Celosia

Herbs or subshrubs, annual or perennial. Stems erect or clambering-straggling. Leaves alternate, petiolate; blade mostly lanceolate, ovate, or deltate. Inflorescences terminal and often axillary spikes or panicles, often fasciated in cultivated forms, many-flowered. Flowers bisexual; tepals 3–5, distinct, membranous or scarious, usually glabrous; filaments connate basally into cups; anthers 4-locular; pseudostaminodes absent; ovules 3–many; style persistent, 0.2–4 mm; stigmas 2–3, capitate or subulate. Utricles ovoid, membranaceous, dehiscence centrally circumscissile. Seeds (2–)3–many, black, flattened. x = 9.

Distribution

Primarily tropical, subtropical Americas, Asia, and Africa.

Discussion

Species ca. 65 (5 in the flora).

Selected References

Grant, W. F. 1961. Speciation and basic chromosome number in the genus Celosia. Canad. J. Bot. 39: 45–50.

Grant, W. F. 1962. Speciation and nomenclature in the genus Celosia. Canad. J. Bot. 40: 1355–1363.

Lower Taxa

Celosia argentea, Celosia cristata, Celosia nitida, Celosia palmeri, Celosia trigyna

Key

1	Styles 3-4 mm; inflorescences dense, cylindric, 13-20 mm diam. spikes, or fasciated, crested or plumose	> 2
1	Styles 0.2-1 mm; inflorescences lax spikes or panicles, units less than 10 mm diam	> 3
2	Inflorescences cylindric or ovoid spikes; tepals silvery white or pinkish	Celosia argentea
2	Inflorescences fasciated, crested, or plumose; tepals pink, red, yellow, purple, or white	Celosia cristata
3	Plants annual herbs; tepals silvery, whitish, or tannish, 1-veined, 2-3 mm	Celosia trigyna
3	Plants perennial herbs, subshrubs, or shrubs; tepals green, greenish white, pinkish green, or white with reddish base, drying tan, striate, 3.5-6(-7) mm	> 4
4	Leaf blades deltate to triangular-lanceolate, not lobed; stigmas 3.	Celosia nitida
4	Leaf blades moderately hastate, lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate; stigmas 2.	Celosia palmeri