1809.] EPIPHYLLUM TBUNCATUM : STOCKS, TRAINING, ETC. 257 



be twisted and bent in any direction. Hence, for large plants, whether for train- 

 ing over any form of trellis, for enwreathing pillars, festooning girders, or for 

 covering bare walls, tbe flexibility of the Pereskia entitles it to the first rank 

 as a stock. I have also seen it used for a dwarf standard, but the plants require 

 other support, and it is not equal to the Cereus for such purposes. 



Perhaps the best mode of getting up fine plants of Epiphyllum from 4 ft. to 

 6 ft. high on the Pereskia, is to obtain old plants, no matter how long and 

 straggling they are, to pot them in 12-in. pots in the compost Mr. Buckley has 

 indicated, and then to fix a strong iron trellis on to the rim of the pots. I prefer 

 a trellis of pyramidal shape, 5 ft. or 6 ft. high ; but the only points about this, 

 however, that are vitally important are, — that it shall be strong, that it be fixed 

 on to the pot, and not in the soil, and that it be well painted three or four times, 

 and dried very hard. It will have to bear the entire weight of the plant, and, as 

 there will be no opportunity for another coat of paint for many years, every 

 precaution must be taken to guard against the evils of corrosion. 



Having fixed the trellis, proceed next to train the stock. Cover the bottom 

 thoroughly first, and then train the stock over the rest of the trellis. If possible, 

 plunge the plant into a bottom heat of 70°, and maintain an atmospheric tem- 

 perature of from 55° to 65° or 70°. Then, at intervals of 6 in. or a foot all over 

 the stock, and on the ends of every shoot, insert the scions. On the small 

 branches, about an inch long will be large enough for them ; on the larger 

 branches larger scions will, of course, be used. Nothing can be simpler than 

 the grafting. Form the ends of the scion into a wedge, cut a small opening 

 into the side or the end of the shoot of the stock, and fix the scion in its place 

 with a spine of the Pereskia, and: the operation is complete. In a humid 

 growing atmosphere the scions will take at once. This process of grafting may 

 also be more continuous with the extension of growth, for the scions will take at 

 any period under this tropical regimen, but as soon as the plants are furnished 

 all over, the forcing and forming pressure may be removed, and the future culture 

 glide into that already described by Mr. Buckley. I hardly think, however, that 

 Epiphyllum on the Pereskia will ever bear greenhouse treatment. This stock 

 seems somewhat more impatient of cold than the Cereus ; the plants suffer in 

 health and the flowers in brilliancy of colour, if they are subjected to less than 

 45° of heat. They well deserve, and they do best in, an intermediate house, 

 ranging from 55° to 60°. Under such favourable circumstances, nothing can 

 exceed the gorgeous beauty and elegant gracefulness of these plants. Pyramids 

 6 ft. high and 4 ft. through, clothed with delicate blossoms from top to bottom, 

 are sights sometimes to be seen, and they are sights to be remembered and admired 

 for ever. Few plants can lighten the darkness and dispel the gloom of the dull 

 winter season so effectually as these Epiphyllums, while their cheapness and the 

 simplicity of their culture bring them within the reach of every cultivator. 



Hardwicke House. D. T. Fish. 



