VEGETABLES DESCRIPTION AND CULTURE. 223 



Early Cluster, named from the fruit growing in clusters. 

 The fruit is about five inches long, very productive. 

 Early Russian is a smaller and earlier variety of this. 



Early Short White Prickly, growing five or six inches 

 long, with white prickles, remaining green longer than 

 most other varieties ; productive. 



Early Frame. Six to ten inches long, much used for 

 forcing ; productive and good. 



White Spined, or White Spined Long Green, is of fine 

 form, deep green color, which it retains well; a good 

 bearer, and of the best quality. 



Long Green Prickly, Dark green color with black 

 spines, grows about ten inches in length and bears abun- 

 dantly ; excellent for pickles. 



Gherkin* C. Anguria, a different species with small 

 and prickly fruit, and leaves much divided, or palmated ; 

 a great bearer, but used only for pickling. 



There are many other varieties, some of which grow 

 two feet long, crisp and well flavored, but the foregoing 

 are the best for family culture. 



Culture. The seed may be planted here about the first 

 of April, or as soon as it can be done with safety, as this 

 plant is very tender and will not bear the least frost. If 

 the soil be deeply trenched, the plant is much less suscep- 

 tible to drought. After the ground is prepared, dig out 

 holes fifteen inches deep and the same in diameter, six 

 feet apart each way, and partly fill them with well-decom- 

 posed manure. A little guano, or fowl manure, sprinkled 

 in the bottom of the hills, will be very beneficial. Do 

 not use fresh manure, or the plants will die out. Cow 

 manure and leaf-mould are excellent. Cover over the ma- 

 nure with rich, mellow loam. Raise the hills a little above 

 the surface, and put eight or ten seeds in the hill; cover 

 an inch deep, and when they get rough leaves, pull up the 

 poorest plants, and leave but three in the hill. Old seed 



