330 



VEGETABLE FORCING 



and stamens, 

 are borne in 

 separate flow- 

 ers on the same 

 plant. Figs. 116 

 and 117 show 

 that the flowers 

 are axillary and 

 that several 

 fl owe r s or 

 pickles may be 

 produced in the 

 axil of the same 

 leaf, whether it 

 is on the main 

 stem or an axil- 

 lary branch, as 

 illustrated in 

 Fig. 116. This 

 fact should be 

 kept in mind 

 when pruning, 



more CUCUtTl- 

 1 -11 1_ 1 



bers will be left 

 on the vines than will attain large size. The female 

 or pistillate flower is easily recognized by the ovary or 

 tiny "pickle," as seen in both of these illustrations. The 

 yellow corolla is somewhat larger than in the sterile 

 flowers. The pistil is compound and the stigmas are two- 

 lobed. The male or sterile flowers are much more 

 numerous than the fertile flowers, and their stamens are 

 more or less coherent. 



When .cucumbers are grown out of doors, bees and 

 other insects carry the pollen from the male to the female 

 flowers and thus fertilize them. In the greenhouse, bees 



Fig. 117. Branch of cucumber showing male and 

 female flowers. The latter may be recognized by the 

 miniature pickles. 



