CUCURBrrACEuE. 



143 



Etymolorjii. — Citrul/us is derived from tin- culur of ilic imlp, wliich is some 

 times of an <»rauge red, lieuce orcniye color, or citrus c<»lor. I'ulyaris, commou, 

 i> from the Latin. Watennelon refers to the watery pulj». Melon is an adop- 

 tion of the (ireek word /xriKuv, an aj)ple, because of the supposed apj)le-shaj>e 

 .»f the fruit. 



Hhtorii. — It is not known where or when the watermelon wa.s first brought 

 under cultivation. Its home is in Africa, in the torrid zone. Livingstoiie states 

 that large districts are covered with it in a wild state, and it has not been seen 

 growing without cultivation out of Africa. It was cultivated by the ancient 

 Egvptians. It was grown in Asia at an early date, and was known in all 

 the\\lediterrauean countries in the beginning of the Christian era. It was 

 brought to tlie New World by European .settlers, and is comuKm in all the 

 warm countries of both North and South America, where F^uropeaus have 

 settled. 



Use. — Tlie watermelon 

 is a very popular dessert 

 fruit, and the rinds are 

 preserved in sugar and also 

 braudied. In Egypt it is 

 not only prized by the 

 wealthy as a dessert, but 

 it constitutes a very impor- 

 tant article of food for the 

 poorer classes, wlio eat it 

 with their bread, and in 

 fact largely subsist upon 

 it during its season, which 

 is long. 



C U C U R B I T A, L. 



(Pumpkin, (iovird. 

 Squa.sb.) Calyx egg- 

 shaped, corolla bell- 

 .shaped, petals united 



half-way up, yellow. Flowers monoecious, axillary, on angiUar stalks, 

 Stamens with anthers cohering. Fruit-stalk deeply grooved. Fruit 

 globose, flattened or prolonged at the poles; seeds yellowish wliite, 

 obovate, with slightly convex sides. Leaves heart or kidney shaped, 

 stem trailing with brandling 2-3-cleft tendrils. Annuals. 



1 . C. melopepo, E. (Flat Squash.) Stem 5 to 20 feet in length, branching, 

 tentU-ils l)ranched, or partially developed into leaves. Leaves heart-shaped, 

 .5-angk'd, G to 8 inches long on a foot-stalk as long a.s the blade. Flowers 

 yellow, large. Fruit wheel-shaped, flattened ami dished at)out the stem, and 

 convex on the 0])posite side; circumference lobed or est allojied. Flowers and 

 fruits July to Oct. Fruit cooked in a green .state, with or without .salt meats. 



'2. C. verrucosa, E. (Warty Squash. Long- necked Squash.) Stem 10 to 15 

 feet long, tendrils branched. Leaves from 6 to 12 inches long, and nearly as 

 wide ; leaf-stalk .same length as the blade. Flowers large and yellow. Fruit 

 obovoid, or club-shaped, neck frequently crooked or curved, roughened with 

 warty tubercles; when ripe tlie shell becomes hard or bony. Like the above, 



CUCUEBITA MAXIM.\ (Gourd Sqiiash). 



