better advantage 

 la /'. BUo are the 

 tiut; Eiiiplivllums 



EPIPHYLLUM 



the pots, so as to show them off tc 

 when in flower. Pereskia acuUata a 

 stock most commonly used for gra: 

 upon, though some gardeners prt-fi-r trrattin;; upon 

 Cereus triangularis, taking clean. lK-alrh\' pii-c-s about 

 1 foot in length, first rooting them and cstaljlishing 

 them in pots, then grafting when actire growth of the 

 Epiphyllums commences in spring. It is said by 

 some gardeners that Epiphylhims do better and may be 

 brought into flower earlier l.)y grafting on Cereus tri- 

 amjularis. Other species of Cereus may also be used 

 as stock plants for grafting upon, especially the upright- 

 growing species, as C. coluhriinis. The system known 

 as wedge-grafting is the best method. 



When grown upon their own roots, the soil best 

 suited to them is two-thirds fibrous loam and one-third 

 leaf-mold, with a fair proportion of silver sand and 

 pounded brick added to keep the soil porous, as they are 

 very impatient of too much moisture at the roots. The 

 pots or pans in which they are grown must also be well 

 drained. They require careful watering at all times, but 

 during the fall and early winter they should receive 

 only enough to keep them from shriveling. They are 

 best kept in the greenhouse the whole year round, giv- 

 ing them an abundance of air durinir Tlir sunmitr to in- 

 sure well ripened growth. A teiuiHratur.- i.f 4.j-50° 

 during winter will be sufficient, tlniui.'li a hiirlur tem- 

 perature may be given after January 1 if wanted in 

 flower earlier. Edward J. Canning. 



truncitum, Haw. Crab Cactds. Christmas Cactus. 

 Fig. 765. Stems much branched and hanging in large 

 bunches from the trees : joints obovate to oblong, with 

 strongly truncate apex, lSi-2 in. long by about %-l in. 

 broad, bright green, margins coarsely serrate, with 1-3 

 large, acute teeth on each side, the 2 upper ones form- 

 ing more or less incurved horns on either side of the 

 truncation: areola bearing a few short, yellowish or 

 dark colored bristles, or sometimes none : fls. horizontal, 

 growing from the truncated end of the younger 

 joints, strongly irregular, 2K-3K in. long, in va- 

 rious shades of red: fr. pear-shaped, red, about 

 "am Braz. B.M. 2562. C4.C. III. 19:9. 

 — Most of the forms in cultivation are 

 hybrids between this species and some 

 other of the genus or with Cereus. Pig. 

 766 A common basket and rafter plant. 

 Kussellianum, Hook. Stems more 

 upright with pendent branches : joints 

 %-lW m. long by ?s-/4 in. broad, 

 oblong or elliptical to obovate, light 

 green margins crenate, with 2-4 

 areolae on either side, bearing a few 

 ver\ short dark gray bristles : fls. from 

 the end of the youngest joints, red, 

 \%-2M m. long : fr. red, 4-angled or 

 narrow winged. Braz. B.M. 3717. 



EQUISETUM 



537 



Gaertneri, K. Sch. (E. Snssel- 

 hdnum, var. Ghrtneri, Reg.). 

 E \sTER Cactus. Stems of more 

 u[- right habit, with drooping 

 branches: joints long-oblong or 

 elliptical to obovate, %~2^ in. 

 long by K-1 in. broad, dark 

 green, margins crenate,with 



r~^'AsiiiB'^Bi»-^'-'~>-, about 5 areolaa on either 

 jR|y% ^.^ side, bearing 6-12 rather 

 - -- ^\*W ^<^^^ stiff, long, yellow or brown 



bristles, and are especially 

 conspicuous on the trun- 

 cated apex, where they form 

 a considerable beard : fls. 

 from the apex of the young- 

 est joints, 2M-3 in. long, 

 scarlet-red: fr. red. Braz. 

 B.M. 7201. 



