56 



CENTAUREA. 



be trained against a south wall, and 

 protected from severe frosts by a 

 thatclied coping. C. dentatiis is a 

 very ornamental balf-bardy shrub. 

 Three new species were introduced 

 in 1854, one of which, 0. florihunda 

 from California, is very splendid. 

 They should all be grown in a com- 

 post consisting of three-fourths of 

 heath-mould, or a mixture of sand 

 and peat, with one of loam, and the 

 soil should be well drained. The 

 best way to effect this, as the plants 

 are generally grown in the open air, 

 is to dig a pit for each, about two 

 feet deep, and a foot and a half or 

 two feet in diameter, and to fill 

 about a third of it vvith broken brick- 

 bats, pieces of freestone, and pebbles. 

 The compost should be put on this, 

 and raised a few inches above the 

 level of the general surface of the 

 garden, to allow for sinking. This 

 plan will not only insure drainage, 

 and thus prevent the roots from 

 being injured by v/et, but the broken 

 bricks and pieces of stone will pro- 

 vide a reservoir of moisture which 

 will equally serve to prevent the roots 

 from ever becoming too dry. 



Cedar of Goa. — Cupressus lu- 

 sitdnica Tou. ; C. glauca Lam. — A 

 very ornamental half-hardy tree, 

 which in a sheltered situation has a 

 beautiful effect on a lawn, from its 

 drooping branches and glaucous 

 foliage. It requires a light soil, and 

 to be occasionally watered, as its 

 roots are very apt to wither, if suf- 

 fered to become too diy. 



CELA^'DINE. — There are two 

 plants bearing this name : the com- 

 mon (see Chelido'nium), and the 

 lesser (see Fica'ria). 



Cela'strus L. — Cela.strhiece. — 

 The Staff-tree. —Half-hardy shrubs, 

 mostly natives of the Cape, ^vith 

 white flowers. For culture, see 

 Ceano'thcs. 



Celo^sia. — Amaranthctcece. — 



Tender annuals, with showy flowers. 

 The common Ccck's-comb, C. cris- 

 tata, may be grown to a very large 

 size by raising the plants on a hotbed 

 and frequently shifting them into 

 larger and larger pots, as directed for 

 the Balsam (seeBALSAMi'NA). Another 

 mode is to put the plants when quite 

 small into pots about four inches 

 across and three inches deep, into a 

 comiiost of fresh horse-dung, turf in 



I lumps of at least an inch in diameter, 

 and decayed leaves. As soon as the 

 roots reach the sides of the pot, the 

 plants are to be removed to pots a 

 foot in diameter and nine inches deep, 

 filled with the same compost. Plants 

 treated according to this method, 

 which was that of the late Mr. 

 Knight, are a long time before they 

 show any disposition to flower ; but 

 when they do, if they are placed 

 near the glass, and kept in the same 

 heat as Pine-apples, they grow to an 

 enormous size. There is a drawing 

 of a Cock's-comb treated in this 



I manner and grown by Mr. Knight, 

 at Downton Castle, in the Libi-ary 

 of the London Horticultural Society, 

 in Regent-street. 



Ce'lsia. — Solanacece, or Ve7'bas- 

 cinece. Half-hardy annuals and bi- 

 ennials, with showy yellow flowers, 

 and nearly allied to the genus Ver- 

 bascum. They are generally raised 

 on a hotbed, and the biennials are 

 kept in the greenhouse during win- 

 ter, as they are killed by a slight 

 frost. C. linearis and C. urticce- 

 fdlia, which have scarlet flowei'S, are 

 now included in the genus Alonsoa. 

 — See Alonso^a. 



Centaure^a. — Comj)6sitce. — The 

 common perennial species are known 

 by the English name of Knapweed ; 

 and the only quite hardy annual one, 

 C. Cyanus, by the name of Corn 

 Bluebottle : the most beautiful spe- 

 cies, C. Crocodylium L., is a half- 

 hardy annual, which should be raised 



