THE PARADE OF THE DESERT FLOWERS
The lover of plants and flowers which thrive on the desert wastes has
often but little conception of the mystic beauty which lingers there,
wrapped up in the delicate waxlike coverings of these wondrous blossoms.
Exotic and strikingly beautiful, some of them are. It would seem that
Nature, the Great Gardener, has caused the mountains to grow their huge
trees bedecked in evergreen, snow-crowned and haloed in gorgeous golden
sunsets with tints of spectral beauty; the humid plains to grow their
grasses, somber and uninviting, the providers of mankind, and their
trees, low and squatty, with shade for the tired herd and the dusty
traveler, and also their velvet grassy slopes lovely to look upon.
But what of the desert! Well, we do not intend to paint you a picture of
desolation, where no living thing can grow. Out of the débris of worlds
in the making, so to speak, there was left the great Amphitheater of the
Sun where the scorching rays beat down. In this hot caldron of alkali and
sand and rock Nature went to work, and soon there appeared tiny spiny
shoots, leafy but devoid of color. All were hungry and thirsty, and soon
rain came, and then the transformation! Water appeared under the surface,
and slowly rose saturating the tiny roots. The hot winds of the day
turned to cooling zephyrs of the night which gently kissed each plant and
flower until the coming of the sun. With each kiss of the dew-laden night
air came the delicate perfume and the wonderful color scheme which make
all the cacti so attractive to the eye and so stirring to the senses.
From crannies and nooks, crevices and rock-cracks, along the foothills
and on the slopes, began to appear the haciendas of the flowers; in time
they thrived and multiplied. To-day on the great deserts of the Southwest
along the Arizona-California line and eastward, there are vast stretches
of cacti of every weave and pattern imaginable, as symmetrical in design
as though each were first wrought on the Infinite Draughting Board and
then carefully and wisely planted by the Great Gardener to live forever.
Our third trek starts from one of the beautiful California or Arizona
sites that dot the Colorado River bounding these two states, leading into
the gullies, draws, or cañons that are so numerous there, in search of a
peculiar and striking growth commonly known as the Hedgehog Cactus. Since
the species are very thorny, the comparison to the little animal so full
of bristles is an apt one. The scientific name, _Echinocereus_, taken
from the Latin _echinus_, hedgehog, and _cereus_, torch, or the
Hedgehog-Torch.
GROWTH AND HABITATS
The Hedgehog cacti are of the easiest culture in out-of-door gardens,
blossoming and fruiting profusely, but in greenhouse cultivation they
rarely flower; they thrive in any ordinary clay loam with some gravel or
coarse sand and with good drainage, and the desert species will even
tolerate some alkali. The fruit looks like a mass of enormous bright red
strawberries, and when cooled in the refrigerator, sliced and served with
cream and sugar is delicious, and sought after as a great delicacy by the
Indians and Mexicans. This marked resemblance has earned for
_Echinocereus_ Cacti the common name, also, of “Strawberry Cactus.” When
the berries ripen, their spine clusters fall away or may be removed with
the least effort. The writers have tasted this delicious fruit served
cold and also as a sauce and made into jam.
Strawberry Cacti are among the most popular plants for southwestern
cactus gardens and rock gardens because of their fine showy flowers, and
their profuse blooming and fruiting. A single plant in the University of
Arizona Cactus Garden during the present year had fifty full-blown
flowers at one time and continued in blossom for fully two weeks. In
culture the plants may be watered regularly once a month in the absence
of rain during the growing season; they require little other care. They
may be transplanted at any season provided the roots are not seriously
injured, and when transplanted early in spring they blossom during that
same season. Like other desert cacti, the Hedgehog or Strawberry Cactus
grows best in sunny locations. The plants grow with single stems or in
clumps, and from three inches to a foot and a half tall; others are
solitary, and some in large flat masses or hemispherical mounds. The
flowers are crimson and scarlet and pink and deep purple, and grow in
heavy masses; some are funnel-shaped and bell-shaped.
As we start on our journey early in May, we travel down a long, broad,
well paved highway, straight toward the rising sun. It is still quite
cool, but the day will be blazing-hot before long. In the distance a blue
haze hovers over Superstition Range for whose almost roadless cañons and
draws we are bound. As we proceed along the highway, the cacti get
thicker and thicker, and as far as the eye can see are many kinds of
Cholla, Pincushion, and Barrel cacti. Here and there is a stranger to us.
We are at last in a veritable museum of desert cacti and their flowers.
It might be called the “Parade of the Cactus Flowers,” for they are all
around and about us. We are hunting for the little Hedgehog, and indeed
we find him in plenty. There are about sixty different varieties of this
particular group of the Cactus Family—all very beautiful and interesting,
and some of them hide away so carefully and select such forbidden haunts
that it takes a long time to find them.
California Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus mojavensis_)
_Southeastern California, Southern Utah, Southern Nevada, and
Northwestern Arizona_
The California Hedgehog Cactus, or the Mojave Hedgehog, we espy first,
and how could one miss seeing the scarlet bloom suffused with nopal red
of this strange and beautiful Strawberry Cactus? The flaming blossoms,
two or three inches long and an inch or so across, with short broad thick
petals, borne singly though many grow on a single stem, remain open for
several days at a time, and cause the California Hedgehog to become one
of the most brilliant of the Strawberry group. The massive mounds of
white-spined stems, two to six or seven inches long, often several
hundred in a clump, covered with flashes of crimson flowers form a
bright-colored zone which in full blossom is a splendid sight, and at a
distance suggests a fire burning, with nothing to burn and sans smoke.
This species is called the Desert-Afire, or Burning Cactus, or the Mojave
Hedgehog as it was discovered on the Mojave Desert, and the name
_Echinocereus_ or Torch Cactus was first given to it. A close cousin is
the Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus of northern Arizona and New Mexico
and Utah.
Golden Spined Strawberry Cactus (_Echinocereus chrysocentrus_)
_Southeastern California, Western Arizona, and Northern Mexico_
Here in Southern California thrives the Golden Spined Albino, a foot or
so in height; the two-inch stems are furrowed with a dozen or so ridges,
on the sides of which appear interlocking scallops, of a yellow or medium
deep greenish cast. It has golden or light yellow spines like the pale
yellow or cream-colored hair of the albino, hence the common name is
quite apropos. It is to the circle of eight to thirteen radial spines
with their lovely golden hue that the specific title _chrysocentrus_
refers. The Golden Spined Strawberry Cactus with its pink and
lavender-pink flowers is a rare and beautiful sight on the desert here
before us, set in the dull tan or brown background of sand and rocks, and
with scarcely a green leaf or other color now in sight. The inch-long
fruit is densely spiny, covered with long, slender golden thorns, edible
and sweet; it ripens in August, a month or so later than the fruit of the
_Echinocereus Engelmannii_, its nearest relative.
Indian Strawberry Cactus (_Echinocereus Engelmannii_)
_Western Arizona, Northern Mexico, Southern Utah, Southern Nevada, and
Southern California_
Here is the _Echinocereus Engelmannii_, or Engelmann’s Hedgehog Cactus.
This fine Strawberry Cactus may be found clinging to the foothills and
low mountains in arid, sandy or gravelly desert land, growing in clumps
of a few to twenty or more stems, six inches to a foot or more high and
two or three inches through, rather cylindrical. This fine species is
very appropriately named in honor of Dr. George Engelmann of St. Louis,
one of the greatest authorities on cacti. Deep purple-pink flowers appear
in early spring, seeming at times to be clustered because of the masses
of brilliantly tinged blossoms three to four inches long; though in
reality they grow singly on the stems, and bloom for several days,
opening in the forenoon and closing toward evening. The thirteen to
seventeen stiff awl-shaped radial spines, one-fourth inch to one inch
long, and the three or four stout firm central thorns remind one of stiff
tousled medium brown hair partly turned gray, the colors being grayish,
tan, and brownish, all mixed together. The fruit, enormous
“strawberries,” is covered by many spine clusters which at maturity are
easily rubbed off, leaving it quite smooth, of a deep purple-red, with
many small black seeds set in a pinkish mass of sweet tender pulp. The
Pima and Papago Indians are very fond of this luscious cactus strawberry
when fully ripe and served with cream and sugar or cooked into the most
delicious conserves and jam; they gather it in considerable quantities
and occasionally one can buy the fruit or preserves in their markets, in
Arizona, Southern California or old Mexico. And so Dr. Engelmann’s
Strawberry Cactus has earned the name, also, of the Indian Strawberry
Cactus, or “Desert Strawberry.”
[Illustration: GOLDEN SPINED STRAWBERRY CACTUS (Echinocereus
chrysocentrus)]
Lovely strawberries on the end of an armored stick, delicate colorings,
enticing, inviting.
[Illustration: TURK’S HEAD (Echinocactus horizonthalonius)]
Quite like a Turk’s head when in flower with the pinkish purple tassel at
the tip.
[Illustration: TRAVELER’S FRIEND; CANDY CACTUS; TRAVELER’S COMPASS
(Echinocactus Covillei)]
If one gingerly cuts off the top of the plant, crushing the fleshy part,
cool refreshing water is revealed.
[Illustration: DESERT STRAWBERRIES; FENDLER’S HEDGEHOG CACTUS
(Echinocereus Fendleri)]
A large plant bears one or two quarts of delicious “cactus strawberry”
fruit.
[Illustration: INDIAN STRAWBERRY CACTUS; ENGELMANN’S HEDGEHOG CACTUS
(Echinocereus Engelmannii)]
The Pima and Papago Indians are very fond of this luscious cactus
strawberry when sliced and served cold with cream and sugar or cooked
into the most delicious conserves and jam.
