172 TBUCK-FAEMING AT THE SOUTH. 



three in the hill. If the seed comes up well, and the 

 plants are crowding each other, another partial thinning 

 may be necessary. I prefer to manure, as for cabbage, 

 in the furrow, and to drill in the seed on beds six feet 

 apart, and to thin so as to leave the plants finally about 

 twelve inches apart in the row; leaving single plants, 

 three sowings being made as before. At the first thin- 

 ning, the soil should be drawn by the hoe to the stems 

 up to the seed leaves. The earth is to be kept loose and 

 clean between the rows by plow and cultivator, and be- 

 tween the plants by the hoe, until the vines have taken 

 possession of the ground. If the plant is stopped when it 

 has two rough leaves beyond the second, that is, if the 

 end of the vino is pinched off, lateral fruiting branches 

 will be emitted, which will be early in bearing and more 

 productive than the main vine. This operation of stop- 

 ping is rarely practised in extensive planting. 



GATHERING AND PACKING. 



If the fruits are cut instead of being pulled off, there 

 will be no injury to the vine; nor will the cucumber wilt 

 so rapidly. A transverse section of the fruit should be 

 nearly round, before the cucumber is picked; but quite 

 green and perfect in shape. None of imperfect form, 

 short, round and contracted at the flower end, or with 

 the slightest tendency to turn yellow, or large and over- 

 grown, should be shipped, as they will affect the market 

 value of the whole package. The cucumbers should be 

 carefully laid in the crates, or be well shaken down, as 

 directed in the chapter on " Packing," and the crate be 

 over-full when nailed up 



SEED SAVING. 



The White-spined cucumber becomes white instead of 

 yellow, when ripe. The whitest, largest and longest 

 should be selected for seed. Cut them lengthwise into 



