THE WONDERFUL 



SUGAR MELON. 



It is with great pleasure that I of- 

 fer my customers seed of the best 

 Watermelon ever put before the 

 American public. In describing 

 this variety, which I originally 

 named and first oflered in ray 1894 

 Catalogue, I cannot do better than 

 quote from a letter from Prof. Mas- 

 sey, of North Carolina : 



"As I was the first to bring this 

 melon to public notice through the 

 columns of The Practical Farmer, it 

 is natural that you should ask me 

 more about it. My notice of this 

 melon was prompted solely by the 

 fact that 1 was satisfied that it was 

 tht) best watermelon I ever ate. 

 Having not the slightest financial 

 interest in the sale of the seed, I feel 

 perfectly free to give my opinion in 

 regard to it. In August, '92, I went 

 to South Carolina, at the invitation 

 of Col. E. R. Mclver, President of 

 the County Agricultural Society, to 

 make an address at their annual 

 meeting. During my stay I was the 

 guest of Col. Mclver, at his beaut 

 ful plantation. It was in the height 

 of the watermelon season, and iu addition to his general activity as a 

 progressive planter, Col. Mclver, I found, was an enthusiast in water- 

 melon culture. In a nook on the beautiful lawn around his house, 

 shaded by some fine evergreen oaks, a table was built, long enough to 

 accommodate a score of guests. When 1 first saw the melons being 

 piled out on the table, I asked Col. Mclver If they were Georgia Rattle- 

 snake. 'No sir,' said he, 'go a little closer, and when you try them tell 

 me if you ever ate a Rattlesnake melon equal to them.' I then noticed 

 that the shape was dlff'erent from the Georgia melon. Col. Mclver in- 

 formed me that this melon had been grown by him for many years 

 from seed originally from the West Indies, and that, although he had 

 tried all the new melons, he had yet found none equal to it. Now it is 

 admitted that the Florida Favorite is a melon of good quality, so one 

 morning the Col. sent to another patch and had a fine Florida Favorite 



brought in, split In two, with some of his own, and the spoons were 2 

 handed around for all to compare the two. There was no getting ^ 

 around the fact that the Mclver melon was far superior in sweetness. ' 

 One of the greatest excellencies of this melon is its ability to withstand T 

 wet weather. The Summer of '92 was very wet up to the end of July, p 

 and was then succeeded by prolonged drought. The wet weather had ''' 

 caused nearly all watermelons to crack in the centre and become hoi- ft 

 low, but we never found one of the Sugar Melons cracked in the slight- J 

 est degree, and there was total absence of anything like stringlness, ^ 

 which makes Kolb's Gem and others so objectionable. I have grown Z 

 nearly every watermelon in the catalogues, old and new, and can sin- 1 

 cerely say this melon is the best of all, and leaves nothing to be desired 5 

 in a watermelon that I can conceive of." Yours truly, ? 



W. F. MASSEY. £ 



The above letter covers the eround so fully, and describes so tersely, the superior qualities of the Sugar Melon that I do not think I can im- £ 

 prove upon it. Mr. E. L. Coy, West Hebron, N. Y., who probably knows melons as well as anyoue in America, writes me: "Wonderful Sugar m 

 Melon is certainly the sweetest and best flavored watermelon I have ever seen." More than 20,000 of my customers, embracing among them i^ 

 many of the most celebrated melon growers in America, unanimously endorsed Mclver's Sugar without exception as the most perfect and w 

 thoroughbred melon it had ever been their pleasure to raise, and in flavor far ahead of anything they ever conceived of in a watermelon. m 



Packet, 10 cents; ounce, 15 cents; quarter pound, 30 cents; pound, $1.00. g , 



THE JONES.— Next to the Wonderful Sugar Melon, Prof. Massey, of North Carolina, considers 



this the best melon known to-day. It is certainly an excellent variety; color of the skin is almost a 



solid green, flesh a bright red, very sweet 



and juicy. It is an excellent shipper, and 



grows to a large size, often attaining a 



weight of 60 to 70 pounds each. In shape 



it resembles very much the Kolb's Gem. 



