Cosmos sulphureus 'Polidor' (Klondike Cosmos)

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Klondike Cosmos, Orange Cosmos, Sulphur Cosmos

Description

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Family Compositae

The largest family of flowering plants , the Compositae (Asteraceae), comprising about 1,100 genera and more than 20,000 species and characterized by many small flowers arranged in a head looking like a single flower and subtended by an involucre of bracts. A head may consist of both ray flowers and disk flowers, as in the sunflower, of disk flowers only, as in the burdock, or of ray flowers only, as in the dandelion.

Tribe Heliantheae

The Heliantheae are a tribe of closely related genera of the sunflower family that can be readily recognized due to the association of a receptacular bract or chaff scale with each disk floret in the head . The heads usually include bisexual , actinomorphic disk florets with tubular corollas that have 4 or 5 distal lobes and also peripheral zygomorphic female or sometimes sterile florets with strap-shaped corollas that have 3 or fewer distal teeth. However, the ray flowers are sometimes absent and the heads are then discoid , containing only bisexual florets with tubular corollas. The pappus is absent or more commonly ranges from scales to stiff bristles . -- Gerald Carr.

Genus Cosmos

Annuals [perennials or subshrubs ], 30-250 cm. Stems usually 1, erect or ascending , branched distally or ± throughout. Leaves mostly cauline; opposite; petiolate or sessile; blades usually 1-3-pinnately lobed [undivided], ultimate margins usually entire, faces usually glabrous , sometimes glabrate , hispid , puberulent , or scabridulous . Heads radiate , borne singly or in corymbiform arrays. Calyculi of [5-]8 basally connate , ± linear to subulate , herbaceous (striate ) bractlets . Involucres hemispheric or subhemispheric [cylindric ], 3-15 mm diam. Phyllaries persistent , [5-]8 in ± 2 series, distinct , lanceolate, lance-oblong, lance-ovate, or oblong , ± equal, membranous or herbaceous, margins ± scarious . Receptacles flat, paleate; paleae falling, linear, flat or slightly concave-convex, scarious (entire). Ray florets [0, 5] 8 (more in "double" cultivars), neuter ; corollas white to pink or purple, or yellow to red-orange. Disc florets 10-20[-80+], bisexual , fertile ; corollas yellow [orange] (at least distally), tubes shorter than funnelform throats , lobes 5, ± deltate (staminal filaments hairy near anthers ; style branches linear, flattened, thicker distally, hirtellous, appendages relatively slender). Cypselae (dark brown or black) relatively slender, quadrangular-cylindric or -fusiform [outer somewhat obcompressed ], sometimes slightly arcuate , attenuate-beaked, not winged [winged], faces glabrous or hispid to scabridulous or ± setose , sometimes papillate , usually with 1 groove ; pappi persistent [falling], of 2-4[-8] retrorsely [antrorsely] barbed awns , sometimes 0. x = 12.

Species ca. 26: tropical and subtropical America, especially Mexico, widely introduced elsewhere.[1]

Physical Description

Flowers: Bloom Period: June, July, August. • Flower Color: orange, red, yellow

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 24-36" tall.

Biology

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Growth

Culture: Space 9-12" apart.

Soil: Minimum pH: 7.9 • Maximum pH: 8.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Taxonomy

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Domain: Eukaryota () - Whittaker & Margulis,1978 - eukaryotes
- Kingdom: Plantae () - Haeckel, 1866 - Plants
  - Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae () - Cavalier-Smith, 1981
    - Phylum: Tracheophyta () - Sinnott, 1935 ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - Vascular Plants
      - Subphylum: Euphyllophytina ()
        Class: Magnoliopsida () - Brongniart, 1843 - Dicotyledons
        Subclass: Asteridae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Superorder: Campanulanae () - Takhtajan Ex Reveal, 1992
        Order: Asterales () - Lindley, 1833
        Family: Compositae () - Giseke, 1792, nom. cons., nom. alt.
        Subfamily: Asteroideae ()
        Tribe: Heliantheae ()
        Subtribe: Coreopsidinae ()
        Genus: Cosmos () - Cavanilles, 1791 - [Greek kosmos, harmoniously ordered universe, or kosmo, ornament]
        Specific epithet: sulphureus - Cav.
        Cultivar: Polidor
        Botanical name: - Cosmos sulphureus 'Polidor' Cav.

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Cosmos

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 48 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

More Info

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Notes

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Contributors

Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.

Identifiers

Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 967188

Footnotes

Robert W. Kiger "Cosmos". in Flora of North America Vol. 21 Page 184, 203. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

Cosmos sulphureus 'Polidor'

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Description

Family Compositae

Tribe Heliantheae

Genus Cosmos

Physical Description

Size/Age/Growth

Biology

Growth

Taxonomy

Similar Species

Members of the genus Cosmos

More Info

Further Reading

Notes

Contributors

Identifiers

Footnotes