In nature, there are more than 50 species of crossandra, but only a few of them are used in decorative floriculture. In temperate regions they are grown as houseplants , in warmer regions as garden annuals, and only in the tropics as a perennial crop. The most common decorative variety is the funnel-shaped crossandra, which appeared in the gardens and greenhouses of Europe as early as the 19th century. It is on its basis that numerous varieties and hybrids have been created, which are currently cultivated around the world. Much less often in gardens and indoors there are other flowering species of crossandra: prickly, nilotic, guinea, and some others. For the unusual ability to scatter ripened seeds over a considerable distance, all decorative varieties are popularly called firecracker flowers, under this name they are often found in flower catalogs.
Below is a more detailed description of the species and varieties of plants that can be found on store shelves or from amateur flower growers in our country.
Crossandra funnelform
Crossandra funnel-shaped (C. Infundibuliformis) , also called crossandra wavy (C. Undulifoia) or orange, is a shrub with a height of 35 to 90 cm, and in room conditions it grows no higher than 50-60 cm. It has long, up to 12 cm, narrow pointed leaves with a characteristic wavy edge and bright tubular flowers with five petals and a large green bract. In a natural species, flowers up to 2.5 cm in diameter, pinkish-orange with a yellow center, are collected in a dense tetrahedral spike-shaped inflorescence up to 10 cm long, formed in the axils of the leaves.
Crossandra Tropic and other yellow and pink varieties
The most famous and oldest variety of funnel-shaped crossandra is the Swedish hybrid Mona Wellhead, the date of creation of which, 1950, can be considered the beginning of the widespread use of the flower in culture. This variety of salmon-pink color forms a short, 30-45 cm, dense bush and is still very popular among flower growers.
A series of American hybrid crossanders, Tropic, compact, 25 cm tall and 20 cm wide, is grown not only in rooms, but also as flyers in a fairly warm climate. A series of American hybrid crossanders, Tropic, compact, 25 cm tall and 20 cm wide, is grown not only in rooms, but also as flyers in a fairly warm climate.
Of the new varieties, the tall (up to 60 cm) Orange Marmalade with bright orange inflorescences and the Nile Queen cultivar of a rare, brick-red hue are common. Separately, we note the hybrid cross-country Fortuna, the creation of which can be considered a real victory for breeders. This compact plant with salmon-orange inflorescences has an improved root system that is less sensitive to temperature and humidity changes, which makes it more cold-resistant (up to 10-12 ° C), unpretentious and durable compared to other varieties.
Crossandra prickly
Crossandra prickly (C. pungens) , an East African species 40-60 cm high, with lanceolate, tapering to the bottom, petiolate alternate leaves, the size of which differs depending on their location. The leaf plates at the base are up to 12 cm long and up to 2.5 cm wide, and those located in the upper part of the trunk are up to 6 cm long and up to 1.5 cm wide. This bright yellow crossandra with numerous short (5-10 cm) inflorescences has original decorative leaves, variegated, with silvery veins.
Crossandra red
Crossandra nile or nilotica (C. nilotica) , often also called red crossander, grows naturally in Kenya and Mozambique, is a shrub 50–60 cm high with dense dark green glossy elliptical leaves, and tubular five-lobed flowers of brick red or salmon-pink hue, collected in short apical inflorescences.
Very rarely among collectors of tropical indoor plants can be found undersized stem crossander (C. subacaulis) , naturally occurring in eastern Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Congo and Uganda. Its height is only 10-15 cm, the trunk is practically absent, basal densely spaced leaves have a narrow obovate shape and up to 15 cm long. Spike inflorescence up to 10 cm high is painted bright orange.
An even more exotic compact species is the Guinean crossander (C. guineensis) , a plant with low, up to 15-20 cm trunks covered with dense short pubescence, and short-leaved green leaves, on the lower surface of which veins clearly appear, often painted in wine red Colour. Narrow spike-shaped inflorescences 5-15 cm high consist of delicate pale lilac or white flowers with a diameter of about 2 cm. It grows wild in the tropical forests of West Africa.
The remaining species are rare tropical plants and are not grown in culture.
Rare blue crossander
On sale and from amateur flower growers, a houseplant is sometimes found called crossandra blue, or turquoise (crosandra turquoise), or Green Ice (green ice). Despite the name, this flower does not belong to the genus Crossander, although it looks similar to them, but is a representative of the genus Ecbolium, also from the acanthus family.
Ecboliums are natives of the tropical regions of East Africa, India and Madagascar, herbaceous perennials, shrubs and subshrubs up to 70 cm high with dense simple elliptical leaves and aquamarine flowers collected in an inflorescence-ear. Each flower with a large bract has a two-lipped corolla with an entire or two-pointed upper lip and a deeply three-lobed lower lip. The plant in room conditions is unpretentious, blooms all year round, but, unlike crossandra, one or two or three flowers usually bloom in the inflorescence, which live only a day, after which they fall off. When opened, they have a green-blue color, for which they received the nickname Green Shrimp Plant, which means “green shrimp” in English.