34 



grow under these adverse conditions, heat is substituted for light, as a 

 stimulus; which results in producing phmts possessing a much more 

 delicate structure, and consequently rendering them much more suscep- 

 tible to certain diseases. All cucumber crops grown imder glass are 

 more or less abnormal, or, in other words, they are forced ; but there is 

 considerable difference in the amount of forcing they receive by different 

 growers, owing to different conceptions of manipulating the crop. 



Fertilization of Flowers, 

 Cucumbers are monoecious plants, i.e., the sexes are borne in separate 

 flowers on the same plant. For this reason, when cucumbers are gi'own 

 in greenhouses it is necessary to resort to hand pollenation, or else to 

 employ bees to carry the pollen from the staminate to the pistillate 

 blossoms. Bees are generally abundant enough in summer to accom- 

 plish fertilization of outdoor crops. It is stated, however, by some 

 authorities, that certain varieties of cucumbers, such as the Telegraph, 

 or long English types, do not require fertilization, inasmuch as the 

 fruit matures, whether fertilized or not, in which case a seedless fruit is 

 formed. Crooked or imperfectly developed cucumbers are not infre- 

 quently produced on vines. It is maintained by some authorities that 

 crooked or ill-formed fruit is the result of imperfect fertilization. In 

 many instances this is uo doubt the case, but there are other causes un- 

 derlying the production of inferior formed fruit. It can be safely 

 stated, however, that good plants are endowed with the capacity to pro- 

 duce good fruit, and conversely that it must not be expected that pei'fect 

 fruit will be produced on weak plants. From our observations we are 

 led to believe that crooked or imperfectly developed cucumbers are in 

 the largest number of cases produced by plants which are not noi'mal. 

 For example, plants affected with nematode galls, or weakened by 

 thrips, etc., will develop poor fruit. Anything, in fact, that affects 

 assimilation or interferes with the normal function of the plant weakens 

 it, and the result is poorly developed cucumbers. 



Pruning Cucumbers. 

 When cucumbers are gi'own under glass in winter, the amount of 

 space the plants occupy, together with the amount of fruit whicli they 

 produce, is of prime importance, from an economic point of view. Under 

 these conditions it is quite essential that as many plants shall be grown 

 as possible, without overcrowding or interfei'ing with conditions suitable 

 for maximum production. To secure the best results in the least space, 

 the plants are trained on wires or sticks, in oi-der to use space to the best 

 advantage. The cucumber plant is a prolific grower, and requires a 

 great deal of space if allowed to develop naturally. As there is nothing 

 to be gained in allowing a plant grown under glass to develop in its 

 own manner, the practice of pruning is resorted to. Since the question 

 of utilizing valuable space is an important one, it is necessary that 

 the production of the greatest amount of fruit should be restricted to 

 the least possible space consistent with the normal requirements of the 

 plant. One of the objects of pruning is, therefore, to confine the growth 



