128 



THI^ CACTAC^AE. 



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3. Heliocereus speciosus (Cavanillcs) Britton and Rose, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 12: 434. 1909. 



1817. 



Cactus speciosus Cavanilles, Anal. Cienc. Nat. Madrid 6: 339. 1803. 

 ^Cactus speciostsstmus Desfontaincs, Mem. Mus. Hist. Nat. Paris 3: 193. 



Cereiis hifrons Haworth, Suppl. PI. Succ. 76. 181 9. 



Cereus speciosissimus De Candolle, Prodr. 3: 468. 1828. 

 ^Cercus speciosus Schumann in Engler and Prantl, Pflanzenfam. 3®a: 179. 1894. 



Not Sweet, 1826 



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parts 



vStems clambering or hanging, strongly 3 to 5 -ribbed, old parts bright green, young 

 reddish; ribs strongly undulate; areoles distant, often 3 cm. apart, usually large, with felt and 

 acicular spines; spines numerous, yellow or brownish in age, i to 1.5 cm. long; flowers scarlet, 15 

 to 17 cm. long, lasting for several days; perianth-segments oblong, 10 to 12 cm. long, with rounded, 

 often apiculate tips; filaments weak, red; style little longer than the stamens; stigma-lobes white; 

 ovary bearing scattered minute scales; fruit ovoid, 4 to 5 cm. long. 



I ■ 



Type locality: Described from a garden plant. 

 Distribution: Central Mexico and reported from Central America, 

 Dr. Rose found this species very common on the pedregal near the City of Mexico. It 

 there forms large masses, usually growing in the pot holes and at the mouths of dark caves, 

 clambering over the rocks and occasionally giving off roots. Mr. Pringle found it at high 

 elevations on the mountain ranges south of the City of Mexico. 



Cereus speciosissimus grandiflorus (Pfeiffer, Bnum. Cact. 122. 1837) is a hybrid with 

 Selenicereus grandiflorus. 



Cereus speciosissimus hansii Baumann (Forster, Handb. Cact. ed. 2. 773. 1885; C. 

 hansii Haage in Forster, Handb. Cact. 428. 1846) is a hybrid with Epiphy Hum ackermannii. 

 Cereus jenkinsoni (Sweet, Hort. Brit. ed. 2. 237. 1830; C. speciosissimus jenkinsonii 

 Pfeiffer, Enum. Cact. 121. 1837) is a hybrid obtained in 1824. Cereus jenkinsonii verus 

 Haage (Forster, Handb. Cact. 429. 1846) is another hybrid. Here also belongs Cereus 

 . speciosissimus lateritius Pfeiffer (Enum. Cact. 121. 1837), which was earlier described and 

 figured as Cactus speciosissimus lateritius (Edwards's Bot. Reg. 19: pi. 1596. 1833) and, 

 afterwards, as Cereus lateritius Salm-Dyck (Cact. Hort. Dyck. 1849. 53. 1850). The 

 variety of Cereus speciosissimus, albiflorus (Cereus alhiflorus Schumann, Gesamtb. Kakteen 

 Nachtr. 54. 1903), though first mentioned in 1837, was without description, but was taken 

 up and described along with coccineus, hoveyi, and peacocki by Riimpler (Forster, Handb. 

 Cact. ed. 2. 772, 773) in 1885. 



Cereus speciosissimus aurantiacus (Pfeiffer, Enum. Cact. 122. 1837; C. aurantiacus 

 Forster, Handb. Cact. 428. 1846) is very briefly described. 



The following are some of the hybrids of Cereus speciosissimus with Epiphyllum phyl- 



lanthoides which are listed by Walpers (Repert. Bot. 2: 278. 1843): hodii, hollwillerianuS , 



boiL'irianus, curtisii, eugcnia, guillardieri, ignescens, kiardii, longipes, lothii, maelenii, mexi- 



canus Salm-Dyck, roidii, saniiensis, superbus, unduliflorus, vandesii, vitellinus, and 



suwaroffii. Some of these names had been previously used by Pfeiffer (Enum. Cact. 121. 



1837) as varieties of this species, as follows: var. curtisii, eugenia, guillardieri, ignescens, 

 kiardii, lothii, and roydii. 



Among other named hybrids, Pfeiffer gave var. devauxii (Cereus devauxii Forster, 

 Handb. Cact. 428. 1846). Forster (Handb. Cact. 428 to 431. 1846) also mentioned 66 

 hybrids with this species, among which are : blindii Haage, colmariensis Haage, danielsii 

 Haage, edcsii Booth, elegans Booth, finkii Salm-Dyck, gebvillerianus Haage, gloriosus Haage, 

 hitchcnsn and its varieties hybridus and speciosus, kampmannii Haage, kobii, latifrons, 

 loiidomt, macqueanus Salm-Dyck, maurantianus , merckii Booth, mittleri Salm-Dyck, 

 miihlhausianus, peintncri Haage, rintzii Salm-Dyck and the two varieties roseus albus and 

 roseiis superbus, setdelu Booth, seitzii, selloii, smithii (Epiphyllum smithianum Marnock, 

 Floncult. Mag. 8: pi. 13), suwarowii, and triumphans. In addition to these there are 

 many hybrids with only an English name. There are also many quadrinomials. 



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