390 GARDEN FARMING 



It will prove best not to place them in the nursery until about June I, 

 when the soil and weather conditions should be such as to stimulate 

 rapid growth, particularly if the soil is rich and well prepared. 

 Under these conditions it should be possible to grow tubers of 

 normal size the first year. With this treatment the writer has pro- 

 duced individual tubers from seed which attained the weight of one 

 pound the first season, while with the usual method of sowing the 

 seed in the open and allowing the plants to grow at will, it usually 

 requires two or three years to accomplish the same results. 



PUMPKINS 



In America the term " pumpkin " is almost universally applied to 

 that part of the Gourd family included in the varieties of Cucurbita 

 pepo which are of running habit. From an economic standpoint 

 the pumpkin is not of so great value as the squash. During recent 

 years, however, the demand for pumpkin as a filling for pies has 

 led to the canning of this product on an extensive scale. 



Botany. Botanically, the true pumpkin is known as Cucurbita 

 pepo, and is characterized by its hard-shelled fruit, rather slender, 

 angular stem, which is but slightly swollen near the fruit, its deeply 

 cut leaves, and stiff spines on the leafstalks. The plants may be bushy 

 or trailing. This species includes not only the field pumpkins but 

 the so-called summer squashes. The foliage, flowers, and fruit 

 stems of the pumpkin and the summer squash are alike, but the 

 habits of the plants and the characteristics of the fruit are very 

 distinct. The pumpkin plant is a robust vine with long, trailing 

 branches, upon which the pistillate flowers are produced. The 

 summer squashes are distinguished by lack of runners and a bush 

 habit of growth. While these two groups are considered identical 

 from a botanical standpoint, they are horticulturally distinct and 

 their uses are different. 



The three species of cucurbits which are represented in the gar- 

 den list are interesting because they do not intercross and because 

 they do not cross with melons and cucumbers as is popularly 

 supposed. 



Cultivation. In New York state and in New England, pump- 

 kins are often grown as a companion crop to corn. When so grown 



