May 29, 1884. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
421 
Sevres, vol xv., and the Treasury of Botany). Some of the giants are 
shown with enormous stems, from which proceed a number of branches, 
which, when a -hort distance from the main stem, assume a rigidly per¬ 
pendicular position, and give a candelabra-like appearance to the plant. 
One is represented with eight branches, varying in size, while older 
specimens which have lost the greater portion of the soft cellular tissue 
have only the woodv or fibrous matter remaining, and this has been most 
strangely torn, until the ends of the branches resemble birch brooms. In 
this state they remain for many years, still further increasing the pecu¬ 
liarities of the landscape. 
Julius Froebel has given a very graphic description of a Cereus district 
in his •* Travels in Central America,” page 498, which is worth rep oduc- 
tion here : ‘‘In the lower part of the valley of Santa Cruz the gigantic 
columnar Cactus, Cereus giganteus, is fir t seen upon the road. The 
inhabitants of the country call it Saguarro ; but vari us authors, and 
recently Bartlett, have applied the name of Pitaya (Pita-haya) to this 
remarkable plant This name, however, belong* to another species of 
Cactus of a similar but much lower growth. The Saguarro presents a 
thick fluted colimn, the size of a man’s body, and 80, 40, and even 
50 feet high, with sometimes three or four branches at its top, the whole 
looking like a gigantic candelabrum. The fig-shaped edible fruit grows 
at the edge on the top of the columns ; and from the great height of the 
latter it would be difficult to get at them, did not this remarkable plant 
itsedf afford the means of reaching it. The old stems, when decayed, 
split into a number of thin poles, standing in a circle the height of the 
entire column, enveloped in a loose network; and by the aid of ihese the 
traveller is enabled to knock down the fruit. I have been told that these 
poles form an ariicle of export from the port of Guajmas, and in Europe 
are made into walking sticks, and sold under the name of “ Spanish 
canes.” I cannot, however, vouch for the correctness of this account. 
The Pimas at the old Mission of San Xavier del Bac had a large store of 
Saguarro fruit, which is used as food in various ways. It is eaten fresh ; 
the sap is boiled to a syrup, known throughout Sonora by the name of 
* Miel de Saguarro ; ’ and a flour is prepared of the cleaned and dried 
seeds, which have some resemblance in appearance and t .ste to Poppy 
seeds, and are contained in the fruit in great quantities. This flour is 
made par'ly into bread and partly into a chocolate-like drink, called 
Atole. The fruit of the Pitaya is said to he far better than that of the 
Saguarro. Both are of grear importance to the population of Sonora. In 
some bad harvests occasioned by the want of rain, shortly before my 
journey through this State, a large portion of the inhabitants were obliged 
to live on these and other wild Cactus fruits.” 
Cultivated plants of this Cereus are m stly of small size, not exceed¬ 
ing 4 or 5 feet in height, and tbe majority are much smaller. These are 
generally inclined to be gl >bular when young, but as they advance the 
ridges become apparent, of which there are generally twelve, 1 inch 
deep and thick, and lj to 2 inches apart. The spiues are ashy grey, 
twelve to twenty or more in a cluster, rigid, half to 1 inch long, the 
clusters being about half an inch apart. The stem is 6 inches to 
12 inches in diameter in cultivated plants, but becomes much larger in 
its native habitat. The flowers I have not seen in England, but they 
are described by Engelmann as creamy white, the petals 14 inch long 
and three-quarters of an inch broad. By the same authority it is said 
that the fruit has the hardness of a green Cucumber, bursting open with 
three valves, and then looks like a flower, owing to the abundant crimson 
pulp inside with black seeds. This pulp, which has the consistency of a 
fresh Fig, separates from the other portion of the fruit when ripe and 
falls to the ground. 
