For July. 1<)21 



633 



The Queen of the Night 



DR. E. BADE 



O]'' woinlerful form and great beauty is the night 

 flowering L'ereus commonly known as the "Queen 

 of the Night." whose great variety of flowers in 

 the sunny South few men are able to ap])reciate. 



In Central America, their native country, these cacti 

 crawl like snakes covering boulders and trees alike with 

 a seemingly dead and dried-up network of thorn-covered 



Ccrciis MacDonaldi(C 5;j)0 P. M . 



branches. The tropical sun has nearly Ijurned them up 

 and the hot winds have drawn their last drop of moisture 

 so that they cling tenaciously, with aerial roots, to their 

 support. 



As soon as the rainy season sets in, they drink their fill. 

 The leafless network swells, and new life enters the plant. 

 This season lasts only for a comparatively short time, 

 and therefore the plant must use it to its best advantage. 

 Buds quickly ajipear on the joints, some of them as large 



Ccrcus MaiDonaldicr 6\=,n P. M. 



and round as marbles, others resemble the artichoke, and, 

 as in the case of Ccreiis triangularis, attaining that size. 

 Son)e of the buds are small and round, others larger and 

 longer, still others are ready to burst open to-night and 

 some will open tomorrow. 



The bud that opens in the evening gives signs of life 



at noon at which time it begins to pulsate and, by a pecu- 

 liar twisting motion loosens the sepals. These slowly 

 increase in size, and, during the latter part of the after- 

 noon, begin to open. Then when it is dark and the short 

 twilight has faded, and the stars have made their ap- 

 pearance one l)y one, this gigantic flower is fully opened 

 and reveals its golden colored crown to the cool breeze. 

 But the flower remains open only until midnight when its 

 splendor begins to wane and the early morning hours 

 find it faded beyond recognition. 



Not only one flower begins to open during the after- 

 noon, but many. Since the hot season has prevented the 

 cactus from growing, it awakes from its forced Summer 

 rest to a new and vigorous life. One of these gigantic 

 cereus flowers has a diameter of one foot, and a weight 

 of two and a half pounds. The strikingly white petals 

 can be seen from a great distance and the heat that one 

 of these flowers gives olT can be felt on the cheek. An- 

 other Cereus, Ccrcus graiidiflorus has a strong odor of 

 vanilla which is scented far into the air. 



All these characteristics are not useless to the plant. 

 Since they onl\- bloom one night thev are largely depen- 

 dent on insects for fertilization and so their bright white 



Cl-i-l'us MacDomildiff y:jo P. M. 



petals, or their far reaching and penetrating perfinne, 

 attracts them. These night flying insects [sf'liingidac) 

 hover around the flowering plant, dip their long curled 

 up trunk into the nectar, and polinate the flower uncon- 

 sciously. 



The heat produced by the flower keeps ott the night 

 dew, thus protecting the pollen, for the night is cool to 

 such an extent in the tropics that a Hiin sheet of ice can 

 often be detected on standing water. The size of the 

 flower ;ind the large number that bloom prevent the ])lant 

 from producing heat for a prolonged time. 



The great varieties of Cereus seldom produce flowers 

 in the hothouse. It is commonly supposed that they 

 bloom every seven years, but this is a mistaken idea since 

 the way in which they grovv affects them most. 



Sloth makes all things difficult; Industry, all easy; he 

 that rises late must trot all day, and shall scarce overtake 

 his business at night : while I^aziness travels so slowly 

 that poverty soon overtakes him. — Franklin. 



