56 CAOIAOEODS PLANTS. 



they are often treated with utmost carelessness, stored in " out-of-the- 

 way " corners, and left in a measure to take care of themselves ; yet 

 'lo they repay their ungenerous hosts with abundance of glorious 

 Ujwers, and then only are they brought into sight, to be again consigned 

 to the old quarters when the flowering season ia over. Like every other 

 plant that is easily grown the Phyllocactuses and their allies respond most 

 promptly to liberal treatment, and well as they may seem to be under 

 the careless system, they are incomparably superior where their moderate 

 requirements are studied and provided for. It is sometimes said that 

 the flowering period is so short that they are scarcely worth the space 

 they occupy for so many months, but assertions such as these have been 

 formed upon limited experience. Phyllocactuses may be had in flower for 

 three or four mouths in the year by having a dozen or two plants in 

 different stages, and with the Bpiphyllums the flawering season can be 

 prolonged for at least six months out of the twelve in an almost unbroken 

 succession. Outside the ordinary decorative plants, such as Pelar- 

 goniums, &o., there are very few which possess so many recommendations 

 as these, and it is to be hoped that their merits will become more widely 

 recognised. 



The genus Phyllocactus as now constituted includes thirteen species, 

 natives of tropical America, Mexico, and Brazil, and are chiefly dis- 

 tinguished by their flattened leaf -like branches, with a prominent midrib, 

 and by the large many-petalled flowers being produced from the notches 



. in the edge of the stem or branches. These characters suffice in a broad 

 sense to separate them from Cereus and Epiphyllum, their near neigh- 

 bours. They are also epiphytal in habit, but this character is shared by 

 several other Caotes, and is therefore only useful as a cultural guide. In 

 gardens, and even amongst botanists, there has been much confusion 

 respecting these plants, some of the species having been referred to 

 Cereus, some to Epiphyllum, and most of the older forms appear iu 

 works under the title Cactus. The principal confusion has, however, 

 been between the Bpiphyllums and the Phyllocactus ; for even now, 

 although the distinction has been clearly pointed out by recent writers, 

 the two names are frequently employed in current literature as 

 synonymous. 



CuLTTJBE. — The most important item in the culture is the soil, and 

 this is easily provided. A light turfy loam should form the basis of the 

 compost, and to this may be added one-third of leaf soil, old dried cow 

 manure, and sand, well mixed together and employed in a rather dry 

 state. The pots must be well drained, as the plants do not require a 

 great depth of soil, and any approach to stagnation about the roots is the 



• surest means of causing failure. When plants have attained a good size 