Spiny Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus polyacanthus_)
_Northern Mexico, Southern Arizona, and Texas_
It is in Northern Mexico that we glimpse the Spiny Hedgehog Cactus, or,
as the scientist names him for his many spines, _Echinocereus
polyacanthus_, a fierce thorny little fellow. He has fifteen sharp stout
spines, somewhat flask-shaped at the bases, and spreading, at first pale
yellow, then becoming pinkish gray or grayish purple with the tips mostly
darker, deep yellow to blackish shades. His flame-red blossoms, sometimes
tinged with orange, are called single though they seem to be clustered
when abundant—large striking flowers, several blooming at one time in
early and late spring, and remaining open for days, not closing up at
night. Though not specially abundant, _polyacanthus_ is one of the
commoner varieties of the low mountains and foothills on the desert.
Salmon Flowered Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus Leeanus_)
_Northern Mexico_
A lustrous mass of flame-colored blossoms attracts our attention next, as
we speed along the highway intent on making camp for the night across the
United States line from Mexico. It is the Salmon Flowered Hedgehog
Cactus, whose large, wide-spreading petals (two or three inches across
the flower), are of a brilliant salmon hue, showy and attractive, and
remain open for several days at a time in the spring, not even closing at
night. The blossoms are borne near the tips of the stems, and as many as
ten or twelve are in bloom at a time. Though not native to the United
States, the Salmon Flowered Hedgehog is occasionally found in cactus
gardens in Arizona and California, and is well known to cactus
connoisseurs and gardens in Europe. The species was named _Leeanus_ in
honor of James Lee of England, who presented the type specimen to the
Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew about 1842.
Rose’s Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus Rosei_)
_Southeastern Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, and Northern Mexico_
We have crossed the boundary line into the United States at Nogales,
Arizona, and now in the early morning sunlight are approaching the low
Gila Range in southeastern Arizona. We have come to study a cactus which
closely resembles that fierce little fellow, the Spiny Hedgehog Cactus,
from which it differs in having very short and sparse hairs on the fruit
and calyx tube. It has been described only recently, and thrives in
western Texas, southern New Mexico, old Mexico, and southern Arizona,
along the _bajadas_ in rocky or gravelly soil, sometimes in sandy soil on
the dry mesas and low mountain sides. Growing in clumps of fifteen to
forty stems, four to ten inches tall, pale green or blue-green, it has
fourteen or more firm needlelike radial and central spines, pinkish and
brownish gray, and bright scarlet flowers bearing six hundred or more
stamens, purple anthers, and dull scarlet filaments. Unlike most cactus
flowers these blossoms remain open for several days and nights in
succession, in April, occasionally blooming into May. The berries ripen
in June, dropping their spine clusters then. The fruit of Rose’s Hedgehog
Cactus is about an inch long, greenish purple when ripe, edible, with a
pleasant, tart, gooseberrylike taste.
Fendler’s Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus Fendleri_)
_Southeastern Arizona, Mexico, Western Texas, Utah, and New Mexico_
Like many of his kind Fendler’s Hedgehog Cactus blooms during the day and
folds up his petals at night. There are eight to thirteen stout radial
spines, spreading and occasionally appearing comb-like in arrangement,
white fading to gray, and usually tipped with brown; also a very stout
central thorn or two, sometimes an inch and a half long, dark-colored and
curving upward. He has deep pink, rose and rose-purple bloom nearly four
inches long and about as wide, appearing in April and May. This is one of
the finest and most abundant of our Strawberry or Hedgehog Cacti;
occasionally plants will have as many as fifty blossoms open at a time.
Amidst desert surroundings with the gray or brown of the great arid
spaces for a background they make a glorious sight, and one wonders how
it is possible for so fine a flower to grow on the sandy gravelly
foothills without any attention or care from the hand of man. Here again
it is Nature, the Great Gardener, with her marvelous science and daring
ingenuity, who enables her plants to receive life and sustenance through
the miraculous reservoirs of root and stem, even amid the burning sun and
drying winds of the great desert of the Southwest.
The fruit, about an inch and a half long, is armed with numerous clusters
of short brown-tipped spines. When ripe it is light yellow, pink, or
purple-red, and the thorns, then, are easily rubbed off leaving the
surface entirely smooth. The mature fruit served with cream and sugar is
delicious and suggests strawberries; it is used as an article of food and
for barter among the Indians and Mexicans. A large plant bears one or two
quarts of the luscious fruit, in late May or early June. Hence this
cactus, too, is called the Indian or Desert Strawberry Cactus. The
species is named in honor of August Fendler, who collected extensively in
New Mexico and Arizona in the early days.
Rainbow Cactus (_Echinocereus rigidissimus_)
_Southeastern Arizona and Sonora_
Here is a real beauty, _Echinocereus rigidissimus_, the lovely Rainbow
Cactus, so called from the many colors of her spines arranged in bands a
half-inch to an inch wide, one following another in quick succession
extending around the plant. This beautiful desert growth is a great
favorite in cactus collections, but unfortunately, when removed from her
natural habitat, she pines away and is short-lived. The scientific name
_rigidissimus_ refers to her spines, which are noticeably stiff.
