240 VINES 
but in dull, dark days of winter, it becomes nec- 
essary to hand-pollinate the flowers. The usual 
method is to pick a staminate flower, turn back 
the petals (being careful not to touch the anthers, 
and so rub off the pollen), then insert the anthers 
into a female, fruit-bearing, or pistillate blossom. 
The vines stand full sunlight in winter, but as 
the weather grows warmer and the light so strong 
that the plants show signs of wilting, the house 
must be shaded. Shade is best afforded by a 
slat trellis, such as is described in Chapter XV. 
By fumigating the house occasionally with 
hydrocyanic-acid gas, as recommended for toma- 
toes, you will keep down all insect pests; but for 
mildew, which often attacks this plant, the best 
plan is to use a sulphur burner, or to dust flowers 
of sulphur on the leaves. A good preventive is 
sulphur painted on the heating pipes every damp, 
cloudy day, when mildew is most apt to appear. 
As regards varieties, I prefer Sutton’s Every 
Day, a very free setter and the best cropper I 
know of. Telegraph is an old friend that has 
stood the test of time, while other good varieties 
are Sion House, Lady Kenyon Favourite, and 
Duke of Edinburgh. 
As a table fruit themusk melon (Cucumis Melo) 
is the most refined of all garden products when 
