129 



circumstances will permit, and the surface soil ought to be mulched early 

 in the summer to conserve the moisture as much as possible. 



PROPAGATION. 



Propagation may be effected by seeds, cuttings, layers, budding, and 

 grafting. Seeds are slow to vegetate, and often do not germinate till the 

 second year. Cuttings strike freely, but they do not make such goo~d 

 trees as can be obtained by other means. The same remark will apply to 

 plants raised from layers. Grafting and budding are the most generally 

 practised methods of propagation, as the strongest plants are obtained by 

 these means. The stocks may be either seedling Medlars or whitethorns, 

 the latter affording very good trees. Unlike most other cultivated fruits, 

 the varieties of Medlars are not numerous, and, consequently, a selection 

 is easily made. 



VARIETIES. 



The varieties are as follows : 



Dutch (Broad-leaved Dutch, Large Dutch}. This is the kind most 

 generally cultivated, as the fruit in size is greatly superior to that of the 

 other sorts. It is sometimes two and a-half inches across, and very much 

 flattened. The eye is very wide and open, and unequally rent, sometimes 

 to the circumference of the fruit. In flavour the fruit is good, but 

 somewhat inferior to the Nottingham. 



Nottingham (Narrow-leaved Dutch, Small- fruited). This kind is in 

 size considerably smaller than the Dutch, but is more highly flavoured. 

 Its fruit is usually about one and a-half inches in diameter, and turbinate. 



^toneless (Sans Noyau, Sans Pepins). This is a very small-fruited 

 variety, in shape resembling the Nottingham, but somewhat inferior in 

 flavour. It is rarely more than one inch in diameter, and quite free from 

 seeds or woody core. 



MELON. 



HISTORY AND USES. 



Melons, strange to say, are usually classed with vegetables, which is 

 probably owing to the fact that they are annuals, and generally cultivated 

 as kitchen -garden plants. They are, however, justly entitled to a 

 prominent position among other fruits. The plants are known botanically 

 under the name of Cucumis, and they belong to the natural order 

 Cucurbitacese, or Cucumber family, which also embraces the Pumpkin, 

 Gourd, Squash, and Vegetable Marrow. The name Cucumis comes from 

 curvus (crooked), in allusion to the form the fruit of the Cucumber 

 usually assumes when growing naturally. 



The Rock, or Sweet, Melon is known as Cucumis melo. Melo is the 



