What are the other names for cockscomb? A full breakdown of its common aliases
The aliases of cockscomb
Cockscomb, a herbaceous plant, has the following Chinese aliases: cockscomb flower, laolaihong, reed-flower cockscomb, pen cockscomb, small-head cockscomb, phoenix-tail cockscomb, large rooster flower, cockscomb root, red cockscomb.
The distribution of cockscomb
Cockscomb is native to Africa, tropical America and India, and is widely cultivated around the world. It is an annual herbaceous plant.
In China it is mainly distributed in Anhui, Beijing, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hong Kong, China, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, China, Xinjiang, Tibet, Yunnan, Zhejiang.
The growth habits of cockscomb
Cockscomb prefers a warm, dry climate; it fears drought, loves sunlight, and does not tolerate waterlogging. It is not strict about soil requirements, and is currently a new way to develop courtyard economies.
The morphological characteristics of cockscomb
Cockscomb is an upright herbaceous plant, about 30-80 cm tall. The whole plant is hairless and stout.
The upper part of the plant is flattened, green or tinged with red, with raised ribs. The leaves are simple and alternate, with stalks. The leaf blades are 5-13 cm long and 2-6 cm wide, with tips tapering to a point or long-pointed, the base gradually narrowing into the stalk, and entire margins.
Below the middle there are many flowers. The bracts, bracteoles and tepals are dry and membranous, and persistent. The utricle is egg-shaped, about 3 mm long, and when ripe the lid splits open, enclosed within the persistent perianth. The seeds are kidney-shaped, black, and somewhat glossy.
The leaves of cockscomb are egg-shaped, egg-shaped-lanceolate or lanceolate, 2-6 cm wide; the flowers are numerous and very densely packed, forming flat, fleshy cockscomb-like, curled-comb-like or feathery spike inflorescences. Below one large inflorescence there are several smaller branches, conical-oblong, with a feathery surface.
The tepals are red, purple, yellow, orange, or red and yellow alternating. The flowering and fruiting period of cockscomb is July-September.