Among rocks and stones on hillsides in exposed and sunny locations, we
find the beauteous Rainbow, her bright rose-purple flowers with their
yellowish eyes, large and showy and funnel-shaped. Solitary they are, and
grow only a few on a plant; and the rose-pink and purple petals and
stamens, with their orange-red anthers forming a circle about the
rose-purple style and olive-green stigmas, are a sight truly admired by
every one fortunate enough to see it in full bloom. The Mexicans have
nicknamed her _Cabecita del Viejo_ because she clings to the foothills
and rocky mountain slopes. Four to fifteen inches tall, at a little
distance she appears banded with white or cream-colored, yellow,
rose-purple, pink, or maroon-purple bands, while the two dozen or so
ridges appearing vertically around the stems about a half-inch apart are
green and yellow-green in hue. The beautifully mottled thorns, a
half-inch or so long, are pressed closely against the plant, arranged
mostly in two comb-like groups and forming a continuous dense spiny layer
over the entire growth. The last spines of each season are rose-purple or
maroon, the earlier ones pink, yellowish, or whitish; and thus are formed
the zones of color extending around the plant, the brighter or deeper
hues of the spines appearing during periods of slow growth, the yellow or
whitish coloring during the time of faster growth in the spring. The
inner part of the stems of _rigidissimus_, along with the sweet and pulpy
ripe fruit, is relished and eaten by Indians and Mexicans, who consider
it a rare delicacy.
Short Spined Strawberry Cactus (_Echinocereus Bonkeræ_)
_Southeastern Arizona_
We are nearing the beautiful Pinal Mountains in southeastern Arizona,
nearing also the end of our journey over the broad expanse of the
Arizona-California desert. After all it is one desert; California,
Arizona—what are mere geographical lines or names in the desert land of
plants and flowers, in that vast natural amphitheater of the great
Southwest? Here in the long low rays of the afternoon sun we see at a
distance the purple haze gathering over the mountain peaks, and we know
that our day’s work is nearing completion with the coming of the
beautiful sunset hour. And here it is, four thousand feet up in the rocky
foothills, that we espy the rare little beauty _Echinocereus Bonkeræ_,
named for Frances Bonker, one of the authors of this book. It is a new
Strawberry Cactus, growing in the foothills and low mountain ranges of
southeastern Arizona, and was discovered only last year in the Pinal
Mountains and also near Oracle, Arizona. It differs from all other
species of its kind in that all the spines are very short, and its fruit
is sweet and more nearly the size of a strawberry than any of the others;
also the spines do not suggest the Hedgehog Cactus, so that the common
name of Short Spined Strawberry Cactus is given to _Bonkeræ_, as more
nearly resembling a strawberry in its fruit than any other of the
Strawberry Cactus clan. The juicy, luscious berries, less than an inch
long, are delicious as jam or served cold with cream; they are always the
first to appear in the spring.
Often but two inches tall, sometimes reaching six or eight inches, this
little Strawberry Cactus grows in clumps of two or three to ten stems
which are densely ridged and tubercled. The flowers, nearly three inches
long and about the same in width, are a deep rose-purple, and appear in
April, the first of the purple-flowered species to bloom. It is easily
recognized by its many ridges and very short spines, all less than a
half-inch long, which are whitish or yellowish when young and reddish
brown when mature, and by its bright purple blossoms, borne well up on
the stems, which open in the forenoon and close in late afternoon,
lasting for several days. Under cultivation the larger plants grow as
much as three inches in a season.
[Illustration: SHORT SPINED STRAWBERRY CACTUS (Echinocereus Bonkeræ)]
A new Cactus species named in honor of Frances Bonker.
[Illustration: SALMON FLOWERED HEDGEHOG CACTUS (Echinocereus Leeanus)]
A lustrous mass of flame colored blossoms. The species was named in honor
of James Lee of England who presented the type specimen to the Royal
Botanic Gardens at Kew about 1842, and is well known to cactus
connoisseurs and in gardens in Europe.
[Illustration: CREAM PINCUSHION CACTUS (Mammillaria Johnstonii)]
[Illustration: SHOWY PINCUSHION CACTUS (Coryphantha aggregata)]
[Illustration: SNOWBALL PINCUSHION (Mammillaria Oliviæ)]
[Illustration: CALIFORNIA PINCUSHION (Mammillaria tetrancistera)]
Our journey is almost ended, and our notebooks are filled with much
interesting matter about cacti heretofore unknown; we have found and
studied many interesting specimens of the cactus family perhaps never
before seen by the majority of travelers. We know now that it is
necessary to see them from both far and near to appreciate the loveliness
of these weird desert growths; and it seems very strange to us that so
much glorious color and beauty has to be hidden away out here underneath
the midnight blue of the sky, for only a privileged few to enjoy.
Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus coccineus_)
_Northern Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado_
Yet one more of the lovely Strawberry group must be added to our list,
growing far up in the towering mountains of northern Arizona and hence
not included in this present trek. The Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus
is this flaming cactus flower, which grows generally at altitudes of five
to seven thousand feet, its scarlet blossoms flashing here and there over
the mountain slopes, or dotting the oak, juniper, and pine formations in
dense masses of brilliant hue, compact clumps one to six feet across of
twenty to three hundred stems all closely set together; usually growing
in rounded mounds which exclude all other growth, and sometimes
comprising an important part of the pine and juniper plant coverings. The
stems are five to seven inches high, green and yellow-green, forming a
pleasing contrast to the crimson blossoms. The translucent whitish
spines, about a dozen in number, are flask-shaped at their bases and
spreading, while the flowers are slightly fragrant, a rare characteristic
among the _Echinocereus_ group. The fruit is spiny, and grows from
densely felted masses which remain as scars on the stems for years. This
Hedgehog Cactus may be easily distinguished from _Echinocereus Rosei_ by
its white or yellowish white spines.