Some difficulty is experienced in growing C. giganteus in this country, 
its progress being very slow in its early stages, and in reference to this it is 
worthy of remark that Eugelmaun mentions ‘‘the young plants are almost 
always found under the protecting shade of some shrub, especially Cera- 
dium flnridanum, so characteristic of the barren wilderness.” It would 
therefore appear that shade is beneficial in assisting the growth at fir.-t, 
and the hint might prove serviceable to growers who are not very suc¬ 
cessful with it. The seeds germinate freely, and those distributed by 
Mr. Thurber in Europe and Ameri/'a some years ago have yielded a large 
number of plant®, so that the species is by no means rare. CFsely related 
to this is C. Thurberi, which is found in some districts of Mexico, and is 
said to bear a fruit like an Orange, 3 inches in diameter, with crimson 
pulp. It. is termed Pitahaya by the natives, and under that name is 
mentioned by several travellers. 
Many more species might be described, but it will suffice to mention 
a few of the most interesting, as large collections are seldom seen in 
cultivation. C. niger is noteworthy for its peculiar dark green colour, 
which is especially observable in the young growth. C. Jamacaru, a 
Brazilian species, is very distinct and even han Isome, for the ridges are 
very prominent, and the colour of the young shoots is quite a glaucous 
blue, sometimes very bright. C. Tweediei is a pretty and distinct species, 
with slender stems and tubular orange-yellow flowers, 2 inches long, and 
crimson stamens. It is free, and when in flower is very beautiful. 
C. triangularis is an old inhabitant of English gardens, and is easily 
distinguished by its triangular stems, and is remarkable for its bright 
scarlet fruit, the size of a goose’s egg, the flavour of which is 
compared to Strawberries; indeed the plant has been called the 
Strawberry Pear. C. repandus also has a fruit which is considered to 
resemble a Strawberry in flavour, and the dry stems were at one time used 
as torches to assist the natives in catching fish. C. macrogonus is a quick¬ 
growing species, and is therefore useful for grafting many other Cactern 
upon, as has been already noted. C. candicans is notable for its slow 
growth, and as far as I can ascertain it has never flowered in this country. 
Mr. Major has a plant in his collection at Cromwell House which is nearly 
thirty years old, and is not 2 feet high, one of the mo t extraordinary in¬ 
stances of slow growth which has come under my observation. 
The climbing or slender-growing species, which include some of the 
most beautiful and useful of the Cereus in a horticultural point of view, 
are numerous, hut the following may he named as particularly worthy of 
culture:— 
C. gbandiflorus, Haworth. — The Night-flowering Cereus has gained 
a fame which entitles it to prominent notice, and plants might w 11 be in¬ 
cluded in every garden, for its flowering is a source of interest to the 
least observant persons. In the character of producing its blooms at night 
it is not alone, as several of the slender-growing species have a similar 
habit, but none equal this in beauty and fragrance. 
“ That flower, supreme in loveliness and pure 
As ihe pale Cynthia’s beam*, through, which unveiled 
It blooms, as if unwillirig to endure 
The gaze by which such beauties are assailed.” 
The flowers are really magnificent, and a plant with a d zen or two 
Fig. 96.—Cereus grandiflorus. 
expanded at the same time has a superb appearance, particularly in the early 
evening when the flowers first expand, and the powerful fragrance they 
emit is very agreeable, having been not inaptly compared to Vanilla. The 
stem is nearly cylindrical, with a few faintly marked ridges, bearing small 
clusters of spines, and rarely exceeds 1 inch in diameter, but attains a 
length of many feet, freely branching. The flowers vary in s ze from 
6 inches to 12 inches in diameter, the u*ual size being 8 or 9 inches ; the 
sepals are narrow, acute, and spreading, about one-quarter of an inch 
broad, 4 to 5 inches long, and thirty to forty in number, formingi 
beautiful fringe round the broader pure white petals, which are mote i& 
the form ot a cup, the stamens being extremely numerous wi h very long 
filaments. Mr. Major, however, informs me that he has seen two very 
distinct forms, one haying the petals distinctly cupped, and the other with 
