»^ NOTE and COMMENT [^« 



Cactus Cui^ture. — It is strange that those interested in 

 the growing of cacti have not thought it worth while to study 

 the plants in their native habitat in order to discover what kind 

 of treatment suits them best. The cactus, like the donkey, can 

 exist under extraordinary hardships and a good many people 

 have jumped to tlie conclusion that they need such conditions 

 to thrive. Both, however, readily respond to better treatment. 

 The cactus lives in the desert simply because it finds there the 

 conditions that will protect it from other forms of vegetation. 

 When it grows elsewhere, more luxuriant plants soon over- 

 shadow it. The desert is its protection. But even in the 

 desert, it is not so badly treated by nature. During the grow- 

 ing season it is drenched by rains almost daily. When it is 

 dry and not growing, it is no more to be pitied than is the 

 rose when it throws off its leaves and stands with bare twigs 

 during the winter. If you want your cacti to grow, therefore, 

 do not spare the w^ater. One must remember, however that 

 cacti grow in sandy or rocky places where the water runs off 

 immediately, so look well to your drainage. With good drain- 

 age and plenty of water during the hotter parts of the year 

 most remarkable results may be obtained. One specimen so 

 treated made more growth in a single summer than it had 

 made in the previous ten years combined. Two joints of 

 another from Florida made nearly fifty new joints and bloom- 

 ed the first season. Hundreds of others did nearly as well. 



