Celosia Cristata 'Super Crest Mixed'

Trial: Annual

Years Trialed: 2000

Good Qualities

Color (4); Good color mix (3); Unusual flower form (2); Some very nice flower forms - tighter selection would help; Vigorous; Easy, quite different from celosias that I am familiar with; Good stem length; This was one of the florists favorites, because of the color; Pest free, good filler.

Problems

This series was extremely varied (in flower form), half were unusable, did not resemble ‘Supercrest Burgundy’ at all; Very variable with different types in the mix, Cristata, spicata, intermediates; Heads smaller than normal - probably due to cool, wet season; Stem diameter is too large and not much color to flowers, lost most plants after 1st cut; Very thick stem and sometimes distorted crest, difficulty to use in bouquets, crest sometimes look like a freak; Difficult to manage in the field, too up and down; Size of heads were small; Pythium destroyed the plants; Flower heads shed; Twisted heads.

Comments

Similar to several other cultivars, since most types of Celosia are in the mix; Also, similar to other long stem crested celosia (Kurume, e.g.) and Red Velvet (Red Velvet forms a better crest - full at crest); A veritable "dog’s breakfast"; not appealing; I was surprised at the customer’s acceptance of the form of this celosia, I thought that people would not like it but they did; May produce better with soft pinch @ 12; The colors in this were the best quality, Yes, the stems were very large, but the pastel victorian-like colors made it a winner; Various stages to cut flower heads, keep soil moist, vase life - 7 days.


Trial Data

Celosia cristata 'Super Crest Mixed'
Yield (stems/plant) Stem Length (inches) Market Appreciation Rating¹ Repeat Again Rating¹ Ease of Cultivation Rating¹
Wholesale Retail Consumer
Average 2.8 25.6 3.0 3.0 2.9 2.9 4.8


¹1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.


Supplier

Fred C. Gloeckner 600 Mamaroneck Ave. 60178 Harrison, NY 10528-1613