112 
THE DICTIONARY OF GARDENING, 
Phyllobius— continued. 
the body black, covered with grey hairs, and occasionally 
shows a brown or red tinge on the wing-cases. The legs 
and antennæ are reddish or brownish-yellow. In summer, it 
gnaws the buds and the young leaves of most fruit-trees, 
often doing considerable damage. Other species that, 
at times, are hurtful in the same way, are P. Pyri (which 
is much like the last, but bears narrow, green, blue, or 
coppery scales, and tas rusty-red legs and antennæ) 
and P. viridicollis (smaller, with a black, shining body, 
covered on the sides of the thorax and the breast with 
green scales; and red legs and antenna). ; 
Remedy. The most effectual is to beat the trees in 
the early morning, especially in dull weather, over an 
inverted umbrella, and to kill the beetles so collected 
in boiling water. A box or tray, tarred inside, may be 
used instead of an umbrella. 
PHYLLOCACTUS (from phyllon, a leaf, and Cactus; 
in reference to the leaf-like stems). Syn. Phyllocereus. 
Including Disocactus. ORD. Cactew. A genus comprising 
about thirteen species of stove, epiphytal, succulent 
shrubs, natives of tropical America, from Mexico to Peru. 
Flowers rose, white, or red, axillary from the base of the 
- rounded sinuses of the flattened, leaf-like branches; calyx 
tube generally long, slender, smooth; lobes remotely 
scattered, coloured; petals numerous, very rarely few, 
spreading; stamens numerous; stigma many-rayed. Fruit 
baceate, angular, smooth, ribbed; seeds kidney-shaped ; 
cotyledons connate, sub-foliar. The botanical character- 
Fic. 132. LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF FLOWER OF PHYLLOCACTUS. 
istics of a flower of Phyllocatcus are shown in Fig. 132, 
where a represents the calyx tube; b, calyx lobes; c, 
petaloid calyx lobe; d, petals; e, style; f, ovary. 
The species of Phyllocactus are of easy culture; they 
prefer a rather dry stove or warm greenhouse tem- 
perature, but will succeed in a frame, or even a 
window, after being once established. The most suit- 
able soil is a light, porous loam, with some leaf mould 
and brick rubble intermixed. Drainage to the extent 
of one-fourth should be given, and rather small pots used 
in proportion to the size of plant. When plants have 
attained a good size, and their pots are filled with roots, 
an annual top-dressing of soil and cow-manure should 
be given, and during the growing season a little liquid 
Phyllocactus—continued. 
manure may also be applied. Watering must be rather 
carefully. conducted, especially in winter: the roots soon 
die if t too wet, or in too great a bulk of soil. 
Phyllocacti do not require any shade from sunshine, 
and they may be placed under a sunny south wall out- 
side from about the end of June until the end of August; 
this greatly assists the ripening. They should be kept 
rather dry in winter. Cuttings of the mature shoots, 
about 6in. in length, taken before growth has commenced, 
in spring, and inserted singly in well-drained 3in. or 
4in. pots, will root in a short time, if placed in a 
temperature of about 60deg. They should not be covered 
with a glass or watered, beyond the slightest syringing, to 
prevent the soil becoming very dry. Seeds ripen freely 
on healthy plants; they should be sown in spring, and 
placed in about the same temperature as cuttings. When 
the seedlings appear, a light position must be afforded 
them until they are large enough to pot off singly. 
pa 
FIG. 133. BRANCH OF PHYLLOCACTUS ACKERMANNI. 
P. (Ackermann’s).* fl. with rich crimson, shining 
etals, the outer ones lighter in colour, from 6in. to 8in. in 
ter, freely produ in the d ions of the stems. 
Summer. Stems flat, deeply crenated or notched, seldom with 
any spines in the notches except when young. Mexico, 1829. One 
of the handsomest — grown; from it a number of beau- 
tiful varieties have m raised. See Fig. 133. (B. M. 3598; 
B. R. 1331, under name of Cactus (Epiphyllum) Ackermanni.) 
P. anguliger (angle-bearing).* f. from 3in. to 5in. in diameter; 
. 8 — r 8 narrow, and spread- 
, open during the day, and ‘emitting a powerful fragrance. 
October. Stems deeply angled, 2in. to 3in. 3 indented 
on the margin somewhat like a large saw with the teeth turned 
upwards, forming blunt, triangular lobes. Mexico. A very dis- 
tinct species. See Fig. 134. (B. M. 5100; L. & P. F. G. 34.) 
P. biformis (two-formed). jl. somewhat ephemeral, terminal at 
the points of the branches; petals narrow, 2in. to Sin. long, par- 
tially combined into a kind of tube of a pale rosy-pink colour. 
Branches narrow, flattened and leaf-like, reddish on the margins. 
Plant branching freely, forming a rather graceful, fleshy shrub. 
h. 3ft. Honduras, 1839. Not avery showy species. See Fig. 135. 
(B. M. 6156.) SYN. Disocactus bijormis (B. R. 1845, 9). 
P. crenatus (crenated).* fi. creamy-white in the centre; outer 
pom narrow and more orange-coloured, very fragrant, and from 
. to Sin. in diameter. Stems flat, slightly crenated. Honduras, 
1839. A handsome species, from which a great number of lovely 
hybrids have been raised. (B. R. 1844, 31, under name of Cereus 
crenatus.) The variety known as coccineus large, scarlet 
flowers, which open widely. Mr. C. M. Hovey, Boston, U.S., 
produced a race of hybrids betw — oom — 
een Phyllocactus crenatus and 
E 
