Cockscomb, introduced to Europe from Asia late in the sixteenth century, is a tender annual species whose unusual flower-head is enlarged and flattened like a fan or cockscomb. Thomas Jefferson recorded sowing cockscomb at Shadwell, his boyhood home, in 1767. Thomas Bridgeman's Florist's Guide, published in New York in 1838, recommended "crimson and yellow" Cockscombs: Peter Henderson reported in 1890 that they were "almost universally grown."

Sow the seeds indoors several weeks before the last spring frost or outdoors in early summer, barely covering. Cockscomb thrives in full sun, and although it is tolerant of poor conditions, regular watering and fertilizing produces larger plants (up to three feet high) and flower-heads.

Approximately 70-75 seeds per pack.

Line Drawing from Henderson's Handbook of Plants by Peter Henderson (1890)