CACTUSES UNDER CULTURE. 



471 



more easily grown than the cactus, when its habits and 

 cultivation are once understood. It is as peculiar a growth 

 as can be found. The foliage has become dwarfed and 

 stunted, or in most cases it has disappeared. The whole 



Fig. R. Opuntia Ficus-Indica. 



organism, accustomed at times to long drought, takes in 

 water greedily at its rootlets after every rain, and stores 

 it away for future use in its thick, sponge-like and water- 

 tight tissues. The surface of the stems is covered with 

 a thick, shiny skin which prevents undue evaporation, a 

 sort of vegetable macintosh or " gossamer " coat, which 

 retards transpiration. There are rarely any flat leaves to 

 wither and die in the scorching air, but the thick and 

 jointed stems do their work, absorb carbon from the 

 air and save up water for the dry season. 



These stems vary greatly in shape and size ; some are 

 small and pretty, with miniature flowers, beautiful in 

 form and coloring ; some, thick and jointed, spread over 

 the ground in all directions : others send straight, poly- 

 gonal shafts over fifty feet in the air. Some of 

 them are shaped like great melons set on end ; others 

 are perfect hemispheres in outline, curiously ribbed and 

 furrowed. Square and triangular stems are not uncom- 

 mon ; and some of the trailing kinds are even graceful, 

 whether in hanging baskets or climbing over their native 

 hills. All forms of the cactus are tenacious of life to a 

 wonderful degree. 



Their brilliant flowers are fertilized by night moths or 

 by butterflies, for many of them give the first fresh- 

 ness of their bloom to the stillness of the tropic night. 

 Much of the fruit is edible, and is commonly used where 

 abundant. An English author says that they are desira- 

 ble plants to grow in conservatories attached to dwell- 

 ings, because the flowers give off no odor ; but he had 

 probably never inhaled the fragrance from a night- 

 blooming cereus. However, the most highly scented 



ones are not in any way offensive to the olfactories. 



A climbing cereus will, in time, fill a glass house like 

 a Marechal Niel rose bush, if allowed to grow ; and a 

 dome of good height is wanted to shelter a Cereus gignii- 

 leits, but smaller specimens are easily managed and 

 bloom freely. It is not well to cut and trim them, for 

 on the old and discolored growths come the most abun- 

 dant flowers, as all successful growers know. The gar- 

 dener fond of "cutting back " will get but poor satisfac- 

 tion from them if he wants flowers. Some of them are 

 good for hedges in their native lands, but hedge treat- 

 ment will not be good for them in our artificial surround- 

 ings. Those that attain a fairly good size, like the most 

 common forms of red or pink cereus and opuntias, are 

 more easily grown if placed in pots about fifteen inches 

 in diameter. The process of getting these well filled 

 may be accelerated, in the case of a cereus, by putting 

 in a number of small plants instead of one. 



In winter keep them out of sunshine, but where it is 

 light, cool and dry. Dampness when they should be at 

 rest is their great enemy, and causes them to decay. 

 When they show signs of freshness and growth, remove 

 them to the hottest sunshine. Should the season be 

 sufiiciently advanced, they can be put in the open air at 

 once, and when the flowers come they will be all the 

 finer for it ; but if growth is already well advanced, the 

 sudden change may kill the buds. Give plenty of water 

 now, without fear of injury, if the earth they are in is 

 well drained. They require but little earth, and like a 

 good proportion of sand. Broken shells, bones or sub- 

 stances containing lime mixed with the soil seem to be 

 relished by some. A little fertilizing is beneficial. 



The great Linnaeus knew only a few species of cactus 



CeUEUs N-1'; TICAULIS. 



but botanists now tell us that the number of known gen- 

 era is over a dozen, with over eight hundred species, and 

 others being continually discovered. M. de Loup. 



