74 MELON. 



MELON. 

 MELON. Cucumis melo. 



VARIETIES. 



Green-fleshed Citron. 

 Murray's Pineapple. 

 Green-fleshed Persian. 

 Green-fleshed Nutmeg. 



Large Yellow Canteleupe. 

 Pomegranate, or Musk Scented. 

 SkiJlman's Fine Netted. 

 Snake, (curious.) 



THE Melon is an exotic plant, growing wild in Asia. It 

 is cultivated in all the warm countries of Europe, and also 

 in Afiica and America, where its salubrious and cooling fruit 

 is generally esteemed. 



For the varieties of the Musk or Canteleupe Melons, pre- 

 pare a piece of rich ground early in May ; manure it and 

 give it a good digging ; then mark it out into squares of six 

 feet every way ; at the angle of each square, dig a hole 

 twelve inches deep and eighteen over, into which put aboul 

 six inches deep of old rotten dung ; throw thereon about four 

 inches of earth, and rnix the dung and earth well with the 

 spade ; after which draw more earth over the mixture, so as 

 to form a circular hill about a foot broad at top. (For a de- 

 finition of the term " hill," see article Cucumber.) When 

 your hills are all prepared, plant in each, toward the centre, 

 six or eight grains of seed, distant two inches from each 

 other, and cover them about half an inch deep. One ounce 

 of good Melon seed will plant about one hundred and twenty 

 hills. 



When the plants are in a state of forwardness, producing 

 their rough leaves, they must be thinned to two or three in 

 each hill ; draw earth from time to time round the hills, and 

 about the roots of the plants. As soon as the plants have 

 spread into branches, stop them by pinching off the top of 

 the first runner bud ; this will strengthen the plants, and pro- 

 mote their perfecting the fruit early ; after which keep the 

 ground perfectly free from weeds by frequent hoeing. 



There are many varieties of the Melon, highly esteemed 



