£82 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



dark green shading to straw color at blossom end. Spines few, very 

 small wliite. 



The squashes and punij)kins A\ei-e i>lanted eJune 7 and 8. 

 Mamiiioth Himuner Crookncvk, ^Sfraifjhlncck, Early Yclloic Bush Scallop 

 and White Bush Scallop ripened every fruit and have not much to 

 recommend them except their earliness. The late varieties are much 

 sui)eri()r, and the Huhhard, Avhicli may be taken as a standard for good 

 (juality, ripened well enough to keep in an ordinary cellar until the 

 latter part of January. Delicious is one of the most valuable varieties 

 tested. In color of skin and tiesh it resembles the Hubbard very much, 

 being somewhat lighter colored and smooth-skinned. In size it is smaller; 

 in quality it is nearly as good, and it has the advantage of being fit 

 to use before being fully ripe. VegetahlG Marrow is a medium early 

 variety of fair quality. The fruit is of good size, averaging about 10 

 inches in length and 5 inches in diameter, cylindrical, smooth, pale 

 vellow. with hard but verv thin shell. 



Of the pumpkins, Sugar or Netc England Pic is the same variety 

 tested heretofore as Sugar I*ie. The fruit while small is thick fleshed, 

 of excellent quality, very hardy and ripens early. Winter Luxury is 

 nearly as early and somewhat larger size but thinner fleshed. Sweet, 

 Avith more pronounced pumpkin flavor but of good quality. Large Sweet 

 Mammoth Pie has short vines, being partly bush form. The fruit is 

 large, cylindrical, of good quality but ripens rather late. 



Of the two varieties of Muskmelons tested Extra Early Citron ripened 

 nearly all its fruit and Earliest Ripe about one-half. Both are green- 

 fleshed and fairly SAveet. Colorado Preserving and Citron Melon are 

 varieties used for preserves, and the vines are quite hardy. They blos- 

 som late, but the large globular-shaped fruit ripens promptly' and is not 

 damaged if exposed to light frosts. 



Onions. — The varieties were mostly destroyed by the onion maggot, 

 AVhich seems to have come to stay. Assuming that those from seed might 

 escape if planted at some considerable distance from ihe sets, the latter 

 varieties were planted upon adjoining ground which had been in onions 

 during the preceding season, Avhile the seed was planted upon a ])k)t 

 about (500 feet distant where no onions have ever grown. The plants 

 were hardly large enough for fhinning out when the nmggots began 

 their Avork. The White Welsh, a variety exclusively used for bunching, 

 was not damaged, nor Avas the Egyptian, a someAvhat coarser variety 

 used for the same purpose. Of the others. Queen, an early. Avhite and 

 fial -shaped vaiiety, is the only one which ripened ([uiie a few large bulbs 

 A\liicii were not damaged. This being no doubt due to the more ra})id 

 groAvth of the bulbs Avonld suggest that better results might be ob- 

 tained from fall ])lanting exjieriments which it is hoped to begin during 

 the next season. 



Tomatoes. — Approximately 75 per cent of the fruit ripened, and Avhile 

 the better results are mainly due to the favorable Aveather of late sum- 

 mer, the fact that all side shoots Avere ])inched olf throughout the sea- 

 son and the i)lants Ihus trained fo single stems, Avas no doubt of material 

 assistance in hastening the ripening of the fruit by the freer admission 

 of direct sunshine. AVhat tlie i)lants thus lost in Avidth they gained in 

 height, for the 3-foot stakes to Avhich they Avere tied had to be replaced 

 by 5-foot stakes before the end of July, and at the beginning of Sep- 



