THE GLOBOSE AND COLUMNAR STEMMED SPECIES.
Many of these are unsuited for culture in ordinary plant-houses, whilst others are so rare that, although cultivated in botanical collections, they are not available for ordinary gardens, not being known in the trade. There are, however, a good many species that may be obtained from dealers in Cactuses, and to these we shall confine ourselves here. At Kew, the collection of Cereuses is large and diversified, some of the specimens being as tall as the house they are in will allow them to be, and the appearance they present is, to some eyes at least, a very attractive one. Such plants are: C. candicans, which is a cluster-stemmed kind, very thick and fleshy, and in shape like an Indian club; C. chilensis;—with tall hedgehog-skinned stems, the numerous ridges being thickly clothed with clusters of yellowish spines, which become dark brown with age; C. Dyckii, 10 ft. high, the stems thick and fleshy, with ridges 1½ in. deep; C. gemmatus, a hexagonal, almost naked-stemmed species 10 ft. high; C. strictus, C. peruvianus, C. geometrizans, and C. Jamacaru, which are tall, weird-looking plants, 10 ft. or more high, some of them freely branched. The following is a selection of the largest-flowered and handsomest kinds:
[C. Berlandieri] (Berlandier's); Fig. 17.—A distinct and beautiful plant, of dwarf, creeping habit, forming a tuft of short branchlets springing from the main procumbent stems, none of which exceed 6 in. in length by ¾ in. in thickness. They are almost round when old, the younger ones being slightly angled, and bearing, along the ridges, little tubercles, crowned with short spines. Even old stems are very soft and watery, and, on this account, it is necessary for the safety of the plant, in winter, that it should be kept absolutely dry. The flowers are produced on the young upright stems, and they are as much as 4 in. across. They are composed of a regular ring of strap-shaped, bright purple petals, springing from the erect bristly tube, and in the centre a disk-like cluster of rose-coloured stamens, the stigma standing well above them. In form the flowers are not unlike some of the Sunflowers or Mutisia decurrens. They are developed in summer, and on well-grown plants the display of blossom is exceptionally fine. This species is sometimes known as C. repens and C. Deppii. It is a native of South Texas and Mexico, where it is found growing in sandy or gravelly soils, on dry, sunny hill-sides. It should be grown in a cool greenhouse or frame, in a position where it would get plenty of sunshine to ripen its growth and induce it to flower. In winter it should be placed close to the glass, where the sun can shine full on it, and where it will be safe from frost. It will not thrive if wintered in a warm house. In April, it should be examined, repotted if the soil is sour, and kept watered as growth commences.
FIG. 17.—CEREUS BERLANDIERI
[C. Blankii] (Blank's); Fig. 18.—This is very similar to the C. Berlandieri in habit and stem characters, differing only in having longer, broader, less spreading petals, a club-shaped stigma, and in the colour, which is a deep rose, flushed in the throat with crimson. A comparison of the figures here given will show the differences better than any description. C. Blankii comes from Mexico at high elevations, and thrives under cultivation with the same treatment as the preceding. It is very common in Continental gardens, where it is grown out-of-doors, being protected from cold in winter by a handlight and straw. It flowers in summer.
FIG. 18.—CEREUS BLANKII
[C. caerulescens] (blue-stemmed); Bot. Mag. 3922.—An erect-growing, tall Cactus, rarely branching unless made to do so by cutting off the top of the stem; furrows and ridges about eight, the ridges prominent, waved, and bearing tufts of blackish wool, in which are set about a dozen black spines, ½ in. long; the stem when young and in good health is bluish in colour. Flowers springing from the ridges, about 8 in. long, the tube covered with reddish-grey scales, which pass upwards into the sepals; petals spreading, white, the margins toothed, and forming a spreading top, not unlike a large white single Camellia; the stamens are arranged in a sort of cup, and are yellow-anthered, with a large rayed yellow stigma in the middle. In the Botanical Magazine it is stated that the flowers of this species are equal and even superior to those of C. grandiflorus; but we have not seen flowers such as would bear out that statement. This species is too tall-stemmed to be recommended for windows or small greenhouses; but where room can be afforded it, the attractive colour of its stems, together with the size and beauty of its flowers, should win it favour. It blossoms in summer, generally about July, and is a native of Mexico. Introduced in 1841.
[C. caespitosus] (tufted); Fig. 19.—A dwarf species, the stem not more than 8 in. high by about 4 in. in diameter, sometimes branched, or bearing about its base a number of lateral growths, which ultimately form a cluster of stems—hence the name. The bark or skin of the stem is greyish-green, and the ribs, of which there are from a dozen to eighteen, are thickly covered with clusters of whitish wool and spines, the latter rose-tinted, and radiating in all directions. The flowers are produced on the top of the stems, and are short-tubed, the tube clothed with little bundles of spines; spread of the petals (from thirty to forty in each flower), 4 in.; colour deep rose; anthers and stigma forming an eye-like cluster, the former yellow, and the latter bright green. Flowered at Kew for the first time in 1882, but, although new to cultivation, it is becoming plentiful. Native of New Mexico and Texas. For windows or small greenhouses this is a most suitable plant, as it flowers freely and keeps in good health in an ordinary greenhouse temperature, always, however, requiring plenty of sunlight and rest during winter. By placing it upon a shelf near the glass from October to March, allowing it to remain perfectly dry, and afterwards watering it freely, the flowers should make their appearance early in summer. A plant with several stems, each bearing a large bright rose blossom, sometimes two, presents an attractive appearance.