Celosia Spicata Fireweed and Flamingo Purple Summer Flower Plant
FIREWEED
This wild plant’s common name “fireweed” is highly appropriate since its seeds germinate only in places where a fire has raged. The photograph was taken in one such place in Indonesia. Its leaves are narrower than those of the more familiar Celosia argentea, commonly known as “cockscomb” in The Netherlands. According to some, they both belong to the same species: argentea. Seed merchants, however, have recently been marketing cultivars of Celosia spicata, and these are far more restrained than the brightly colored cockscombs.
Celosia spicata ‘Flamingo Purple’ closely resembles the flower in the illustration. The slender plant grows about 39 in tall, but does not flower until five months after it was sown. There are also cultivars which flower after as little as three months, such as Celosia spicata ‘Flamingo Feather’ and Celosia spicata ‘Xantippe.’ Seeds of those two are available from specialized seed merchants. The plumed flower heads are very suitable for drying.
Sow indoors in February-March and do not cover the seeds, as they need light for germination. The seeds germinate best at temperatures above 68 °F. The seedlings like moisture and warmth. They should not be put out-of-doors until the end of May, after they have been hardened off; they may begin to flower from June onwards.
