74 CACTUS CULTURE FOR AMATEURS, 



M. Scheerii has equally large flowers, and coloured bright yellow, 

 as also are the flowers of M . pectinata. This last is remarkable on 

 account of the clock-like regularity with which its flowers expand. 

 While fresh, they open every sunny day between eleven and twelve 

 o'clock, and close again about one, however strong the sunlight 

 shining upon them may be. Some of the kinds are prettity studded 

 over with bright red, coral-like little fruits. 



The headquarters of the genus is Mexico and the countries 

 immediately to the north, a few being found in the West Indies, 

 Bolivia, Brazil, and Chili. Many of them grow on mountains 

 where the temperature is moderate, but where the sunlight is always 

 intense. Others are found on limestone or gravelly hills, among 

 short herbage, or on grassy prairies. A small silvery-spined kind has 

 recently been found near the snow line in Chili. M . vivipara is quite 

 hardy in New York. By planting them out in summer, and pro- 

 tecting them by means of a frame from heavy rain and sudden changes 

 of weather in winter, a good many species can be successfully grown. 



Cultivation. 



With only a few exceptions, all the cultivated Mamillarias may 

 be grown in a warm, sunny greenhouse, or they may be placed 

 in a frame with a south aspect, during our summer, removing them 

 into artificially-heated quarters for the winter. They do not 

 require much soil, thriving best when in comparatively small 

 pots. A fibry loam, mixed with broken bricks or cinders may be 

 used for them. Harm is often done to the more delicate Cacti 

 by repotting them annually. The pots should be well drained 

 with crocks, and these covered with a layer of fibre sifted from loam. 

 In summer, the soil should be kept moist, but never saturated ; 

 and after a bright warm day, the stems may be moistened over by 

 syringing them with tepid water. A point of much importance 

 with these, and indeed all tropical and extra-tropical plants, is, 

 that the water used for watering or syringing them should be 

 rainwater if possible, and never more than a degree or so colder 

 than the plants themselves. A plant which had been standing 

 in the full glare of a midsummer sun all day is endangered by 

 watering it with cold water. Where proper arrangements for water 

 are not made in a greenhouse or a stove, it is a good plan to place 

 the water wanted for the day's use in the sun along with the plants. 

 Mamillarias should be kept quite dry at the roots in winter. 



A collection of species may be successfully managed in a glass 

 case in a room window, provided the sun shines through it for a 

 few hours in the day. 



Propagation. 



This is usually effected by means of seeds. The tufted kinds 

 are easily multiplied by separating the stems, or even by cutting 

 off the tops and planting them in small pots of sandy soil. 



