50 



A CONCISE VIEW OF THE THEORY RESPECTING VEGETATlOlSf . 



fruit, or seed vessels appear lo be genera- j the lateral shoots, as soon as a sufficient of 

 ted wholly by the prepariul sap of the fruit on each plant is set; but no part of 

 plant, and its chief office to he that of i the full grown leaves should ever be de- 

 adapting the fluids, which ascend into it stroyed before the fruit is gathered, unless 



to affi^rd proper nutriment to the seeds it 

 contains." 



After this statement of the principles of 

 his theory, Mr. Knight proceeds to offi^r 

 some observations on the culture of the 

 melon a species of fruit, which very rarely 

 acquires any great degree of perfection in 

 our climate, but is generally so defective 

 both in richness and flavour, that it ill re- 

 pays the trouble and expense of its cul- 

 ture. Tlie writer however thought he saw 

 sufficient cause for the want of flavour in 

 the fruit, in the want of sufficient foliage, 

 and an appeal to experiment has confirm- 

 ed his opinion. 



The leaves of the melon, he observes, 

 like those of every other plant, naturally 

 so arrange themselves, as to present their 

 upper surfaces to the light with the great- 

 est advantage and make efibrts to regain 

 their position whenever they are changed; 

 but the extended branches of the melon, 

 particularly under glass being slender and 

 feeble, its leaves broad and heavy, and its 

 leafstalks long, when the leaves are from 

 any cause removed from their position, 

 they seldom regain it, and in consequence 



they injure each other by being too much 

 crowded, for each leaf, however distant 

 from the fruit, and though upon a separ- 

 ate branch, still contributes to its support. 

 The only variety of melon cultivated 

 by the writer is one imported from Sal- 

 onica by Mr. J; Hawkins, and not gener- 

 ally known: its form is nearl}' spherical, 

 without any depression upon the surface, 

 and its colour ajvpioaching to that of gold, 

 antl its flesh perfectly while; it acquires a 

 greater .stale of maturity than any other 

 variety, and continues to improve in fla- 

 vour and richness, till it shows signs of in- 

 cipient decay, and the flavour such, that 

 few would think -it improved by sugar; 

 the weight of a good melon of this variety 

 is about seven pounds. 



Observe/ 1 ions. — The success which has 



attended the application of the principles 



of Mr. Kniglit's theory of the physiology 



of vegetables to the culture of the melon, 



may be considered as a strong confirma-- 



tion of his j)re-conceived opinions; and it' 



appears to us lo be so coincident with na-; 



lure and reason, that we have no hesita- 



a large portion of the foliage become di-j tion in believing that the same principles 



seased and sickly, and consequently out! might be applied with equal advantage in 



of office, before the fruit acquires maturi-i the cultivation of other plants. — Retros- 



ty. To remedy this defect, at greater d'lS-pecL 



tances than usual putting a single plant] -©©&- 



under each glass of six feet long, by four; 7, , , rnr -^tm wt-w n c 



" . , .*? 1 1 r ^\ r ■ i\ Fat ent 01 iSiv. Ihomas Willis Cooper of 



Old Street London, Mill-Wright, for 



feet wide, the beds were formed of rich 

 mould, and were covered as usual with 

 brick tiles over which the branches were 

 so conducted as to present the greatest pos- 

 sible width of foliage to the light, and were 

 .securely fixed down by small hooked pegs 

 between the tiles to prevent their being 

 disturbed from their first position. But it 

 being still found that the leaves sustained 

 injury from the weight of the water fal- 

 ling from the watering pot, it was then 

 poured upon the tiles, without at all touch- 

 ing them, and the foliage remained erect 

 and healthy; the fruit also grew with ex- 

 traordinary rapidity, ripened in an unusu 



apparatus to be fixed on the naves of 

 wheels, and beds of axletrees of carria- 

 ges, to prevent accidents. Dated March, 

 181 1, Repository of Arts, No. 115. 



Mr. Coopers' apparatus is intended to 

 prevent the wheels of carriages from se- 

 parating from them, if the axle should 

 break or the linch pins drop out. It is 

 formcil by a jointed hoop, which incloses < 

 the back part of the nave, while it is con- 

 nected with the bed ol the axle by strong 

 straps of iron, so that the nave turns round 

 freely within it; a grooved hoop is fasten- 



ally short time, and acquired a degree of j ed round the nave, further in than the 



perfection not previously seen 



It is recommended to prevent the fur- 

 ther production of foliage, by pinching off 



plate where the jointed hoop lies, which 

 prevents the wheel drawing offi The use 

 of the joint is to admit of the wheel being 



