CUCUEBITACEjE 621 



star cucumber fruit is compressed, dry and membranous, antl 

 occurs in head-like clusters. 



T3T)es. — There are three principal types of cucumbers 

 {Cucumis sativus) : (i) Common field cucumbers; (2) English 

 or forcing cucumbers (var. anglicus); and (3) Sikkim cucum- 

 bers (var. Sikkimensis) . The field cucumbers are divided 

 into black spine varieties and white spine varieties, and these 

 two divisions are further subdivided. 



The English or forcing cucumbers difier from the ordinary 

 cucumbers. In the forcing-house, the former do not need 

 artificial fertilization, while all our common cucumbers must 

 be artificially fertilized. Hence, the English cucumbers have 

 the habit of producing seedless fruit. The fruit of the 

 forcing cucumber is long and smooth, green in color, and at 

 first covered with a few black spines. Common varieties 

 are Telegraph, Sion House, Kenyon, and Lome. The Sik- 

 kim cucumber fruit is large and reddish brown, marked with 

 yellow. 



Pickles. — The growing of cucumbers for pickling is an 

 industry quite different from that having to do with the 

 cultivation of cucumbers for slicing. The pickle industry is 

 mostly restricted to the Northern States, as cucumbers for 

 this industry do best in the cooler climate of the north. 

 Cucumbers that are to be pickled are harvested before they 

 reach maturity, and are not allowed to reach a length of 

 more than about 5 inches. They are hauled to the local 

 "salting station," where they are immersed in a brine, which 

 is contained by large wooden tanks, some with a capacity of 

 1,500 bushels. The pickles are kept in these tanks until 

 ready to be bottled at the factory. 



Dill pickles are made either from pickles stored in brine 

 or from fresh cucumbers from the vine. The peculiar 

 flavor of dill pickles is secured by adding to the brine and 



