MEL 



[ 591 ] 



MEL 



Winter temp., 45 to 55, and dry; 

 summer, 00 to 90, and moist when 

 growing, but dry when ripening or har- 

 dening off. See Cactus and Mamillaria. 



MELODI'NUS. (From melon, an apple, 

 and dlneo, to turn round ; referring to 

 the shape of the fruit. Nat. ord., Dog- 

 lanes [Apocynacese] . Linn., 5-Pentan- 

 dria 2-Diyynia. Allied to Carissa.) 



The fruit of this and some other allied genera 

 are eatable, but not of much merit. Stove ever- 

 green twiners, with white flowers, blooming in 

 July. Cuttings of half-ripened side-shoots, in 

 sand, under a bell-glass, in heat; peat and 

 loam, with a little sand. Winter temp., 50 to 

 60 ; summer, 68 to 85. 

 M. mono'gynus fone-pistiled). 10, East Indies. 

 1820. 



parvifo'lius (small - leaved). East Indies. 



1775. 



sca'ndens (climbing). 15. New Caledonia. 



1775. 



undula'ta (waved-teawed). East Indies. 



MELOLO'NTHA. Every one knows 

 the common May-hug or Cockchafer 

 (Mclolo'ntha vulga'ris) ; a drawing and 

 description of its grub is given at page 

 15, vol. v., of The Cottage Gardener. 

 This grub very closely resembles that 

 of another species, M. horti'cola, Gar- 

 den Beetle, or Brackenclock, Phylloper- 

 tka of some entomologists. The latter 

 beetle (Ibid, ii., 171,) is found in June 

 and July, among the petals of white 

 roses. It is nearly half an inch long, 

 and rather less than a quarter of an 

 inch broad. Its wing-cases are reddish 

 brown, shining, and shorter than the 

 body; the body and head are dark 

 green, and the antennse reddish, having 

 at their ends a dark green club. It 

 also feeds on the leaves of apples, 

 pears, and roses, gnawing them full of 

 small holes, and even transferring its 

 attacks to the young fruit of the apple. 

 During the latter part of July the 

 female retires into the earth for the 

 purpose of there depositing her eggs, 

 from which the grubs speedily are pro- 

 duced, and feed upon the roots of 

 plants, especially of grass. The only 

 mode of reducing the number of these 

 beetles is by searching for them during 

 the evening, when, if detected, they 

 stiffen their outstretched legs, and 

 feign death ; but in the day they fly 

 about swiftly, and are captured with 

 great difficulty. It is said that when 



grass suffers from the grubs of either 

 of these beetles, that they may be ex- 

 tirpated by watering with the ammo- 

 niacal liquor from gas works. 



ME 'LON. ( Cu'cumis mc'lo, ) 



Varieties. These are so numerous, 



j that we must be very severe in our 



| selection, confining ourselves to such 



as are most generally useful in Britain; 



and these we must classify according 



to their habits. 



Cantaloups, the Eocks, the Green- 

 fleshed, the Valentia, or Winter, and the 

 Persians, with their various hybrids. 

 Amongst the Cantaloups, we have both 

 round and oblong, plain and netted, 

 the Orange, the Montagues, &c. In 

 the Rocks, we have the Small scarlet- 

 fleshed, the Black, the Large, and the 

 Early, &c. In the Green- flesh class, 

 we may point to the Beech-wood, which 

 may almost be considered the type of 

 this section, the Small Green-fleshed 

 Egyptian, of exquisite flavour, and 

 thin rind ; these, with the various va- 

 rieties known by the name of Snow's, 

 Terry's, the Kew-green-flesh, &c. These 

 are the most generally useful melons, 

 being hardy, free-setters, and not liable 

 to rot or canker. 



Next we may advert to the Winter 

 Melons, a class which will keep a long 

 time after they are cut; and the Va- 

 lentia may be placed amongst this divi- 

 sion. Lastly, are the Persians, with 

 their useful hybrids. The types of 

 these Persian hybrids are, principally, 

 the Ispahan, the Dampsha, the Q-er- 

 mek, and the Hoosainee. 



Propagation : by Seed. Most prac- 

 tical men prefer old seed to new, as 

 running less to bine. A bottom-heat 

 of from 75 to 85 is essential ; and 

 when the seedlings are up, and just 

 before the second set of leaves begin 

 to appear, the young plants may be 

 potted into five-inch pots, two in a pot, 

 in a soil of three parts strong loam, 

 enriched with manure. A temperature 

 of 70 to 80 must be secured to them, 

 and the pots should be plunged. As 

 soon as the central shoot begins to 

 sprout from between the seed-leaves 

 it may be pinched off; and this, if 

 other points be right, will cause the 

 protrusion of a pair, or more, of shoots, 