And now the desert flower parade of color and beauty has passed in
review. One is not sorry to have come, for even when the days are hot and
dusty, the cooling desert winds appear with the approach of night. We
recall having read a great deal about the magic and lure of the desert
and its wondrous plants and flowers, and we realize now that one must
come and _see_ them to appreciate the beauty that lives and thrives away
out there underneath the stars, forever guarded by that All-seeing
Providence which placed them there so carefully and wisely that they
might tell us something of His Plan of things entire, wherein the
smallest blade of grass receives from Nature as does the wisest seer; for
the Infinite Mind of Nature is no respecter of persons or things, and
treats plants and animals and humans without favor or prejudice,
portraying therein God’s eternal care and watchfulness over all.
The Hedgehog or Strawberry Cactus Group (_Echinocereus_)
How to identify and how they grow
Plants grow with single stems or more often in clumps from three inches
to a foot and a half or so tall, sometimes in large flat masses or in
hemispherical mounds. The stems are simple, rarely branched, tubercled,
and covered with a series of ridges running lengthwise from top to
bottom; these ridges are almost hidden by a dense network of spines
spreading out over the entire plant, and causing such a marked
resemblance to the hedgehog that the group is named the “Hedgehog Cacti.”
The Hedgehog Cacti can be distinguished from young Sahuaro by the fact
that the thorns of _Echinocerei_ form a lacework extending across the
ridges, almost hiding them, while in the Sahuaro the network of spines is
along the tops of the ridges and does not extend across them. The thorns
are mostly of two kinds, centrals and radials, growing from less than
half an inch to three inches long. There are no spicules. The flowers are
funnel-shaped and bell-shaped, crimson and scarlet, also occurring in
pink and deep purples, large and showy, and growing in heavy masses. They
open in the forenoon and close in the afternoon, lasting several days, or
remain open for three or four days or longer without closing. The fruit
looks like a mass of enormous bright red strawberries and is delicious
served with cream and sugar; hence the name “Strawberry Cacti.” The
unripe fruit is exceedingly spiny, the thorns generally falling off at
maturity or easily dislodged. It has small tubercles which bear the spine
clusters and bracts.
How to grow
The Hedgehog Cacti are of the easiest culture in out-of-door gardens,
blossoming and fruiting profusely; in greenhouse cultivation they rarely
flower. They thrive in any ordinary clay loam with some gravel or coarse
sand (even tolerating a little alkali), and with good drainage. The
plants may be watered regularly once a month in the absence of rain
during the growing season; they require little other care. They may be
transplanted at any season provided the roots are not seriously injured;
when transplanted early in spring, they blossom during the same season.
Sometimes Hedgehog Cacti can be grown from cuttings made from the stems;
the cut surface should be allowed to dry and the cutting set about two
inches deep in moist sandy soil. The usual method is to grow these plants
from seeds sown in sandy soil mixed with a small amount of powdered
charcoal and leaf mold, a quarter-inch deep in flats or pots set in part
shade and with enough water to keep the soil moist. When a half-inch
high, the seedlings are transplanted to small pots, and later from there
to the garden. A southern exposure is very desirable.
California or Mojave Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus mojavensis_)
(Named for the Mojave Desert where it was discovered)
How to identify and how it grows
The stems of the Mojave Hedgehog Cactus are as long as seven inches and
of a pale green. The structure of the stems furnishes a dozen or so ribs,
and this arrangement provides the necessary strength for support. The
plant is covered with a whitish system of spines, slender and bent and in
age becoming gray. The spines are radial; they are not long but are
dangerous to touch. The flowers of this little plant are scarlet and
remain open for several days; they are rather small, not more than an
inch and a half across. The petals are mostly thick and broad and have
obtuse tips that are sometimes notched, while the ovary has white felted
areolas covered with short needlelike spines for protection. The fruit is
elliptical, about the size of an English walnut, and ripens in May and
June. We have found that the plants grow in loose clumps, forming into
mounds among the shifting sands, a conspicuous feature on the desert and
foothills with their flaming bloom, hence called also the Desert-Afire.
How to grow
These plants will grow outdoors where temperatures descend to twenty or
twenty-five degrees below freezing; in colder climates they may be grown
in hot, dry conservatories or rock gardens. Like others of this group the
plants may be transplanted at almost any season, and if planted in early
spring they blossom the same year. They grow in sandy or loamy soil with
enough water to keep the soil moist during the growing season; they
endure prolonged drought in their native habitats and hence should not be
watered excessively in cultivation.
