The publication of Cole's “Lithops - Flowering Stones” (1988) resulted in an easily readable and comprehensive modern handbook, but lacking a key to the identification of the species. Here an attempt is made to provide an easily usable and relatively unambiguous key to these species, using Cole's species concept and descriptive terminology. A brief survey of existing keys to the genus is also provided.

A new leafless, twining species of Cynanchum, C. sigridiae Meve & M. Teissier, is described from southwestern Madagascar. The new species is most closely related to C. lecomtei Choux and C. ampanihense Jum. & H. Perrier; all three species live in the southern part of the island.

A new species of Gibbaeum, G. johnstonii, is described. Imitaria N.E. Br. is resurrected at the new level of subgenus to accommodate this and G. nebrownii with similar floral and vegetative characters.

The long ignored generic name Pseudotephrocactus Fric & Schelle (c. 1933), which threatens Austrocylindropuntia Backeberg (1938) and Cumulopuntia Ritter (1980), is lectotypified, making it a synonym of Maihueniopsis Spegazzini (1925). Pterocactus tuberosus (Pfeiffer) Britton & Rose is reinstated as the correct name for P. kuntzei Schumann, which is the type of Pterocactus Schumann, and the application of both specific names is fixed by the designation of the same protologue illustration as neotype and lectotype, respectively.

James Donn's plant catalogue ‘Hortus Cantabrigiensis’ ran for 13 editions from 1796 till 1845. The history and scope of this publication is examined here, and, in particular, the succulents listed within the various editions are tabulated and assessed, showing a rapid increase in the introduction of these plants into cultivation over the 50 year period. In contrast, it is shown that no other catalogue of this kind spans such a broad time scale. In addition, some editions of Donn's catalogue are shown to have minor taxonomic significance.

In preparation for the treatment in the Lexicon of Aizoaceae, the circumscription and species composition of several genera are reviewed: Acrodon, Amphibolia, Arenifera, Ebracteola, Polymita, Psammophora, and Stoeberia. Several species are rearranged or transferred, and some new species are described: Acrodon quarcicola, Arenifera pungens, Polymita steenbokensis, Psammophora saxicola, Ruschia scabra, and Stoeberia porphyrea.

A study of the tree-cacti of the Florida Keys was carried out during 1991–1994. A total of 626 tree-cactus plants comprising a total of 3,360 stems scattered on 4 keys and apportioned among 8 disjunct populations is reported.

The circumstances surrounding the first cactus arrivals in England are analysed, and the claim put forward for Hugh Morgan (1530–1613) as a pioneer collector of them.

The purpose of this study was to assess the phylogenetic relationships between tribes Cereeae and Browningieae in the cactus subfamily Cactoideae. During field trips to Venezuela, Ecuador and Chile, tissue samples were collected from representative specimens in natural populations. Monvillea^* diffusa, M. maritima, and M. smithiana were virtually identical anatomically and, although similar to Cereus hexagonus, they were distinct in having large druses in their outer hypodermis and extremely small wall crystals in their cortex. Pilosocereus mortensenii was indistinguishable from the samples of Subpilocereus^* (S. ottonis, S. repandus, S. russelianus) but was very different from other pilosocerei (P. lanuginosus, P. moritzianus, P. tillianus). Samples of Subpilocereus, including P. mortensenii, were similar to those of C. hexagonus in having no hypodermal crystals, no druses in pith or cortex, few or no mucilage cells in pith or cortex. Anatomical characters supported a hypothetical close relationship between Armatocereus (A. brevispinus, A. cartwrightianus, A. godingianus) and Jasminocereus (J. thouarsii), but Jasminocereus had few distinctive features that could be used to link it strongly to any genus in this study. Both tribes were variable, but members of each resembled each other more than they resembled any member of the other tribe. Leptocereus quadricostatus (tribe Echinocereeae) did not obviously share more characters with one tribe versus the other. Pachycereeae are more similar to Cereeae than to Browningieae.

Three new names in Compositae (Asteraceae) and one in Portulacaceae are validated in advance for the IOS Lexicon.

A new miniature species of Bulbine, B. lamprophylla Williamson, from Nababeep, NW Namaqualand, Cape Province, is described and illustrated. It is considered to be allied to B. wiesei L.I. Hall and distinguishing features are noted.

A new species of Haworthia from the Eastern Cape is described as H. venusta. Its closest ally seems to be H. joeyae C.L. Scott and the points of difference are noted.

A new species of Dorotheanthus Schwantes, D. ulularis Brusse is described from sandy places on limestone, near Gans Bay in the south-western Cape, South Africa. The relationships of this new species is discussed.

Species of Brachystelma recorded in East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) are listed. A species previously known only from Zimbabwe, B. lancasteri, is reported from southern Tanzania. Brachystelma pellacibellum is described as a new species in Kenya.

Some notes on the validity of names published by Engelmann and Emory in 1848 are contributed by Roy Mottram. The alphabetic index of Opuntia names is continued from Bradleya 13: 88–118. 1995.