568 



THE V SA V. 



Texas through Mr. F, Lindheimer : in New Mexico, 

 through Dr. A. Wislizenus, and in northern Mexico 

 through the same explorer and Dr. J. Gregg ; some 

 others (and among them the giant of cactuses) were indi- 

 cated in the Gila country by the then Lieutenant W. H. 

 Emory. Soon afterwards Mr. A. Fendler collected 

 several new species about Santa Fe. Mrs. Charles 

 Wright, a few years later (1849), discovered in western 

 Texas and southern New Mexico, still other undescribed 

 cactuses. 



"But the greatest addition to our knowledge of the 

 cactaceae of the northern part of the United States was 

 made by the gentlemen connected with the United 

 States and Mexican Boundary Commission, at first 

 under Coloner Graham, and subsequently under Major 

 Emory. Science is indebted principally to Dr. C. C. 

 Parry, Mr. Charles Wright, Dr. J. M. Bigelow, Mr. 

 George Thurber and Mr. A. Schott, for valuable col- 

 lections of living, as well as dried specimens, and for 

 full notes taken on the spot. About the same time, M. 

 A. Trecul, of France, and after him Dr. H. Paselger, 

 of Prussia, traversed southern Texas and northern 

 Mexico, collecting many cactaceae, and increasing our 

 knowledge of this interesting branch of botanical science. 



" The Pacific railroad expeditions since 1853 have 

 opened fields not before explored, and Dr. Bigelow, the 

 botanist and physician of Captain A. W. Whipple's 

 expedition along the thirty-fifth parallel, availed himself 

 of these opportunities in a most successful manner ; 

 while Dr. F. V. Hayden, almost unaided in his adven- 

 turous expedition, has extended our knowledge of the 

 northernmost cactaceas in the regions of the upper 

 Missouri and Yellowstone rivers. 



" The last, but by no means least addition, was made 

 in 1854 and 1855, by Mr. Arthur Schott, during the 

 exploration under Major Emory of the country south of 

 the Gila river, known as the Gadsden Purchase." 



Confusion Confounded. — One or two things that 

 came up at the nurserymen's convention form such an 

 excellent commentary upon some of the matter in The 

 American Garden for June, that "I made a note of 

 them " for you. In that number Julius R-/i-owbotham's 

 valiant warfare on the botanies was funny, and no doubt 

 many of your readers agreed with him. But at the late 

 convention, during a discussion about forest-tree plant- 

 ing, the " black locust " was several times mentioned by 

 western men. A gentleman from the east (Mr. Hull, of 

 N. Y., I believe) asked if by this the honey locust was 

 meant. One gentleman said "no," very emphatically ; 

 another said "yes," taking the words from the other's 

 mouth ; half a dozen explained the whole thing, while 

 the one who had just asked the question looked blanker 

 every moment. It took about ten minutes of the valuable 

 time of the association to elucidate the fact that the 

 ' ' three-thorned acacia " and the ' ' honey-locust " are the 

 same, and that the "black locust" is entirely different. 

 In the meanwhile, Mr. Fernow, the national superin- 

 tendent of the forestry division, labored, without much 

 apparent success, to instil into the minds of all present 



that if they should call the honey-locust by its botanical 

 name of gleditschia, there would be no confusion. The 

 matter ended with a hearty laugh, caused by one of the 

 western men replying to an easterner's question, as to 

 whether he would get black locust if he sent to them for 

 honey locust, that if he sent to a western man he would 

 get jttst what he sent for .' — C. S. Valentine. 



Education and Journalism. — In connection with J. 

 H. McF. 's assertion that the " way to educate the dear 

 people against being humbugged is through an honest 

 horticultural publication " (June issue, p. 377), place 

 this fact : In a national convention which the promoters 

 had striven to make the best that had ever been held, 

 and when special effort had been made to have the best 

 speakers in the country to deliver addresses on the most 

 live, and most practical topics, very little was brought 

 out that had not already appeared, in various forms, in 

 our best agricultural and horticultural publications. 

 The convention was a grand educator ; the matter was 

 brought together in systematic form, which cannot 

 always be done in our journals. What better exposi- 

 tion could we have of the value of these periodicals ? — 

 C. S. Valentine. 



The Mamillarias. — It would be very difficult to find 

 any plants in the whole vegetable kingdom which pre- 

 sent such beautiful examples of symmetry as the mam- 

 illarias, and in their own family they are also unique 

 in this respect, for though many of the grotesque 

 opuntias, cereuses and echinocactuses possess larger 

 and more brilliant flowers, and they are surpassed in 

 horticultural value by the phyllocactuses and epiphyl- 

 lums, yet for delicacy of design they are unrivalled. A 

 large number of them resemble exquisite pieces of 

 mechanism finished with the greatest minuteness and 

 accuracy. Others, again, might be imagined to have 

 undergone a kind of crystallization, their whole surface 

 being frosted over with star-like spiculae arranged with 

 geometrical precision ; and still others appear as if 

 covered with the finest gossamer. 



Culture. — Many of the mamillarias are found in 

 limestone districts, and though inhabiting varying cli- 

 mates and elevations, they may be all grown in an inter- 

 mediate temperature, such as a greenhouse, where they 

 can be protected from frosts during the winter, but a 

 higher temperature is needed during the spring and 

 early summer when growth is advancing. A free ex- 

 posure to light and sun is requisite at all times. The 

 soil should consist of two-thirds sandy loam and one- 

 third finely broken bricks and lime rubbish. The pots 

 must be well drained, and water should always be care- 

 fully supplied, but much injury is often done by keeping 

 the plants too dry. They should be examined at least 

 once a week, even in the winter, and if the temperature 

 is above 50° and the weather bright they may be safely 

 watered. These plants may be advantageously grown 

 in a glass case, as this protection keeps the dust from 

 their beautiful spines. 



Propagation- — The majority of the tufted and branch- 

 ing species can be readily increased, either by the offsets 



