18 WORCESTER COUNTY HORTICULTURAL .SOCIETY. [1899. 



sold at an average price of $1.25 a box. The varieties grown 

 were Orange Christiana, yellow flesh, and Extra Early Hacken- 

 sack, green flesh, — two excellent kinds. 



Within a few years there has appeared a number of new 

 melons, which seem to be superseding the old vvell-known kinds 

 in many of the large markets. Prominent among these new 

 varieties I will name the Colorado Gem, Paul Rose, Rocksport, 

 and last, " Nectar of Angels." The last named certainly ought 

 to be the best of all, and I shall try it the coming season. 



The Colorado Gem wherever knovvn has been in great demand, 

 as although small in size in quality it ranks the highest. Of 

 the older varieties, Montreal Nutmeg, Extra Early Hackensack, 

 and Arlington, of the green flesh, and Orange Christiana, Tip 

 Top, Millar's Cream and Emerald Gem, of the yellow flesh, are 

 all choice, and will give satisfaction to all. 



Celery is another vegetable that has largely increased in culti- 

 vation within the last twenty years. Where formerly it was 

 grown in small acreage, it has now become an important crop 

 to many market gardeners living near large cities. A market 

 gardener living near Boston had sixty acres in celery the past 

 year, and a number of others from twenty to thirty acres. 



Many large gardeners who have land adapted to growing 

 onions, when sowing the onions, omit every sixth row, and later 

 set that out with celery plants. The onions maturing by Sep- 

 tember are taken ofl", and the remainder of the season the land 

 is devoted to celery. The old varieties of celery had to be 

 banked up when growing to properly blanch the stalks, to 

 render them fit for table use. A few years ago a variety was 

 introduced from Europe named Golden Self Blanching, which 

 proving very desirable as not requiring the extra labor of bank- 

 ing has largely superseded the old varieties in cultivation. 



The onion upon land adapted to its growth, and when suf- 

 flcient help could be obtained to perform the cultivation neces- 

 sary, was formerly a very paying crop. Now the sharp 

 competition of onions grown on the fertile lands of the West, 

 with which our markets are overstocked, renders this crop one 

 with but a small margin for proflt. This crop is one which 