Golden Spined Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus
chrysocentrus_—_Echinocereus Engelmannii_, variety _chrysocentrus_)
(Named “chrysocentrus” from its beautiful golden or light yellow
translucent spines)
How to identify and how it grows
The physical structure of the Golden Spined Hedgehog Cactus consists of
cylindrical stems to fifteen inches in height, tapering off towards the
ends or tops and covered with many scalloped ridges on which the radial
spines are placed—which, by the way, as usual in all cactus plants, are
dangerous because they are so sharp and so thickly intertwined. The
scallops of adjacent ridges are interlocking, and light green or yellow.
It is here that the areolas, or centers of growth, appear, densely
covered with tiny hairs. The spine system is grouped and spreading, with
four to seven central spines sometimes three inches in length, often
crooked or twisted, and surrounded by smaller radials scattered along the
stem ridges, not more than a fourth-inch to an inch long, all thorns of a
beautiful golden or light translucent yellow. The spines often vary in
their general characteristics, long and short, twisted and bulbous,
straight and bent and twisted, flat and grooved, tough and easily broken.
The flowers are about the length of a large duck egg, and consist of the
usual sepals and petals. The colorings vary from a light pink toning into
beautiful deeper lavender tints, then lavender filaments and yellow
anthers and stigma lobes of deep green, presenting a very beautiful color
combination. Golden Spined Cacti grow well in clumps along the arid
gravelly slopes of the rocky foothills of southeastern California,
western Arizona, and Sonora.
How to grow
Plants can be grown out of doors, and are not injured with twenty degrees
of frost. They grow readily from seed in pots or flats in moist sandy
soil, preferably with part shade for the first few months, but with a dry
atmosphere. Large plants can be transplanted late in winter or early in
spring in gravelly or rocky soil with a sunny exposure, and watered once
or twice a month during the growing season to keep the soil slightly
moist.
Indian or Desert Strawberry; Engelmann’s Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus
Engelmannii_)
(Named in honor of Dr. George Engelmann of St. Louis, one of the
greatest authorities on cacti)
How to identify and how it grows
The Indian or Desert Strawberry Cactus, like others of the Hedgehog clan,
has a system of cylindrical stems which grow about fifteen inches tall,
with a diameter of two to three inches, and the usual ridges along which
are placed the many sharp spines. The stems are yellow or greenish yellow
and of course fade a little with age. Quite regularly along the ridges
there are radially placed spines an inch long or less, and these make a
formidable armor against intrusion. The stout, firm, erect, or spreading
central spines are twice as long as the radials. All these thorns have
bulbous bases and most are grooved, curved, and twisted; the colors are
whitish to red-brown. The large flowers are about the width of a teacup,
the sepals and petals usually bright pink with beautiful light purple
tinting, while the filaments are pale lavender and the anthers
yellow—another striking color scheme of Nature’s combination. The fruit
is elliptical, of the size of a very small egg, and quite spiny. This
cactus grows well in groups of twenty or so on the sandy gravelly mesas
or along the rocky slopes, and is a very characteristic species on the
arid southwestern deserts.
How to grow
These plants grow outside without injury from twenty or twenty-five
degrees of frost; in colder climates they should be protected out of
doors or grown in a dry, hot, sunny glass house. Large plants are
transplanted easily in early spring, with care not to injure the roots or
stems; they thrive in gravelly, stony soils with occasional watering to
keep moisture in the soil during the growing season. Young plants grow
easily from seed with the usual care, moist sandy soil, partial shade,
and a dry atmosphere.
Spiny Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus polyacanthus_)
(Named _polyacanthus_ from its many spines, though it is not as spiny
as some other species)
How to identify and how it grows
The Spiny Hedgehog Cactus consists of a cylindrical system of stems
growing to ten inches in height, about two inches in diameter, with the
usual system of ridges, nine to eleven or so. It has the same spine
clusters along these ridges, radially arranged, and with the central
spines the longer, nearly two inches in length. In this case the spine
bases are flask-shaped and spreading. At first the colors are pale
yellow, later becoming grayish, pink-gray, or purple-gray with darker
tips. This change denotes the age of the plant. The flowers appear near
the tips of the stems and are about three inches long, with eighteen
petals that are thick and firm and spatulate, colorings ranging from
yellowish green bases to flame or orange-red blades. There are six sepals
of orange-red. The ovary has yellow spines with dense tufts of long
cottony hairs in the areolas. The plants grow on foothills and low
mountains from western Texas to southeastern Arizona in clumps of ten to
twenty or more. They often form in compact mounds, and they bloom during
April and May.
How to grow
Plants are not injured by temperatures as low as zero, but in lower
temperatures they require protection. They may be grown in cool, sunny
greenhouses, but they blossom best with outdoor planting. The plant may
be set out at almost any season—but early spring is best—in gravelly loam
or among rocks, with care not to injure the root or stem. The seed grow
readily in sandy loam in pots or flats, in diffused sunlight, with just
enough water to keep the soil moist. In cactus gardens the plants should
be given only enough water to keep the soil moist during dry spells, and
growth should not be forced.
