1168 



PB ACTIO AL GUIDE TO GABDEN PLANTS 



MELON 



the female flowers should not be 

 fertilised. 



When seeds are required one or more 

 female flowers should be selected and 

 marked with a piece of cotton &c. so as 

 to readily distinguish them. Pollen from 

 the male flowers should then be coUeoted 

 on a piece of paper and applied to the 

 stigmas in the female flowers. If stigmas 

 and pollen are in a proper reciprocal 

 condition the fertilisation of the ovules in 

 the young Cucumber wiU take place, and 

 seeds are produced in due course in the 

 way described at p. 24. 



Diseases dc. — Besides the attacks of 

 Eed Spider, which are checked by means 

 of a moist atmosphere. Cucumbers often 

 suffer from ' Eel Worm,' tiny thread-like 

 maggots that bore into the roots and 

 lower portion of the stems and destroy 

 their tissues. They are diflicult to get rid 

 of, if once fairly established. The best 

 remedies seem to be the use of clean 

 turfy loam and a good dressing of soot 

 and Hme over the ground on which the 

 plants are to be grown. 



Cold DroMghts and variable tem- 

 peratures are often responsible for 

 several ills, such as producing ' curly ' 

 fruits, or those which begin to decay 

 when about half grown. A warm, 

 equable, and moist atmosphere is always 

 best for Cucumbers, and will do more 

 than anything else to keep the plants in 

 good health. 



RIDGE CUCUMBER (Cucumis 

 SATivns). — Besides the varieties of Cucum- 

 bers which can be grown with any degree 

 of success only under glass there are 

 others suitable for cultivation in the open 

 air. These are usually called ' Ridge ' 

 Cucumbers. Some of the best are King 

 of the Ridge, which has smooth fruits 

 12-16 in. long ; Long Green ; Wood's 

 Improved ; Stockwood ; Long Prichly, 

 and the Gherkin or Short Prickly, the 

 latter being much used for pickling. 



Outdoor Cultivation. — The seeds of 

 any or all of the above varieties may be 

 sown in March in light rich soil in small 

 pots, and placed in gentle heat. When 

 well above the soil and making rough 

 leaves the young plants may be potted 

 and grown on as recommended for Mar- 

 rows, so that they may be sturdy and well 

 hardened for planting out in June. 



A warm sheltered spot facing south 

 should be selected for outdoor Cucumbers. 



A trench about 2 ft. deep, or large holes, 

 may be made and filled with hot dung 

 and leaves which have been well turned 

 over several times before the plants are 

 ready for placing out of doors. On this 

 hotbed a mound of rich sandy loam and 

 a little leaf soil may be placed. The 

 mounds or ridges should be 4^5 ft. apart, 

 each one having a plant in the centre. 

 Each plant should be well watered in, 

 and until fairly established it is better to 

 cover it with a handlight, and to keep it 

 shaded from bright sunshine. Afterwards 

 the lights may be removed altogether. 



The leading shoots are trained in such 

 a way as to radiate from the main stem. 

 When about 18 in. or 2 ft. long the tips 

 may be pinched out to form side shoots 

 to develop early fruits. The side shoots 

 also may be stopped at the joint beyond 

 the fruit that has set, and so the process 

 may be repeated from time to time during 

 the growing period. The chief thing to 

 remember is not to allow the shoots to 

 become entangled and overcrowded, and 

 to keep the plants well supplied with 

 water at the roots. The fruits should not 

 be allowed to get too old before cutting. 

 They are best while still green and fresh 

 looking, and are all the better if they are 

 not fertiUsed for seed. When the latter 

 is required, a promising pistUlate (female) 

 flower should be selected, and have the 

 pollen conveyed to it from one of the 

 staminate flowers, so that fertihsation of 

 the ovules (or rudimentary seeds) may be 

 assured. 



MELON (Cucumis Melo). — The 

 Melon, like the Cucumber, is a monoecious 

 plant and a native of the East Indies. It 

 is not, however, so extensively grown as the 

 Cucumber, probably because many people 

 are under the impression that special 

 structures and treatment are necessary to 

 bring its rich and succulent fruits to 

 perfection. 



It may, however, be stated that for all 

 practical purposes Melons are as easily 

 and almost as successfully grown in 

 frames as Cucimibers, but the choicest 

 fruits of course wiU always be obtained 

 from hothouses. 



Soil So. — This should be a rich turfy 

 loam placed in the hotbeds exactly in the 

 same way as recommended for Cucumbers. 

 Although stable manure is often added to 

 the soil it is better to dispense with it, as 

 it encourages a free sappy growth. To 



