10 



THE VEGETABLES OF NEW YORK 



4. Cucumis Melo L. Sp. PI. 1011. 1753. Melon. 

 C. Ditdaim L. /. c. C. Chate Hass. It. Pal. 591. 

 1751. C. flexuosus L. Sp. PA ed. 2. 1437. 1763. 

 C. oft icinurum Crantz, Inst. t. 172. 1766. C.acidus 

 Jacq. Ofos. Bor. 4:14. 1771. C. pictus Jacq. iAorf. 

 Finrf. 3:6. 27. 1776. C. Conomon Thunb. Fl. Jap. 

 324. 1784. Cucurbita aspera Sol. ex Forst. Prod. 

 554. 1786. Cucumis odoratissimus Moench, Meth. 

 654. 1794. C. deliciosus and C. utnbilicatus Salisb. 

 Prod. 157. 1796. C. pubescens and C. maculatus 

 Willd. Sp. PA 4:614. 1805. C. campechianus HBK. 

 TVov. Gen. £• Sp. 2:123. 1817. C. moschatus S. F. 

 Gray, War. Arr. Br. PA 2:552. 1821. C. jamaicensis 

 Bert, ex Spreng. Syst. Veg. 3:46. 1826. C. persi- 

 codorus Seiz, and C. serotinus Haberle ex Seiz. Verh. 

 Ver. Bef. Gart. 379 and 376. 1827. Concombre 

 Arada Descourt. Fl. Antill. 5:91. 1827. Cucumis 

 reflexus Leyh. ex Ser. in DC. Prod. 3:300. 1828. 

 C. Cantalupo Reichb. Fl. Germ. Exc. 295. 1830. 

 C. Gurmia and C. Chaete Wall. Lis*. 1832. C. 

 Momordica and C. utilissimus Roxb. FA /no 1 . 3:720 

 and 721. 1832. Momordica sativa Roxb. ex Wight 

 & Am. Prod. 1:341. 1834. Cucumis pedatifidus, 

 C. Reginae and C. cubensis, Schrad. Linnaea 12:418, 

 419. 1838. C. aromaticus Royle, 111. Bot. Himal. 

 2:220. 1839. C. princeps Wend. And. Sem. Aforf. 

 Marb. 1840. " C. bucharicus, C. Cantalon, C. 

 eriranicus, C. reticularis, C. saccharinus, C. 

 verrucosus, and C. viridis Hort." Steud. Nom. 451. 

 1840. C. maltensis Ser. ex Steud. /. c. C. cantalu- 

 pensis Haberle ex M. Roem. Syn. Pepon. 69. 1846. 

 C. persicus and C. Schraderianus Roem. 1. c. 71 and 

 73. Melo sativus Sag. ex Roem. 1. c. 68. Cucumis 

 Chito Morren, Ann. Gand. 5:339. 1849. C. cica- 

 trisatus Stocks, Journ. Bot. 4:148. 1852. C. erio- 

 carpus and C. villosus Boiss. & Noe, Diagn. II. 2:59. 

 1856. C. picrocarpus and C. jucunda. F. Muell. 

 Trans. Pn/A Soc. V/cf. 3:46. 1859. C. Pancheri- 

 anus Naud. ,4nn. ScA Nat. IV. 12:112. 1859. C. 

 ambigua Fenze ex Hook. f. Fl. Trop. Air. 2:543. 

 1872. C. chinensis Pangolo. Bull. Appl. Bot. 23 n :559. 

 1930. 



Annual trailing vine, with soft hairy to nearly glabrous striate 

 or angled stems; leaves suborbicular to nearly reniform, generally 

 5-angled, occasionally very shallowly 3- to 7-lobed, soft villous to 

 slightly scabrous on both sides, 3-5 inches across; flowers about 

 1 inch across, monoecious or andromonoecious (the first 2 or 3 

 flowers of some forms being perfect . J often fasciculate and usually 

 on slender peduncles, c? and 9 usually solitary on short stout 

 peduncles; corolla lobes obtuse to slightly acute; fruit various. 



The species varies a great deal and has been variously 

 treated by students. A convenient but phylogenetically 

 impossible) grouping places all forms first into two 

 categories : 



(a) C. Melo aiirestis Naud. Ann. ScA Nat. IV. 11:73. 



1859. 

 This includes the slender -vined, wild or run-wild 

 types with small flowers and small inedible fruit. 



(b) C. Melo cultus Kurz. Journ. As. Soc. Beng. 



46:107. 1877. 



Here are included the stouter-vined, larger-flowered, 

 larger-fruited edible types. 



The second group or category has also been variously 

 treated, notably by Naudin Ann. Sci. Nat. IV. 11:34. 

 1859i. His grouping is here followed as closely as 

 possible for the types cultivated in the United States. 

 The important forms are: 



(a) reticulatus Naud. Netted or Nutmeg Melons. 

 Fruits of medium size, the surface more or less strongly 

 netted, often furrowed lengthwise: rind fleshy, with 

 tough skin. This group includes most of the melons 

 cultivated in New York State. They are not cantaloupes 

 as they are so often erroneously called. The Persian 

 melons now grown in California and occasionally found 

 on the eastern markets are a stronger growing, larger- 

 fruited race allied to this group. 



(b) cantalupensis Naud. Cantaloupes. Fruits 

 of medium size, the surface rough, warty, or scaly, but 

 not netted; the rind hard. The true cantaloupes are 

 not grown in this State; nor, indeed, are they grown com- 

 mercially anywhere in the United States. 



(c) inodorus Naud. Winter Melons. Fruits 

 smooth or rough, lacking musky odor, late ripening: 

 leaves light or medium green, rather bullate, large. 

 The winter melons fall into two sub-groups; the smooth 

 fruited Honey Dew type and the rough fruited Cassabas. 

 Few are raised in this State but many are imported from 

 the Southwest. 



(d) flexuosus Naud. Snake Melon. Fruit slender 

 (1-3 inches) but long ( 1 1 ■_» -3 ] 2 feet), often curved or 

 coiled. Sometimes used in preserving. 



(e) Conomon Makino. Oriental Pickling Melon. 

 Fruit smooth, glabrous, not musky, variously shaped. 

 The name suggests its use. Rarely grown. 



(f) Chito Naud. Mango Melon or Garden Lemon. 

 Fruit small, cucumber-like, sometimes used in pickling. 

 The common names are sufficiently descriptive: Orange- 

 Melon, Vegetable-Orange, Melon-Apple, Vine-Peach, 

 etc. 



(g) Dudaim Naud. Dudaim Melon. Fruit about 

 the size of the last, orange marked with rich brown, 

 and very fragrant. Grown only for the ornamental 

 perfumed fruit. Also known as Pomegranate -Melon, 

 and Queen Anne's Pocket-Melon. 



8. SICANA Naud. Ann. ScA Nat. IV. 18:180. 

 1862. 



The following is the only well-known species and its 

 description will also serve for the genus. Two other 

 forms, possibly varieties of the same species, have been 

 noted. 



1. Sicana odifera Naud. A c. 181. Curuba or 

 Cassabanana. 



Perennial herbaceous vine with angled stems and 3- to 

 5-branched tendrils; leaves 5- to 9-lobed, nearly circular in outline, 

 cordate, 5-12 inches across: flowers solitary, yellowish; J 1 flower 

 with anthers free but connivent, ' _> inch long; J flower with 3 stami- 

 nodes, 2 inches long: ovary with 3 placentae; stigmas 3, each 2-lobed; 

 fruit long-oblong, 1-2 feet in length, nearly cylindrical, orange- 

 crimson, with strong aroma: seeds numerous. 



