DESERT PLANTS 
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fingers on a human hand. The stiff stalks are heavily spined, and 
studded with tiny, rounded, fleshly-soft, green leaves, for a season, 
that scarcely protrude beyond the spines and cover the cane from 
the ground to its extreme length—or to the "bloom”. The plant is 
very odd, decorative, and lends a distinct atmosphere to Spanish 
grounds. 
Others of the Cacti that may be employed for their decidedly 
individual contributions to a garden are those of the Opuntia, 
known as Tree Cactus, of which the Opuntia Aborescens possibly 
has the loveliest blossoms; the Rat-tail Cactus (Opuntia Lepto- 
caulis), an erect bushy plant composed of greyish green stems, 
usually considerably smaller than a pencil and bristling with spines; 
or the various Echinocactus, great rounded heads with fairly long 
spikey thorns radiating from geometrically placed centers, the most 
common being the "Hedgehog,” the "Pin Cushion,” the "Nipple,” 
and the "Barrel” or "Water” Cactus. Of the Echinocereus family, 
probably the "Strawberry” or "Banana” Cactus, or Classen’s Cac¬ 
tus are the most ornamental, both producing shell-pink to deep 
rose-colored flowers in profusion. 
Loveliest of the White Yuccas are the filamentosa (Adams 
Needles) whose bloom stalk grows very tall, having a pyramid of 
white bells drooping from wide-spreading arms. Those which differ 
only by their lower bloom stalks are the Yucca elata, or glauca, 
and the Yucca Arkansas. This group are also locally known as 
"Bear Grass”. The Spanish Dagger (Don Quixote’s Lance or Yucca 
Treculeana) whose bloom stalks are considerably shorter, has wider, 
more sharply-pointed leaves and their habit of growth, instead of 
remaining grass-like near the earth, radiate in a crown from a 
single or branched, palm-like trunk. 
The Red Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora, or Engelmanni) sends 
up and outward, gracefully curved, arching, bloom stalks whose 
stem in addition to the pendant blossom-bells with golden clap¬ 
pers, is scarlet. Its rush-like rosette of drooping leaves, quite char¬ 
acteristic of Yuccas, have those curling white threads along their 
sword-like sides found on many of the varieties of this family of 
plants. 
Others 
of the 
Cacti 
White 
Yucca 
The Red 
Yucca 
