Gardening for Amateurs 



have formed two leaves, pull up the weaker; 

 one plant is enough for one light. Sowing 

 seeds answers just as well as planting, 

 the plants are merely a little later in 

 coming into bearing. 



As soon as the plant has formed, say, 

 five or six leaves it must be " stopped," that 

 is, the top pinched off. Side shoots will 

 then form and must be encouraged to grow, 

 one towards each corner of the frame, until 

 they show fruit, which is generally after the 

 development of the third leaf. Stop each 

 of the side shoots at the second leaf above 

 the fruit. Sometimes it happens that the 

 side shoots do not show fruit at the third 

 leaf. When this is the case, stop the shoot 

 at the fourth leaf, and others will form, on 

 which fruits will show. These in turn must 

 be stopped at the second leaf above the fruit. 

 Every other new shoot must be stopped 

 in the same way. The plant will soon fill the 

 frame with foliage and fruits. When the first 

 crop of fruit is gathered the plant will be 

 more or less worn out, and some of the older 

 growths, those that have produced fruits, 

 must be cut out. Other shoots will form, 

 and in turn bear fruit. Even a third crop 

 may be obtained by again thinning the 

 plants and occasionally adding fresh fer- 

 menting material round the frame. A slight 

 top dressing of new soil is necessary once a 

 month during the growing season. 



It is a common fault with amateurs to 

 let the fruits hang too long on the plant, 

 causing a loss in freshness and juiciness ; 

 they should be cut as soon as full grown. 

 The soil should be kept moderately moist, 

 and when the frame is full of foliage and the 

 plants are bearing fruits, water may be neces- 

 sary twice or three times a week, giving a 

 thorough soaking each time. Alternate ap- 

 plications of weak liquid manure are of help ; 

 soot water is excellent, so also is that with 

 a little Peruvian Guano dissolved in it. 



Shading is needed only for a week or 

 two after planting. The plants should be 

 syringed twice a day in the morning, and 

 again in the afternoon, when the frame is 

 closed. 



Early Cucumbers. For early crops a lean- 

 to glasshouse, fixed against a wall facing 

 south, is best. It is not necessary to have 

 a large bed for early Cucumbers ; a width of 

 68 



2| feet is sufficient, and it should be within 

 about 2 feet of the trellis beneath the roof 

 on which the plants are grown. Needless to 

 say, there must be proper provision for heat- 

 ing the house by means of a boiler and 4-inch 

 pipes. Bottom heat, provided by ferment- 

 ing material of the same description as that 

 used for the cold frame is necessary. Where 

 this is not available a hot-water pipe should 

 be fixed as a substitute, running the whole 

 length of the bed. The same details of treat- 

 ment as already described must be followed. 



A curious "twin" Cucumber. 



During the summer months Cucumbers 

 may be grown in a glasshouse just as well 

 as, or even better than, in a frame. 



Winter Cucumbers. These are difficult to 

 grow satisfactorily. The chief essentials are 

 adequate heat, a moist atmosphere, and a 

 light glasshouse. Plants raised from seed 

 at the end of September are most suitable, 

 and are planted in a compost of 2 parts turfy 

 loam, 1 part leaf-mould, and 1 part mortar 

 rubble and charcoal. 



Cucumbers for Exhibition. In the first 

 place, you have to do what is termed " timing 

 the fruit " ; in other words, to decide how 

 long it will be before a young fruit is ready 

 for the show. This is important, because 



