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One of the dwarf growing echinocactuses. Tne 
effect of the white scale-li\e markings on rich green 
is very pretty. Echinocactus ornatus 
tumbled out of their pots every few weeks, 
they will still remain alive. I do not advo- 
cate such maltreatment and neglect; cactuses, 
like everything else, will give amazing re- 
turns for attention that is just a little bit 
better than the ordinary, and there is a 
great personal satisfaction in being the pos- 
sessor of something a little better than your 
friends. 
The only way to get flawless specimens is 
to grow the plants yourself from seed, and the 
process is simplicity itself. You can begin 
at any time of year, with the absolute con- 
fidence of producing plants of appreciable 
size in twelve months, (of such genera as 
Cereus and Opuntia). Plants that have 
been collected in the wild will never present 
the same even texture of surface and bright 
green color, nor will they attain equal rapidity 
of growth or live so long as plants raised in 
cultivation, because their roots are damaged 
in the removal. 
For the purpose of the window gardener 
cactuses may be grouped into these general 
classes: (1) Tall; (2) Dwarf; (3) Vine-like. 
In the first class are the Indian figs and 
some species of the genus Cereus, but I 
would hardly recommend them for the win- 
dow garden, because they soon get so tall 
that they are top heavy, and frequently 
tumbling over. 
GOOD TALL PLANTS 
Only two of the tall growing kinds need be 
included in the amateur’s window collection. 
The Indian figs (Opuntia) have flat, round or 
club-shaped stems, but they are usually flat, 
and the joints either round or oblong in 
shape. The rather large flowers are borne 
singly on the upper edges of the young 
growths, and are showy, the usual color 
being yellow, but they may also be found in 
various shades of red. One of the best of 
this type to grow is O. microdasys, with 
flowers two inches across, and greenish- 
yellow in color. 
A very interesting one, but more difficult 
to grow, is the dwarf prickly pear (O. 
crinijera also known as O. senilis). Instead 
of spines, it has long, silky hairs, and must 
be grown under a bell glass, if the hairs are 
‘to be kept clean. It never attains a height of 
‘more than about three feet. 
In Mexico the organ cactus (Cereus 
marginatus, also known as C. gemmatus) 
IVER GrAR DEN) WAG A ZN Ie 
Is used for hedges or fences. It is distinct 
in appearance from others of its genus. The 
stem is seldom over three inches in diameter, 
with five or six very obtuse ridges, each of 
which has a row of short, black spines, which 
grow in bunches of seven to nine. 
RED FLOWERS ALL WINTER 
The commonest cactus in the window 
garden, because it gives such a wealth of 
bright flowers, is the crab cactus (Epiplyl- 
lum truncatum). In its native country it 
grows as an epiphyte, along with the orchids, 
but it is grown on its own roots in soil, with 
us. The best way, however, is to have a 
plant grafted on Pereskia. The stems are 
flat, resembling the claws of a crab, but they 
become round and woody with age. Dur- 
ing the winter each tip produces a pair of 
brilliant flowers, ruby red, or varying toward 
violet red, according to the variety. In 
Europe there are many named varieties. It 
is useful in suspended pots, or baskets, the 
long stems hanging over the edges of the 
pots. It flowers in the winter. Grow in 
a soil made of equal parts of fibrous 
loam, leaf mold, and sand, with some 
finely broken charcoal or broken brick, for 
drainage. 
Another red flowered plant (but blooming 
in June) is Phyllocactus Ackermann. Its 
big flowers (four to six inches in diameter) 
are like that of the night-blooming cereus, 
(and it is grown in the same way) but they 
are scarlet-red outside and carmine-red in- 
side. It has flat stems, and grows only about 
three feet high. 
THE NIGHT-BLOOMING CEREUS TANGLE 
The most popular of the vine-like cactuses 
are several quite distinct plants, but all 
popularly known as “‘night-blooming cereus.”’ 
Two genera are confused under this name— 
Cereus and Phyllocactus. They make long, 
straggly stems, which may be trained up 
along the window cases or over trellises. 
The stems of cereus have three to six angles, 
_ 
A hundred different plants can be accommodated in an ordinary window garden. 
The best way of growing cactuses—permanently 
planted out where they can be Kept warm in winter. 
Provide very free drainage and syringe daily 
while the Phyllocactus stems are flat, the 
ends looking like long, fleshy oak leaves. 
All the cereus and the night-blooming phyl- 
locactuses have large white flowers. They 
expand just after sundown, and remain open 
until the sun shines upon them the following 
morning, when they collapse. 
These plants need a richer soil than the 
ordinary run of cactus. Give them a fibrous 
compost, and mix some broken charcoal 
with it, to insure good drainage. 
A HANDFUL OF DWARF PLANTS 
Regarded purely as window garden plants 
the dwarf species—growing to about a foot, 
or less—are the most desirable. They 
Keep frost from them 