EpiphyJhtm Oucdfneyi, Houl- 

 let=Pliyllocactus sp. 



C. H. Thompson. 

 EPIPHYTES, or air plants, grow on trees or other 

 plants without robbing them of food. Orchids are the 

 most famous examples among garden plants. Some or- 



chids, however, grow in the soil, and others are true 

 parasites. Plants that live on decaying organic matter, 

 and have lost more or less of their leaf-green, are called 

 saprophytes. Many 

 mosses are Epiphytes. 



EPlSCEA (Greek, 

 shady ; they grow wild 

 in shady places). Ges- 

 nerticece. Probably the 

 best garden form of this 

 genus is the refined and 

 elegant basket plant, £. 



eupr 



i-ith 



767. Episcea 



coppery colored, softly 

 hairy leaves, shown in 

 Fig. 767. The genus has 

 perhaps 30 species, all 



HltI.s with Iniii.-. short 

 or 11. i linirs : St. Ill from 

 a crc-ipiii^' r.M.t.liranched 

 or not : Ivs. <.]ipusite, 

 equal or not in size : 

 fls. pedicelled, axillary, 

 solitary or clustered ; 

 corollas mostly scarlet, 

 rarely whitish or pur- 

 plish ; tube straight or 

 curved, more or less 

 spurred at the base; 



eqiKil, |..i.. - :,. - in. ading, rounded. 



/, ./ is one of the standard 



k.t ] ■ , , . lallv for the 



require so close an :iiin..^|.l..r.' ;. the Fittonias, 

 it can be grown in s..iii.. Inin:,' r....uis and per- 

 haps outdoors in sumin. i- in a ^li:..h- place. Its 

 chief charms are tli.- si. ii.l. r. ii.nling habit, the 

 soft hairiness of tlir ii:i\<^, tin .■<,])pery hue, 

 which is often laid ..i. hi;.' |.:iiiii in two broad bauds 

 skirting the midrib, an.l th.. lar. i- and perhaps finer 

 metallic bluish luster of which <Mii occasionally gets a 

 glimpse in a finely grown specimen. Give very rich, 

 fibrous loam, and in summer partial shade. 



a. Fis. irhile. 



Chontalfinsis, Hook (Cyifodelra Clionfal n'<is, 

 Seem.). Stems stout, more or less ascending dirk red 

 dish purple 6-10 in long hs opposite and iiiegu 

 larly whorled, 3-4 in long rl 1 n_ \ itn eienate ob 

 tuse, rounded at the bast I u bith 



sides of the midrib and bet k ■\ eins 



margins recurved green ii 1 i juifle 



patches, which adv«ice fi i I t \e n the 



veins toward the milrib and m n le i 1 s II ug 

 fls. in I's and 2 s , corolla tube with a sac it the 1 ase 

 the limb oblique, l'^'i-2 m acioss with small and itgu 

 lar but conspicuous and beautiful teeth Ch ntales 

 region of Nicaragua B M 5925 R B 22 241 F '5 18 

 1924. 



aa Fls scarlet 



oupre^ta, Hanst ( L km n i cupudta Hook ) Fig 

 767. Stems slend r | 1 1 r tii g it the 



joints, with a mm t i t \ ni hes 



which bears the tl 1 1\ s i { er 



colored above fls 1 scaikt with a 



small sac an i denti 111 1 il s ngua BM 4312 

 Var. viridlSoha, Hoik has gieen toliage and larger fls , 

 1 in. across B M 0115 



cocclnea, Benth. & Hook. (Cyrtodelra cocclnea, Hort., 

 B. S. Williams). Lvs. dark metallic green, 3-4 in. long, 

 2K-3 in. wide. Free-flowering. 



Robert Shore and W. M. 



EQUISfiTTTM contains the weed known as Horse-tails, 

 or Scouring-rushes. They are suitable for naturalizing 

 in waste and wettish places. They hold sandy banks. 

 The following have been advertised by dealers in native 



