I regard all Cactuses not absolutely hardy as being tender and treat them accordingly. While a few degrees of frost may not hurt some of them, still it does not do them any good. Epiphyllums, Phyllocactuses, Rhip-salises, Melocactus and the more tropical Cereuses as C. grandiflorus, C. Jamacaru, C. nycticalis and C. ccerulescens like warmish winter quarters. The general run of " cushion " Cactuses, Opuntias and the like, if kept in dry airy places and inac-active, may be wintered safely in a moderately low temperature, but under 400 is unsafe. All Cactuses delight in being set out of doors in summer. Cereuses, Echinopsis and Opuntias enjoy being set out in open sunny places; but Mamil-larias, while they like being planted out, very much dislike moist foggy weather, heavy rains, warm weather immediately succeeding wet weather, and cold or heavy night dews; all of these cause "rust," and "rust" is incurable. I have always grown Mamillarias and all other delicate, weakly, new, rare and valuable Cactuses in cold frames in summer, and covered them over with sashes as a preventative against the above evil conditions.

In propitious weather they were fully exposed.

I prefer planting out even in frames in summer to keeping them in pots, because I thereby have a good opportunity to see that my plants are thoroughly cleaned twice a year - at planting out and lifting time - and the plants grow much better and bigger and bloom more copiously when planted out than when kept along in pots. If Mr. Robertson, p. 171, had much to do with Opuntia exuviata, I shouldn't wonder if he did say something naughty; but that species excepted, what in earth is there in other Cactuses to incite an evil word ? There is a knack in handling Cactuses. For a good many years I handled the fullest collection of cactaceous plants in the country, and twice a year every plant passed through my own hands. I myself planted them out in May and lifted or repotted them in September, and all because I was afraid if I trusted any of the workmen with the job they would be more careful of themselves than of the Cactuses. And I can assure you no orchidist ever watched the progress of Vanda San-deriana or Phalasnopsis Stuartii with more anxious pride than 1 did my Cereus Thurburi, C. Palmeri, C. Greggi, Echinocactus myriostigma, E. Phylla-canthus and other pets.

And how disgusted I would get when to some visitor I would point approvingly to Cereus giganteus, 20 inches high and 10 years old, to be informed, " Oh, that's nothing; you should have seen it at the Centennial." And sol did, and elsewhere, too; but such another life-long, garden-grown plant as that is I never came across east of the Mississippi.

I have found that each and every kind of Cactus that I have grown will do well in a gritty, turfy loam. Drain the pots well and pack the soil firmly. Lime rubbish, pounded bricks or rotten stone added to the soil has no visible beneficial effect whatever; the drainage will not clog nor the soil get sour if you don't over-water your plants. Glen Cove, Long Island, New York.