Salmon Flowered Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus Leeanus_)
(Named _Leeanus_ in honor of James Lee of England, who presented the
type specimen to the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew about 1842)
How to identify and how it grows
The _Leeanus_, or Salmon Flowered Cactus, is identified by the general
characteristics of the entire Hedgehog Group. It is cylindrical, with the
stems tapered toward the tips, about four inches through near the base,
and with ten to twelve rounded ridges with acute apexes. Along these
ridges the usual system of spines is placed, with the shorter ones
radially arranged and very sharp. These radial spines are unequal in
length and are spreading from their bases, while the centrals are
stouter, the lowest two inches or so long, all thorns having bulbous
bases and a tannish brown color scheme, toning off to gray. The flowers
are among the largest of the salmon or scarlet forms—when opened, about
the length of a large egg—and have twenty-seven broad thick petals, the
tips well rounded; or the petals may be notched or tipped with a short
point. The general colorings are from orange-red to a flaming salmon;
hence the common name. There are many stamens of about the same length as
the style and stigmas. The style branches are light green and are
incurved. The stems of this cactus grow singly or in loose clusters, and
thrive well in sandy or gravelly loam.
How to grow
Little is known about growing this species under cultivation; it
transplants readily at almost any season and thrives in sandy or gravelly
loam with occasional irrigation to keep the soil moist during dry
periods. It may be grown outside in temperatures not below twenty or
twenty-five degrees of frost; in colder weather it should have
protection. It grows well in cool conservatories, but does not blossom
freely there.
Rose’s Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus Rosei_)
(Named for Dr. John Nelson Rose, Associate in Botany, United States
National Museum, Washington, D. C.)
How to identify and how it grows
Dr. Rose’s Hedgehog Cactus is also of the cylindrical stem variety, has
nine to a dozen obtuse ribs in its structure, and is pale green or bluish
green. The usual ridges prevail and are armored with clustering radial
spines of unequal length, very sharp and needlelike. Both radials and the
longer centrals are pinkish to brownish gray and have bulbous bases which
spread at the roots. In most of the other Hedgehog species the colorings
of the thorns vary somewhat. The bright scarlet blossoms are about three
inches long and remain open for several days and nights. The petals are
broad and spatulate and a bit thick, not opening wide. The filaments are
dull scarlet, the anthers purple, and the stigma lobes bright green. The
scarlet hue in the color scheme gives the plant a striking appearance on
the desert, beautiful to see. The fruit is elliptical and very spiny, a
greenish purple, and has a pleasant tart, gooseberrylike taste. The stems
grow in clumps of as many as forty, and range from the low foothills and
dry _bajadas_ of southwestern Texas to southern New Mexico and eastern
Arizona.
How to grow
These plants grow well out of doors and are not injured by zero
temperatures. They will grow in cool, sunny greenhouses. Transplant early
in spring without injuring roots or stems, in gravelly clay or rocky
soils; give enough water to keep the soil moist but not wet. Plants may
be grown from seed in the usual way, in pots or flats in sandy or loamy
soil in part shade, with enough water to keep the soil moist.
Desert or Indian Strawberry Cactus; Fendler’s Hedgehog Cactus
(_Echinocereus Fendleri_)
(Named in honor of August Fendler, who collected extensively in New
Mexico and Arizona in the early days)
How to identify and how it grows
The Indian Strawberry Cactus, also, is built up of cylindrical tapered
stems, in groups of ten or twelve, of uneven heights up to a foot, with a
dozen or so wavy ribs and clustered radially formed spines, a half-inch
or so in length, wide-spreading and lying close to the stem. The stems
are a medium deep green. The radials are of a white cast toning into
brown at the tips, the stout centrals dark brown and curving upwards. All
the thorns have swollen bases and are more or less variable in color. The
flowers are of deep purple and about three inches broad and long. There
are as many as twenty petals and fourteen sepals varying from rose-pink
to purple shades. The petals are spatulate and somewhat broad, the
margins finely toothed. The stamens are rather short, and the anthers are
yellow, while the filaments are of a light pink, toning off to green. The
flowers open in the forenoon and close in the afternoon for several days
in succession. The fruit is not large, no larger than a very small egg,
and matures in May, when the colorings range from pink to red or yellow.
When fully ripe the little spine clusters are easily rubbed off, so that
it is not hard for natives to handle the fruit.
How to grow
Larger plants are not injured by zero temperatures; in colder winter
weather plants require some protection or may be grown in cool, sunny
glass houses. They may be transplanted at any season in gravelly or loamy
soil irrigated enough to retain moisture during the growing season. Young
plants grow easily from seed sown in flats or pots in sandy or loamy soil
with some shade and with enough water to keep the soil moist.
