MUSKMELONS 



61 



classified according to flesh color as being either red, 

 green or white. No secondary division was made of the 

 cantaloupe or Rock melons. 



The first comprehensive book on American garden- 

 ing was written by Bernard McMahon and was published 

 in 1806. thirty years after the signing of the Declaration 

 of Independence. In it was included a group of 13 melon 

 varieties, which up to that time was the most complete 

 assortment in America. 



In 1863 Fearing Burr, Jr., published his " Field and 

 Garden Vegetables of America," a treatise devoted 

 almost entirely to the discussion of vegetable varieties. 

 In writing of melon varieties Burr states " These are 

 exceedingly numerous, in consequence of the great 

 facility with which the various kinds intermix or hybrid- 

 ize. Varieties are, however, much more easily produced 

 than retained; consequently old names are almost 

 annually discarded from the catalogs of seedsmen and 

 gardeners, and new names with superior recommenda- 

 tions, offered in their stead." He divided the varieties 

 into two groups, the common and the Persian melons. 

 No further differentiation is made of the 31 varieties and 

 synonyms discussed. 



As with squash and pumpkins, the state agricultural 

 experiment stations from the time of their origin until 

 the first few years of the present century conducted 

 numerous variety trials of muskmelons. A very compre- 

 hensive study of varieties was undertaken by F. W. Rane 

 at the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station 

 in 1895, which culminated in the publication of a classifi- 

 cation of American muskmelons in 1901. The thesis of 

 this study was based on the assumption that all American 

 varieties of muskmelons could be readily grouped 

 according to size and shape into the following eight 

 classes or " types " as Rane called them, viz., Jenny 

 Lind, Rocky Ford, Hackensack, Montreal, Cosmo- 

 politan, Acme-Osage, Long Yellow and Bay View. As 

 the classification developed each type was further 

 differentiated according to the depth of rib, degree of 

 netting and color of flesh. Until the last ten years the 

 work of Rane has been acknowledged the standard of 

 comparison, but the recent development of modern varie- 

 ties, particularly the shipping types, has very largely 

 restricted Rane's classification to varieties of historical 

 interest. Although considerable work was accomplished 

 by earlier investigators at Geneva, this crop was one of 

 the few for which no classification was proposed. 



W. R. Beattie advanced a simple classification in 

 1926 very largely based on adaptation for use. Two 

 classes were suggested, netted melons and winter or 

 special melons. The former was further divided into 

 shipping varieties and those adapted for home and market 

 garden purposes, each of which was again divided into 

 variety groups or types, viz., Defender, Netted Gem, 

 Tip-Top, Hackensack, Millers Cream, Jenny Lind, 

 Fordhook, Emerald Gem, Sweet Air and Montreal 

 Market. No further division was suggested for the 

 winter melons. 



In 1932 J. T. Rosa, long interested in melon varieties, 

 developed a more comprehensive classification than the 



latter and one more adaptable to modern varieties. 

 This was based entirely on the establishment of a group 

 type. All varieties which could be included were further 

 divided according to color of flesh and occasionally to 

 slight shape deviation. Ten group types were estab- 

 lished, viz., Netted Gem, Pollock or Rocky Ford, Hoo 

 Doo, Burrell Gem, Hackensack, Osage, Nutmeg, Jenny 

 Lind, Tip Top and Montreal Market. The winter 

 melons were divided into three classifications, Persian, 

 which included the Armenian or Turkish, Honey Dew and 

 Casaba. 



No attempt has been made in this study to develop 

 a classification of any sort. With the exception of an 

 occasional minor difference of opinion regarding the 

 establishment of a variety type as a distinct group, 

 muskmelon classifications are, for the most part, satis- 

 factory. At the present time very little change in the 

 general type of varieties is in evidence. There is, 

 however, a decided increase in the development of new 

 strains, but since these can usually be differentiated only 

 on the basis of such characters as yield, uniformity, 

 disease resistance, adaptability, etc., there is little value 

 in additional classification based on purely morphological 

 characters, which after all, are the true bases of varietal 

 separation. The order of discussion of varieties in this 

 publication is, therefore, alphabetical and includes a few 

 botanical varieties other than Cucumis melo var. reti- 

 culatus, in order to acknowledge all types of commercial 

 importance in this country. 



Acme. Refs. 4, 23, 25, 28, 29, 38, 39, 45, 46, 48, 49, 53, 



58, 83, 84, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 



98, 99, 100, 101, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 



125, 127, 128, 133, 136, 142, 144. Syns. Acme 



Citron, Baltimore, Baltimore Acme, Baltimore 



Citron, Baltimore Market, Baltimore Musk, 



Baltimore Nutmeg, Baltimore Rough, Early 



Baltimore, Knights Early Maryland, Large Acme, 



Large Baltimore, Melting Sugar. 



The precise origin of this melon is unknown. Prior 



to the introduction of Acme in the catalogs of D. Lan- 



dreth 8b Sons for 1884, Peter Henderson 8s Co. for 1886 



and D. M. Ferry &s Co. 1888, the variety Nutmeg was 



the leading green-fleshed sort. This nutmeg melon, 



although smaller in many respects, resembled the new 



introduction. Acme quickly gained popularity and, in 



its season, could always be found in the best hotels of 



Philadelphia, New York and Baltimore. The variety 



has remained in cultivation and has continued to be used 



in the south. 



This midseason variety matured at Geneva a few 

 days earlier than Rocky Ford, in season with Hackensack, 

 and 4-6 days later than Anne Arundel and Knight. 

 The fruits are very similar to those of Anne Arundel in 

 shape, although more often oval than that variety. The 

 netting is less regular and more streaked, while the flesh 

 is more yellowish green. 



Plant vigorous; vines moderately slender, branches many. 



Fruit medium large, 7—7 ' j " 5—5 ' i inches; weight 3-3 ' 2 



pounds. Shape oval to fusiform, distinctly protuberant at the 



base; full and rounded at the apex; blossom scar moderately con- 



