C. extensus (long-stemmed); Bot.  Mag. 4066.—­This has long rope-like stems, bluntly triangular, less than 1 in. thick, with very short spines, arranged in pairs or threes, about 1 in. apart along the angles, and aerial roots.  The flowers are developed all along the stems, and are composed of a thick, green, scale-clothed tube, about 3 in. long; the larger scales yellow and green, tipped with red, and a spreading cup formed of the long-pointed sepals and petals, the former yellow, green, and red, the latter white, tinted with rose.  The flower is about 9 in. across.  When in blossom, this plant equals in beauty the finest of the climbing Cactuses, but, unfortunately, it does not flower as freely as most of its kind.  It is cultivated at Kew, where it has flowered once during the last five years.  A native of Trinidad, whence it was introduced, and first flowered in August, 1843.  Judging by the conditions under which it grows and blossoms in its native haunts, no doubt its shy-flowering nature under cultivation here is owing to the absence of a long continuance of bright sunshine and moisture, followed by one of drought and sunlight.  If placed in a favourable condition as regards light, and carefully treated in respect of water, it ought to flower.

C. fulgidus (glittering); Bot.  Mag. 5856.—­In the brilliant deep scarlet of its large buds, and the bright orange-scarlet of the expanded flowers, this species stands quite alone among the night-flowering, scandent-stemmed Cereuses.  Its one drawback is its shy-flowering nature, as it is rarely seen in blossom even when liberally treated, and along with the other kinds which flower so freely.  The history of this plant is not known; but it is supposed to be a hybrid between C. Pitajayi or variabilis and one of the scarlet-flowered Phyllocactuses, or, possibly, C. speciosissimus.  It first flowered at Kew, in July, 1870.  Stems bright green, slow-growing, three or four-angled, about 2 in. wide; angles much compressed, so that a section of the stem shows a cross; margins notched, with clusters of short, hair-like spines at each notch.  Flowers 6 in. long, and about the same across the top; tube covered with soft hairs and short deep-red scales, which are enlarged towards the top, where they spread out, and form, along with the petals, a large rosette of several whorls, arranged as in a semi-double rose, the centre being occupied by a brush-like cluster of greenish stamens, with the radiating stigma standing erect in the middle.  It is to be regretted that the flowers are not more freely produced by cultivated plants.

C. grandiflorus (large-flowered); Bot.  Mag. 3381.—­There is scarcely any plant that makes a more magnificent appearance when in full blossom than this.  A strong plant will produce many flowers together, but they do not remain long expanded, opening at seven or eight o’clock in the evening, and fading at sunrise the next morning; nor do they ever open again, even when cut and placed in warm water in a