Cacti Home

NIGHT-BLOOMING CACTI

No collection is complete without a few of these interesting cacti whose flowers are at their best after midnight. The name, nightblooming cercus, often applied to this group is a misnomer, for none of the plants so-called are members of the genus Cercus. Four widely grown and quite amenable species are:

Hylocereus tricostatus		Hawaii. 14-inch flowers of snowy white.
Hylocereus undatus		West Indies. White water flowers resembling lilies, up to 12 inches in diameter. Partial shade and medium watering.
Nyctocereus serpentinus		Mexico. Flowers, white. Same sun and water as above.
Selenicereus pteranthus		Mexico. Long branches and foot wide flowers of white. Grow in shade and water moderately.