i62 The Gardener's New Director. 

 minor fcandens trigonus artictiJatusy fru^u fuavijfimo, lef- 

 fer three-cornered Torch-thiftle, with a moft delicious 

 fruit, commonly called in Barbadoes, The true prickly 

 PeaVy which fruit being as large as a Bergamot Pear, is 

 as fine as the Pine-apple, of which I ripened three in one 

 year. Upon the other end of the (love may be a fhelf 

 of the fame dimenfions, for holding pots of another 

 fort of Torch-thiftles, called, The Cereus minor fcan- 

 dens poly gonus articnlatuSf or lefler many-cornered Torch- 

 thiftle, it produces a large odoriferous flower, which 

 opens about feven in the evening, and is quite gone by 

 eight o'clock the next morning. The flowers of this 

 plant, for odour and largenefs, furpafs any flower yet 

 known. 



Thefe Torch- thirties fhoot out very long branches, 

 ■which run along the walls and cielings of the ftoves, up- 

 on which, if you lay fome rough lime plaiflier, they 

 will, like ivy, faflen their roots into, and profper the 

 better for it ; both thefe and all the kinds of Melon- 

 thiilles thrive beft when they are planted in pretty coarfe 

 fand, gravel, and lime-rubbifh, to be fparingly watered, 

 except in very hot weather. The Cereufes are pro- 

 pagated by cuttings, which fliould be allowed to wi- 

 ther for fourteen days before they are planted, and 

 may then with their pots be funk into a good tan-bed, 

 to hafl:en their rooting ; this work fhould be perform- 

 ed in June, that they may make good fhoots before 

 "winter. 



The Melon-thiftle is propagated by feeds, (efpeci- 

 ally the EchinomelocculujJ or fuckers, when the caps of 

 the Meloca^ufes mufl: be pinched, in order to fend 

 them out, which are to be planted in the fame foil as 

 the Cereufes or Toreh-thifl:les. It is certain, that no 

 plant amongft the vegetable tribe, hath fuch a ftrange 

 and odd appearance, and which more merits an un- 

 common regard from the curious gardener 



Mr. 



