MELONS DATE PALM 47 



Melons 



The western end of the Messaoria plain is noted for its 

 water-melons and sweet-melons. These are grown in 

 11 postania,' 1 a corruption of the Persian word " bustan," 

 a garden. They are cultivated only on irrigable land. 

 At Asha, where, perhaps, the best fruits are grown, the 

 land is flooded by the river and no later watering, as a rule, 

 takes place. Through a well-grounded fear of theft, the 

 grower and his family live in their " postania " during the 

 season of marketing. Reed shelters are erected, and the 

 rolled-up beds and bedding with their white coverlets 

 present a strange appearance. There is always a big local 

 demand and a good yield is generally obtained from these 

 " postania." High prices are paid for suitable melon- 

 land. 



The local names for the water-melons are " karpousia " 

 or " paticha," and for the sweet-melons " piponia " or 

 " tamboures." 



The cultivation of this fruit is general throughout the 

 Island. 



Date Palm 



This tree grows promiscuously throughout the plains, 

 produced mostly by accidental seeding. Very little actual 

 sowing takes place. The best groves are round about 

 Nicosia. 



The trunk-wood, being very hard and fibrous, is used in 

 the construction of the old type of waterwheel (" alakati ") 

 and for beams in houses. It is also utilised as fuel in 

 Turkish baths as it burns slowly and gives out great heat. 

 Palm leaves are in demand for making various native 

 baskets, specially the " zimpilia " for holding seed when 

 sowing broadcast. Hats are made from them in a few 

 villages. 



The native varieties of date palm are not of high 

 quality. They are : " Baltchik," the fruit of which ripens 

 on the tree ; " Phountouk " (hazelnut) ; " Kourmouzou " 

 (red) ; and " Saraih " (yellow). The last three are 

 artificially ripened when picked, by spraying them with 

 a mixture of syrup and vinegar* The " Baltchik " 



