538 THE MELON. 



Hills are then marked out, six feet apart each way. These 

 hills are prepared by digging a foot deep, and two feet across, 

 which are filled half full of good, well-rotted manure. Upon 

 the latter are thrown three or four inches of soil, and both ma- 

 nure and soil are then well mixed together. More soil, well 

 pulverized, is now thrown over the top, so as to complete the hill, 

 making it three inches higher than the surface. Upon this, 

 plant eight or -ten grains of seed, covering them about half an 

 inch deep. 



When the plants have made two rough leaves, thin them so 

 as to leave but two or three to each hill. Draw the earth 

 nicely around the base of the plants with the hoe. And to pre- 

 vent the attack of the striped cucumber bug (Galereuca mttatd), 

 the great enemy of the melon and cucumber plants, sprinkle the 

 soil just beneath the plants, as soon as they come up, with 

 guano. The pungent smell of this manure renders it an effect- 

 ual protection both against this insect and the cucumber Jlea 

 beetle, a little black, jumping insect, that also rapidly devours its 

 leaves in some districts ; while it also gives the young plants a 

 fine start in the early part of the season. 



As soon as the runners show the first blossom buds, stop 

 them, by pinching out the bud at the extremities. This will 

 cause an increased production of lateral shoots, and add to the 

 size of the fruit. Nothing more is necessary but to keep the 

 surface free from weeds, and to stir the soil lightly with the 

 hoe, in field culture. In gardens, thinning the fruit, and placing 

 bits of slate, or blackened shingles under each fruit, improve its 

 size and flavour. 



To retain a fine sort of melon in perfection, it should be 

 grown at some distance from any other sort, or even from any 

 of the cucumber family, otherwise the seeds of the next gene- 

 ration of fruit will be spoiled by the mixture of the pollen. 



VARIETIES. More than seventy varieties are enumerated in 

 the catalogue of the London Horticultural Society's garden, but 

 many of these do not succeed without extra care in this coun- 

 try, which their quality is not found to repay. Indeed what is 

 popularly known as the Citron melon, one of the finest of the 

 green fleshed class, is the greatest favourite with all Ameri- 

 can gardeners. It is high flavoured, uniformly good, very 

 productive, and in all respects adapted to the climate. 



Melons mav be divided into three classes the Green-Fleshed, 

 as the citron, and nutmeg ; Yellow-Fleshed, as the cantelopes ; 

 and Persian Melons, with very thin skins and the most melting 

 honey-like flesh, of delicious flavour. The Green-Fleshed 

 melons are of very rich flavour and roundish form ; the Yellow- 

 Fleshed are large, usually oval, and of second rate flavour ; 



