THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF CACTUSES. 



475 



may ultimately result in the barren regions they inhabit 

 becoming better adapted to the requirements of other 

 plants, more useful in the arts and sciences. Dr. 

 Carpenter, in his " Physiological Botany," gives the fol- 

 lowing curious instance of their work, as civilizers of 

 the earth : "On Mount Etna, for example, and its vol- 

 canic fields, it is the Indian fig which the Sicilians em- 

 ploy to render such desolate regions susceptible of 

 cultivation. This plant readily strikes into the fissures 

 of the lava, and soon, by extending the ramifications of 

 its roots into every crevice of the stone, and bursting 

 the largest blocks asunder by their gradual increas, 

 make it capable of being worked. " The Mexicans eat 

 the fleshy stems of Cerciis pcctinatus, which they call 

 cabeza del Viego, as a vegetable ; and they use the 

 larger spines of EcJiiuocactus Visuaga as toothpicks. 

 The Mexican Indians use the fruit of the saguaro 

 (Cereus giganteiis) as an article of food. Several species 

 of opuntia, particularly O. Tuna (Fig. 7"), yield the red, 

 green or yellow fruits known as prickly pears. These 



are sweet and juicy, and extensively used as dessert by 

 the Mexicans and inhabitants of southern Europe. 

 Their juice is used as a water color at Naples, and for 

 coloring confectionary in the West Indies. The yellow 

 fruits of the Barbadoes gooseberry are made into pre- 

 serves by the people of the West Indies, and otherwise 

 used as the English and Americans use ordinary goose- 

 berries. Nopalea coccinellifera is valuable, in common 

 with some species of the latter genus, as affording 

 means of subsistence to the cochineal insects. In pro- 

 tracted seasons of drought, wild and domestic animals 

 tear open the spiny covering of the fleshy-stemmed 

 kinds of cactuses, such as melocactus, echinocactus, etc., 

 and quench their thirst with the juicy interior, and 

 travelers have frequently told of the numerous cases in 

 which human lives have been saved through the timely 

 refreshment afforded by those natural reservoirs on the 

 desert plains of tropical countries. 



Gerald Hastings 



THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF CACTUSES. 



,HE dwarf habit of the mamil- 

 larias renders them admirable 

 subjects for window gardening. 

 The best window is one which 

 faces south. In such a posi- 

 tion the plants require little 

 attention beyond watering, and 

 they are ever a source of in- 

 terest and pleasure. The 

 night-blooming cereuses ( C. grandtflonts, and 

 others) the old man cactus, phyllocacti, the ten- 

 der epiphyllums, and, indeed, most other forms 

 of cactuses may, with ordinary care, be successful- 

 ly grown in a window. Epiphyllums and phyllo- 

 cacti are among the most popular of our winter 

 and spring-flowering stove and greenhouse plants. 

 The scandent species of cereus are seen to the 

 greatest advantage when trained against a wall or 

 on rafters in a sunny greenhouse. One pendulous 

 species, C. flagelliformis, the rat tail cactus — makes 

 a pretty hanging-basket plant. Cactuses may be 

 placed out-doors in summer without detriment, and 

 a bed of them gives pleasing variety. They should 

 not be turned out of the pots, tut plunged, slightly 

 over the rim of the pot, in the soil of the bed or 

 border, which should be at least twelve inches 

 above the ordinary ground level. Water is not so 

 apt to accumulate about the roots to a dangerous 

 extent during wet weather, when the soil is raised, 

 in this manner. The introduction of rocks and 

 boulders among the larger specimens, in outdoor 

 work would add much to their effectiveness. 



The culture of cactuses is not commonly understood. 

 The native soil is reproduced with an accuracy that 

 leaves little to be desired, but it is forgotten, or impos- 

 sible, to supply the native climate. One is useless with- 

 out the other ; and, since the climatic conditions must 

 be artificial, so the soil must be of a character to meet 

 the wants of the plants under the altered circumstances. 

 Rocky or barren sandy mixtures have been proved ab- 

 solutely worthless for established and healthy growing 

 plants. The mamillarias and other small growing kinds 

 succeed best in a mixture composed of two parts of 

 rich fibrous loam, to one of peat, and one of sand. The 

 more robust kinds thrive better when the mixture con- 

 tains an additional part of loam. Water is usually ap- 

 plied too sparingly during the growing season, and too 

 freely in winter. The free growing kinds, such as 

 cereuses, phyllocactuses, opuntias, etc , will require water 

 about once a week during the latter period, and for those 

 of slower growth about once a month will be sufficient. 

 The soil in which any of the species are planted should 

 not be allowed to become dust dry in summer. 



Cactuses shipped from their native soil and climate to 

 more temperate localities should be treated in a peculiar 

 manner. Place them in the sun to dry immediately 

 after unpacking. Two or three days of bright sunshine 

 will suffice to dry them thoroughly ; and afterwards 

 they should be planted in dry sand, placed in a position 

 fully exposed to the sun, and kept perfectly dry until 

 growth commences ; then they may be potted in the 

 regular compost, and otherwise treated as established 

 plants. 



The propagation of cactus plants is generally an easy 

 matter. Any of the species may be grown from seeds ; 

 those with elongated stems, such as cereuses, opuntias, 

 epiphyllums, etc., from cuttings of the young growth; 



