A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Celosia

Hi all here is another plant profile that I could use any hints or tips with. This year mine grew long but they fell over. I've never seen them staked and they were grown in compost so any ideas what I may have done wrong. Or do you have any hints or tips about propagating them.

Scientific Name of plant: Celosia
Common Name of plant: Cockscomb for at least one variety
Indoor/Outdoor plant: Outdoor
Days to Germination: 10 to 14 days
USDA growing zone: 4 to 10
Conditions for sprouting: 75 degrees full sun and moist soil Direct sow if you disturb the roots they will stop growing.
Mature plant Care:
Lighting requirements: Full Sun
Fertilizer requirements: Average
Watering requirements: Average
Soil requirements: Rich pH: 6.5 to 7.0
Dead Heading: no
Pinching flower spikes: no
plant spacing: 6 inches
Pruning times and amounts: N/A
Conditions for Blooming: Midsummer through the fall
plant Life Cycle: Annual
Propogation: seed
Height of plant: 3 feet
Color of Leaves: Green
Color of flowers: Yellow Orange Red and shades of purple

Makes a great flower for dried arrangements.

I have some pink too. I've had one or 2 stalks fall over but usually they don't. Around here they just reseed and show up everywhere. I've never seen them staked either. That would be hard to do with their growing pattern. How many stalks did you have fall over?

Just a couple it was probably just because I planted them to close together. I never expected there stems to get that thick at the bottom of the plant. They got really big.

Seems like you have just about everything Tammy! The roots point makes a good point...you know when you see those cockscomb transplants and people complain they never grow if you transplant them into the ground...now we know why. They resent transplanting because they don't like having their roots distrubed

That's about it. If you can do the plant and plop method you can probably by pass that trouble all together. Or maybe use the paper pots that were described in frugal gardening. I'm considering that one next year depending on where I'm located.