Rainbow Cactus; Cabecita del Viejo (_Echinocereus rigidissimus_)
(Named _rigidissimus_ from the stiff spines)
How to identify and how it grows
The _rigidissimus_, or Rainbow Cactus, another of the cylindrically
formed cacti, is easily identified by the noticeably stiff spines, which
are very numerous. The stems grow to about fifteen inches tall, four
inches or less in diameter with a rounded-off top, singly, or branched
above. The cylinder is composed of about twenty-four ridges well covered
with very sharp radials, but with no central spines, a characteristic
uncommon in the Hedgehog group. There are great numbers of radially
placed spines, closely pressed to the sides of the stem. They are
arranged in two comb-like groups, one on each side of the areolas, and
interlock with thorns of adjacent spine clusters. This makes a dense
spine layer over the entire surface of the plant. These spines are less
than a half-inch long, and have swollen bases. They form in many colored
zones, or whitish, yellow, rose-purple to maroon-purple bands about the
plant. The flowers are about three inches long and as wide when full
open, and have some forty petals and thirty sepals. The petals have
pointed tips and are bright rose-purple with yellowish bases. The fruit
is covered with many spines, is about the size of a strawberry, fleshy
and sweet. The _rigidissimus_ invariably grows along the rock ridges and
rocky foothill slopes at altitudes of thirty-five hundred to fifty-five
hundred feet, the roots growing among the rocks. Its distinguishing
characteristic is the many colored bands of the spines around the plant,
suggesting a rainbow.
How to grow
Rainbow Cacti are not injured in zero temperatures out of doors, but with
colder weather than this they require some protection. They may be grown
in cool, dry, sunny conservatories. The Rainbow is one of the most
difficult of the cacti to grow under cultivation. Unless planted in rocky
soil, preferably early in spring, it will grow for only a year or two.
Young plants transplant more readily than older ones, and neither the
roots nor the stems should be injured in digging. Give enough water to
keep the soil moist during the growing season. Plants may be grown from
seed in moist sandy soil in part shade or diffused sunlight. When mature
plants are used and transplanted in early spring they blossom the same
season.
[Illustration: RAINBOW CACTUS (Echinocereus rigidissimus)]
A popular beauty, named from the brilliantly colored spines arranged
around the plant in many-hued bands or “zones.” Called by the Mexicans
Cabecita Del Viejo.
Short Spined Strawberry Cactus (_Echinocereus Bonkeræ_)
(Named for Frances Bonker, one of the authors of this book)
How to identify and how it grows
_Bonkeræ_, or the Short Spined Strawberry Cactus, is oblong-cylindrical
with the tips somewhat depressed. It has low obtuse ridges, fewer than
twenty, of a light green. These ridges are covered with a network of
radial spines, the younger ones whitish, fading to gray-white, yellow or
yellowish brown in age. The centrals are yellow-brown changing to
red-brown in older thorns. All the spines are less than a half-inch long
and vary in coloring, with brown bulbous bases and translucent tips. This
cactus is to be found in clusters of from two to ten stems, and is very
attractive with its rose-purple to deep rose-purple flowers nearly three
inches long, and its many stamens, stigmas, and filaments in bright and
light green. The fourteen petals and nine sepals have obtuse tips and
short points; the styles are longer than the stamens. Plants grow along
the dry foothills and low mountains in clumps of a foot or less across.
How to grow
This species grows outdoors and is not injured by temperatures twenty or
twenty-five degrees below freezing; in colder climates than this it must
be given some protection or grown in cool, dry, sunny greenhouses. Plants
may be grown at any season in gravelly or sandy clay soils with light
irrigation every two or three weeks to moisten the soil during the
growing season or in droughty periods. Or they may be grown readily from
seed sown in sandy loam in flats or pots, with partial shade and with
enough water to keep the soil moist. The species is a handsome one for
rock gardens, as yet little known. Mature specimens transplanted early in
spring blossom the same season.
Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus (_Echinocereus coccineus_)
(Named _coccineus_ in allusion to the bright scarlet flowers)
How to identify and how it grows
_Coccineus_, or the Crimson Flowered Hedgehog Cactus, is built up of
stems four to seven inches long and about two inches in diameter. The
tips of the stem are rounded and covered with radial spines no more than
three-quarters of an inch long. It has three central spines which are
much stronger than the radials, all thorns erect and spreading. They are
flask-shaped at their bases and are white to yellowish white. The flowers
are a beautiful bright crimson, about three inches long, and remain open
for several days before they close. The petals and sepals are thick and
firm, bright scarlet, and brownish or orange toward their bases, while
the tips of the petals are broadly rounded. The fruit pods are very
spiny. These plants grow in dense clumps one to six feet across and two
to three hundred stems in a cluster, at altitudes of five to seven
thousand feet in the foothills and cañons and along the lakes in northern
Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah, and in oak, juniper, and pine
formations of prairie lands. They prefer the gravelly clay loam of the
slopes in sunny exposures and are to be found also among rocks on the
high mesas.
How to grow
This species is not injured by temperatures twenty-five degrees below
zero, and hence may be grown out of doors throughout the country
generally. It furnishes very interesting specimens for rock gardens.
Plants grow readily in gravelly loam or limestone soils and may be
transplanted at any season. They thrive even in the hot Southwest but
should be given partial shade there and moderate irrigation. In these
warmer climates they blossom as early as April but rarely mature fruit.
They grow easily from seed in moist sandy soil or clay loam with part
shade, and preferably in cooler climates.