262 THE NURSERY-MANUAL 



exercised in preparing the pot for planting. As a rule the drain 

 hole in the bottom is too small and is easily clogged. This hole 

 should be enlarged, as thorough drainage must be maintained in 

 growing cacti. The pot should be filled to one-fourth its depth 

 with small bits of broken pots, and on these the prepared soil 

 should be placed and pressed or shaken together firmly but not 

 packed hard. The surface is then leveled by the use of a round 

 flat-faced tamper of a diameter just to fill the pot. This surface 

 should be about half an inch from the top of the pot. Over it the 

 seeds are evenly distributed and then covered with a very thin 

 layer of soil, upon which is spread a layer of fine gravel to a depth 

 of about one-fourth of an inch. For the first few months, cactus 

 seedlings are but small, globular, balloon-shaped or cylindrical 

 bodies, so tender and delicate that they readily " damp off " if 

 subjected to a sudden change from a high to a low temperature. 

 For watering, a vessel should be used that gives a fine gentle 

 spray, to avoid the danger of washing the seeds from their position 

 or of injuring the young seedlings. Watering should be done at 

 least once a day. The temperature of the propagating-house or 

 frame should be kept as nearly uniform as possible and should not 

 vary much from 70 F. The seedlings should usually be left in the 

 germination-pot until the plant shows at least three or four clusters 

 of spines. It is not advisable to begin with pots smaller than 2-J- 

 inches, as they dry out too rapidly. 



Nearly all cacti may be propagated readily from cuttings. The 

 plants are so soft and so filled with water that any bruise is likely 

 to be the point of attack of a fungus, which quickly destroys them ; 

 therefore, a clean sharp knife must be used and a smooth surface 

 left on the cut end. The cutting should then be placed in a dry 

 atmosphere for a day or more, until, by drying, a kind of cuticle 

 has formed over the cut surface. The cutting may then be rooted 

 in sand on a bench, or planted directly in pots. In the warmer 

 drier regions it may be placed directly in the open ground, provided 

 the soil has perfect drainage. In greenhouse culture it is best not 

 to place much of the cutting below the surface of the soil or sand ; 

 1 inch is sufficient for large plants, and less than that for smaller 

 ones, in proportion to the size of the cutting. When the cutting is 

 long and likely to fall over, a stick should be inserted in the soil by 

 its side and the two securely tied together until roots have been 

 formed. 



When mature plants are shipped in from the field, the roots are 



