A WONDERLAND OF CACTUSES. 



NOVELTIES, CURIOSITIES, BEAUTIES —EXPERIENCES OF A CACTUS FANCIER. 



jnif T IS not saying too much to assert that 

 cactuses are now about as popular as or- 

 chids ; indeed, we do not hesitate to say 

 that there are, in this country, more cul- 

 ti\ ators of the former than of the latter. 

 The reasons therefor are many. In the 

 first place, cactuses are cheaper ; next, 

 they are freer bloomers — their flowers 

 are as brilliant, as large and in many 

 cases as interesting. We dcubt, in fact, 

 if the true night-blooming cereus can be 

 ri\-aled by any orchid. Again, their 

 management is of the easiest ; they do 

 not require a carefully regulated temper- 

 ature, nor close attention as to moisture and water- 

 ing. One can safely take his summer vacation and 

 lea\e the cactuses in the house or garden without 

 fear of losing them ; in fact, a good rest often helps 

 them wonderfully, even in summer. A choice col- 

 lection of the various cactuses when not in bloom 

 is certainly much more interesting than orchids 

 can ever be when not in flower. 



Until recently florists have generally neglected cac- 

 tuses, the main reasons being the slow growth of the 

 scarcer varieties, the difficulty of obtaining them at any 

 kind of reasonable price, and the limited demand. These 

 objections have now been overcome, and as a result, al- 

 most all florists give them a prominent place in their 

 greenhouses as well as in their catalogues. 



The most popular kinds are not the large fine-bloom- 

 ing phyllocactuses that have little beauty of their own, 

 but rather the curious, handsome-spined mamillarias, the 

 large and brilliant flowering echinocactuses and echino- 

 cereuses, the gorgeous night-blooming cereuses, as well 

 as the interesting oddities in anhaloniums, curious grafts, 

 monstrosities, etc. 



When showing any one our collection, the echino" 

 cactuses invariably receive a large share of admiration, 

 especially when they are in bloom. The finest of all, 

 without a single exception, is Eihiiiocai/iis Criisoni, which 

 was discovered a few years ago on an almost inaccess- 

 ible Mexican mountain, and named in honor of Mr. Gru- 

 son, the celebrated manufacturer, of Magdeburg, Ger- 

 many, who has the finest collection of cactuses in Europe. 

 The plant is generally of globular shape, and the beauty 

 consists in the bright golden color of the almost trans- 

 parent spines, which cover it so closely as to give the 

 plant the appearance of a ball of gold. Specimens a 

 few inches high, as well as those measuring a foot or 

 more, are equally beautiful. A strange peculiarity about 



this cactus is that never a bug or scale has been seen 

 on it. 



Totally distinct from the foregoing is Ecliinocactus or- 

 natiis. In this species the spines and ribs are few in 

 number, the color of the plant is grayish-green, and it 

 is entirely covered with pure -white raised spots. The 

 contrast between it and E. Grusoni must be seen to be 

 appreciated. 



Third on the list we would place Echinocactus helo- 

 plioriis, fine specimens of which are exceedingly scarce 

 and valuable. It attracts attention from the fact that 

 the body of the plant is deep green in color, and that it 

 is curiously marked with dark red bands. This is the 

 only variegated echinocactus known. 



It is a curious fact that nearly all the fine-spined echi- 

 nocactuses are inferior in bloom to those with less bril- 

 liant "plumage." E. Texcnsis, E. bicolor, E. lophoiliele, 

 for instance, are not handsome plants, but their flowers 

 are large and brilliant. The same might be said of E. 

 capricoriiis, which is more curious than attractive, but 

 has the merit of producing for months in succession-, 

 flowers five to six inches long, of the most intense golden 

 yellow with bright vermilion center. 



The echinocereuses are not so brilliant in their spines, 

 with the exception of Ecliinocerciis pectinattis, var. auidi- 

 lans, recentl}' christened "Rainbow Cactus," probably 

 because the rings of bright red, pink and white spines 

 encircle the plant in curious symmetry. This is undoubt- 

 edly one of the most profuse bloomers among cactuses. 

 We have just taken a photograph of a plant five inches 

 high showing thirteen well developed buds. When fully 

 expanded, the flowers measure four to six inches across, 

 and when in bloom the plants are dazzling. The flow- 

 ers are edged with a deep border of brilliant magenta ; 

 the center is pure white, the stamens orange and the 

 pistil bright green. This plant is also of the easiest pos- 

 sible management, delighting, however, in the fullest sun 

 and sandy soil. If planted in red gravel the spines will 

 become almost blood red. Our experience this year 

 with some thousands of plants has decided us to place it 

 at the head of all echinocereuses. In Europe, where it 

 is still new, it is called Le Roi des Eclnnoceretis, "the 

 king of the echinocereuses." 



Echiiiocfi-eus pectinattis itself must now take second 

 place on the list, and yet it has advantages not possessed 

 by var. candicans, in that it forms large clusters of heads, 

 each of which bears several flowers that are very fra- 

 grant. On single plants, the flowers will often measure 

 five inches in diameter. This species is becoming less 

 plentiful in its native home; collected specimens are 

 small and seldom perfect in shape, while three or four 

 years ago magnificent clusters, measuring two feet across. 