Pkt., 5 cts.; oz., 10 ots.; '^ lb., 25 cts.; lb., 75 cts. 

 ^ PHINNEY'S EARLY Very early deep 



red flesh; excelleut flavor; very prolific. 

 ^ Pkt., 5c.; oz., 10c. ; \i lb., 20c.; lb., 60c, 



' VrriC'S W. AWT.V Otib nf thn 



l•lll^'^■l,Y 



\\!\\ 



VICK'S EARLY One of the earliest. 



Small, long, solid and sweet; flesh bright 

 pink. Pkt., 5c.; oz., lOc; % lb., 20c.; lb., 60c. 



COLE'S EARL, Y.— An early variety that 

 is claimed will mature in any latitude 

 where the season is as long as that of New 

 York State. A fine melon, of medium size, almost round in shape, green, striped a 

 lighter shade. Thin rind, bright red flesh of a delicate texture. Packet, 5 cents; ounce, 

 10 cents; '4 pound, 25 cents; pound, 75 cents. 



FOROHOOK EARLY — One of the largest of the extra early varieties; shape is 

 nearly round, and color a medium shade of green. The flesh is of a deliciously sweet 

 flavor, bright red color. Rind is tough, thus making it a valuable shipper. Mr. 

 Frame, of Delaware, the originator, says : "This melon has been grown side by side 

 with all other sorts, and has proven itself to be the earliest of all." Packet, 5 cents; 

 ounce, 10 cents; % pound, 30 cents; pound, 90 cents. 



THE BOSS. — An excelent shipper, very productive; of delicious flavor. Color, very 

 dark; flesh of an unusually deep scarlet, rich in sugar. It well deserves the name of 

 Boss, and you should not neglect to plant it this year if only for a trial. Packet, 5 cents; 

 ounce, 10 cents; % pound, 20 cents; pound, 60 cents. 



MA'UMi 

 II ON 



MAMMOTH IRON-CLAD.— Iron-clad grows uni- 

 formly to a larger size, will yield a far greater bulk, 

 and more A 1 marketable melons, than almost any 

 other of the extra large varieties. They have fre- 

 quently been dropped three feet, and even more 

 without bursting or showing any bruise. The 

 heart is very large, the flesh next to rind is fully 

 equal to the heart in luscious taste. The flesh is 

 never mealy, but always solid. They ripen 

 with the Cuban Queen. They can be allowed 

 to remain on the vines one month after they 

 are ripe. Melons taken in the first of Octo- 

 ber keep in good condition until Christmas. 

 Pkt., 5 cts.; oz., 10 cts.; % lb., 20 cts.; lb., 60 cts. 

 PEERLESS.— An excellent sort for gar- 

 den cultivation. Size, medium; color, mot- 

 tled green; flesh, rich scarlet; thin rind, sweet 

 and productive. Packet, 5 cents; ounce, 10 

 cents; !4 pound, 20 cents; pound, 60 cents. 



GEORGIA RATTLESNAKE. — An im- 

 proved Gipsy; excellent for shipping and 

 very popular. Flavor, first class; rind, very 

 thin; fiesb, bright red. Packet, 5 cts.; ounce, 

 10 cts.; \i pound, 20 cts.; pound, 60 cts. 



SWEET HEART A good variety for 



shipping, very attractive in appearance and 

 sells readily in market. Of large size, a little 

 longer than thick, but nearly globular in 

 shape. Skin very bright, beautiful mottled 

 green. Flesh bright red, firm and heavy, 

 but crisp, melting and exceedingly sweet; a 

 good keeper; improving in quality for a long 

 time after becoming ripe. Pkt., 5cts.; oz„ 

 10 cts.; % pound, 25 cts.; pound, 75 cts. 



