Chicory
Cichorium intybus
This blue-flowered perennial is common as a roadside weed, but has a long history of being used as an edible or fodder.
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China Aster
Callistephus chinensis
The pink, purple, or white flowers of this cheerful daisy are an excellent midsummer accent in any flower garden.
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Chinaberry
Melia azedarach
Chinaberry is a fast-growing deciduous tree often made of several smaller trunks, as it is able to readily sprout from the roots. The widely spreading crown, pale purple tube-like fragrant blooms, and attractive yellow drupes that persist all winter made it a popular ornamental shade tree in southern yards during the 1900s, but now it is noted for its invasive qualities, naturalizing along roadsides and fence rows. Many animal species - including cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, dogs, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, poultry and humans - have been poisoned by chinaberry, usually by ingesting the fallen fruit.
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Chives
Allium schoenoprasum
Chives are a small clump-forming onion relative. The stems are frequently used as a culinary herb, and the flowers are attractive to pollinators.
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Clary Sage
Salvia sclarea
Spires of pink and white bracts crown this large-leafed salvia. It has been used as an herb since the Middle Ages and is currently used as flavoring for wines, vermouth, and liqueurs.
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Climbing Old Blush Rose
Rosa chinensis 'Climbing Old Blush'
This elegant climbing rose sports large pink flowers from spring until nearly Christmas. It is lightly fragrant and easily trained to a graceful climbing habit against walls or over trellises.
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Cockscomb
Celosia argentea var. cristata
A sturdy long-blooming annual, this impressive plant is ideal for the back of the border. Its bright flowers come in many colors, including hot pink, peach, deep rose, yellow, and red.
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Coffee
Coffea arabica
Coffee forms a large shrub with glossy green leaves. It has small white flowers. This plant produces the coffee beans so many of us rely on every day, but in this part of the world is primarily used as an ornamental.
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Cotton
Gossypium hirsutum
This crop is grown for the fibers it produces, although ornamental varieties do exist.
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Cowpea
Vigna unguiculata
The name "cowpea" was probably coined for their use as a fodder crop for cows, and while grown for their edible bean, the leaves and pods can also be consumed. Black-eyed peas can be harvested as a snap bean, or dried, and are the main ingredient in Hoppin' John, a traditional Southern dish ritually served on New Year's Day.
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