CANTALOUPE GEOWING IN MASSACHUSETTS. 



J. M. S. LEACH, SUNDERLAND, MASS. 



Probably the melon does not strictly belong in New 

 England, but in a hotter, more equable cHmate, with a 

 longer season. Of necessity, therefore, we raise it under 

 many diflSculties, and seldom with a perfect degree of suc- 

 cess. 



But the fruit, when successfully grown, is so delicious in 

 flavor, and so universally popular, that the effort to produce 

 it, even under circumstances not entirely favorable, seems 

 well worth while. 



The wandering Israelites complained that they could not 

 forget the melons of Egypt, and if they were good ones, it 

 is hardly to be wondered at. 



There are many influences that. go into the making of a 

 crop of melons, many of them beyond the control of the 

 grower. This bulletin is an effort to deal with those condi- 

 tions that he can govern. 



Soil. 



A light loam is generally preferred. Melons do best if 

 they are planted on land which has been in clover or alfalfa 

 sod the previous year, as the nitrogen of the decaying roots 

 and stubble is very beneficial to the melons. There is no 

 question that this one thing often makes the difference be- 

 tween a record crop and a poor one. Good crops, however, 

 are grown on old land. 



Early Melons. 

 To escape the early frosts of fall is only a secondary reason 

 for growing melons early in this latitude. The primary 

 reasons are that the earliest of the melon crop is sold with 

 less competition, so that sales are easier and prices better; 

 and that marketing is well advanced before the dog-days, 



