grow from seeds. All that is needed is universal soil. The temperature required for the emergence of seedlings varies in the region of 18-20 0C. In a three-week period, seedlings dive into containers and temper before planting. Celosia blooms 90 days after sowing. Like beans, Iām not very happy if the temperature of the soil drops below 16 0C.
Celosia does not like when its root system is disturbed, therefore, sowing seeds should be carried out in one hole 3-4 times in slightly moistened soil, which must be covered with plastic wrap and put in a warm place for seed germination - from 10 to 15 days. The film needs to be lifted every day so that the plant can breathe. Watering is necessary to keep the soil slightly moist and only at room temperature.
Once the seeds have sprouted, the plant needs to be transferred to the light. When two true leaves appear, pinch celosia so that it grows. The hardening of the plant consists in gradually taking it out into the open air, leaving it for several hours, starting at four and increasing by two hours every day. On the eighth day, celosia can stay on the street all night. Seeds can also be sown directly into the ground after the danger of frost has passed.
By the way, celosia, the cultivation of which is possible in the container, produces only one central flower and several smaller flowers on the side shoots.
The problems you may encounter when growing celosia are ticks, leaf and stem spotting, and rot. All this is very easy to prevent by eliminating the cause - celosia loves moist soil and cool weather.
Such a plentiful and long-flowering frost-resistant plant, like celosia, is no less popular than coreopsis, the cultivation of which is very similar to the "cockscombs".
Public gardens, parks, roads, shopping centers and local boulevards are full of celosia, as it is characterized by low maintenance and high flowering.