DECEMBER. 3538 
CELOSIA AUREA AND COCCINEA. 
(PLATE Iii} 
THESE charming annuals being by no means so generally 
known as they ought to be, deserve to be strongly recommended 
as most useful plants for conservatory decoration in autumn 
and winter. We know of nothing to equal them, either for 
the brilliancy of their finely-tasselated spikes of flowers, which 
vary from a rich golden yellow to the crimson of the common 
Cockscomb, or for the length of time they last in bloom; and 
anyone who can manage Cockscombs successfully cannot fail 
in producing fine specimens of these charming plants. 
A few words on their culture may, however, be acceptable 
to some of our readers who have not had the opportunity of 
growing them. | 
In February or the beginning of March sow the seeds in 
light soil, and place them in a Cucumber pit or house where 
a tolerably brisk temperature is kept up. As the seeds will 
sometimes lay a considerable time before germinating, it is 
desirable that the pans or pots the seed has been sown in 
should be kept for several weeks after the first lot of plants 
has come up, as others will follow in succession. Pot them 
off into small pots as soon as they get strong enough to handle. 
Shift them successively into larger pots as the roots come in 
contact with the pots they are already in, bearing in mind 
that Celosias, like many other annual plants, require to be 
kept growing to their full size without the least check, for if 
they once become pot-bound it is a difficult matter to get 
them into large and fine specimens afterwards. ‘The soil most 
suitable for them is two parts turfy loam to one of deer- 
droppings or well-rotted manure, with a good sprinkling of 
sand, keeping them in a nice growing temperature of from 60° 
to 70°; this will induce them to grow luxuriantly, and will 
also prevent the attack of red-spider, which appears to be the 
only pest they are subject to. Eleven-inch pots will be found 
large enough to flower them in, as plants can be grown in that 
size pot from 3 to 4 feet high, and as much in diameter, fur- 
nishing numerous spikes in the case of the yellow variety of rich 
feathery golden flowers, and crimson tufts on the other; these, 
when mixed with Salvia splendens, Lilium lancifolium album, 
Heterocentrum roseum, and a few other autumn-flowering 
plants, make a splendid display for a late show of bloom and 
compel us to forget the season, being as gay as anything that 
can be produced in spring or summer. 
We look forward to the general cultivation of these Celosias 
in every establishment where plants for autumn decoration 
VOL. XV., NO, CLYI. AA 
