Cockscomb

Spleen amaranth (Amaranthus dubius). From Economically Important Foreign Weeds, USDA, 1976.

Hughes worked for the Smithsonian Institution from 1970 to 1990. She drove a Ford Thunderbird to the National Museum of Natural History every day, and in her free time she sketched the flowers in the museum lobby. In 1982, she became the first deaf artist to have her own gallery show in the museum. Although she was a volunteer, the museum threw her a retirement party when she left at 95 years old.

Growing at Gallaudet
Name: Cockscomb (Celosia argentea)
Family: Amaranthaceae (Amaranths, spinach)
Native region: South Asia
Recorded: 1500s
Growing tips: Like other tropical plants, it requires full sun, minimal shade. Size varies from 4 inches to 2 feet; use stakes to hold taller versions upright, as it is top-heavy.