BOOK REVIEWS 

 The Cactus and its Home 1 



There is scarcely a book in English on the home life of the 

 cacti. In fact most books on the family have been altogether 

 taxonomic, which to the general public is the least interesting 

 thing about them. 



Doctor Shreve, who for years has studied the ecology and 

 cultivation of these curious plants in their home, has written a 

 small book on just those phases of them that the average suc- 

 culent fancier will most appreciate. 



How they live and how to grow them, may sound like pretty 

 meagre material to fill even a small book. But it involves a long 

 familiarity with the physiology of desert plants and the ability 

 to translate that information into practical cultural directions. 

 You will find them in this book, also specific hints on propaga- 

 tion, — always a ticklish business with succulents. 



Some of the fascinating Indian customs which Standley re- 

 cords about Mexican cacti, Shreve does not mention, but there 

 are notes in the book on the curious relation between some cacti 

 and birds, notably in the giant cactus. 



There are many illustrations and a very useful compilation 

 of the cactus flora of the chief desert states. The book loses by 

 having no index, no list of its 43 illustrations, no explanation 

 of its very good distribution map. The lack of all of these puts 

 a quite unnecessary burden on the user. The book, in spite if 

 this, will have to be in the library of most cacti lovers, because 

 its authority and scholarship are unquestioned. 



Norman Taylor 



Suksdorf on the genus Amsinckia 2 



There have been several interesting episodes in species- 

 making in the United States. As two examples, I may cite the 

 work of Greene, who revised the western species of Ptelea in 



1 Shreve, F. The Cactus And Its Home. Pp. 1-195, Figs. 1-43, a frontis- 

 piece and a distribution map. Williams and Wilkins Co. Baltimore, Md. 1931. 

 Price $3.00. 



2 Suksdorf, Wilhelm. Untersuchungen in der Gattung Amsinckia. Wer- 

 denda 1: 47-113. Dec. 31, 1931. 



43 



