Slok.e>. Seeds 



STOKES SEED FARMS COMPANY 



MOORESTOWN NEW JERSEY 



Muskmelon 



{CiLCumis Melo) 



NETTED GEM OR ROCKY FORD (x 3/5>! 



History — A native of Southern Asia, cultivated from a very 

 remote period of antiquity, perhaps having come from the oblong 

 fruit of the Persian melon, the date of its first culture being unknown. 

 It is considered to be as old as any of the alimentary vegetables. 

 That the Egj'ptians knew and grew melons seems to be well estab- 

 lished by certain well-known verses in the eleventh chapter of the 

 Book of Numbers of the Bible. The Romans and Greeks were 

 familiar with it in its cultured form, as it appears to have been 

 brought from Persia at least before the first centurj'. Pliny speaks 

 of it at length, describing the difficulties of obtaining melons for the 

 Emperor Tiberius all months of the year. There are many and 

 various classes of melons, one of the oldest and best being the 

 cantalouppi, which, according to M. Jacquin, derives its name from 

 Cantaloupe, a seat belonging to the Pope near Rome, where this 

 sort, brought from Armenia by the missionaries, was first cultivated. 

 De Serries and Gerard describe melons in their respective countries 

 in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Although perhaps grown 

 at their best in Egj'pt and in the warm sunshine of the Orient, 

 they are now known the world over. American varieties have 

 developed rapidly in the past forty years. New Jersey, Michigan, 

 and Colorado perhaps offering more new varieties of merit than any 

 other states. 



No. 514. Netted Gem or Rocky Ford. (Green) Days to Ma- 

 turity, 95. Offered by Burpee in 1881 under the name of Netted 

 Gem. There are a number of distinct strains of the Netted Gem 

 type offered under such names as Watter's SoUd Net, Eden Gem, 

 Netted Rock, Rust -resist ant Rocky Ford, etc., etc. This melon 

 has now become the standard shipping variety for the United 

 States, thousands of carloads annually being filled either with 

 Netted Gem or with varieties which have been selected from or 

 hybridized with the old original. In 1895 Mr. William S. Ross of 

 AJma, Illinois, started an industry in his district which within 

 fifteen years developed into one of considerable importance. In 

 1900 two hundred and fifty-three carloads were shipped from there. 

 To Dr. W. W. Tracy, now of the Department of Agriculture, the 

 credit belongs for having really established the industry in the now 

 world-famous Rocky Ford district in Colorado. Because of the 

 vast proportions which the industry assumed within a few years, 

 the name Rocky Ford Cantaloupe in some districts superseded 

 the original name Netted Gem. It is, therefore, offered in the 

 double foiTTi at present. In 1905 the Imperial Valley of Southern 

 California came into prominence as a melon growing region, 

 this through the introduction of irrigation water. In the year 

 1914 alone 4,446 carloads of melons were shipped from the Imperial 

 Valley alone, the warm climate making it possible to commence 

 shipments as early as May. This does not conflict in any way 

 with the season of the Rocky Ford growers, which is much later. 



The stock of Netted Gem or Rocky Ford which we offer is the 

 result of several years' experimental work, leading toward a type 

 which was completely netted, the cross sectors having been entirely 

 eliminated. The flesh is light green, the seed cavity small and 

 the quahty superb. Rust^resistance has also been a factor in the 

 selection of our stock and it will be found to be as near bUght-proof 

 as is possible. It is the standard crating melon, running from forty- 

 five to thirty-six to the crate. For growers whose markets demand 

 a green-fleshed crating melon this variety is hi^lj' recommended. 

 Pkt. 5i, oz. 10?^, 14 lb. 30ff, lb. $1.00. 5 lbs. $4.50, postpaid; by 

 express 5 lbs. or more, 80^ per lb. 



No. 516. Montreal Market. (Green) Days to M.\TtTRiTi", 110. 

 This is the largest green-fleshed melon under cultivation. It is 

 quite well netted, very shallow ribbed and in all general appear- 

 ances highljr attractive. It is grown probably near Montreal, 

 P. Q., under a most- interesting method. The seed is sown in green- 

 houses or hot beds and the plants are later set in sash-covered frames 

 which offer attractive shelter until the crop is nearly grown, glass 

 being removed as the temperature allows and the fruit then develops 

 in the open. Montreal Market Melons are shipped in large wicker 

 baskets, holding one dozen each and commanding high prices on 

 some of the eastern markets. This method of melon growing 

 might be tried with success on the Honey Dew, which scarcely ever 

 develops to maturity in the latitude of New Jersey. See special 

 suggestions imder that variety. Pkt. hi, oz. 10ft, ^ lb. 30(i, lb. 

 $1.00, 5 lbs. $4.50, fjostpaid; by express, 5 lbs. or more, 80(i p>er lb. 



No. 522. Salmon-Tinted Pollock No. 25. D.^^ys to M.\- 

 turity, 95. As noted above the Netted Gem was the original 

 variety used to develop the Rocky Ford Cantaloupe industry. 

 From tliis variety, as also noted, there have been a number of impor- 

 tant types developed by selection and by hjHbridization. This 

 includes the Pollock wliich has been renamed the Eden Gem, Netted 

 Rock, Rust-Resistant, Rocky Ford, etc. From the original Pollock, 

 which was the result of hybridization, there ran two fundamental 

 colors, green and salmon-tinted, with their vai'ious combinations. 

 By individual plant selection on the part of the Rocky Ford Canta- 

 loupe Seed Breeders Association, offered about 1909, the Salmon- 

 Tinted strain has been well isolated and the stock that we offer will 

 be found unifoiTQ, well netted and almost solidly salmon-fleshed. 

 The flavor is distinctly better than the green-fleshed type. The 

 stock has been also selected for disease resistance. Melons will 

 average four and three-quarters in length by three and one-quarter 

 in breadth. It will mature one week after the earliest varieties. 

 As a shipping sort our stock is highly recommended. Pkt. 5^, oz. 

 lOf*, 14 lb. 30(*, lb. $1.00, 5 lbs. $4.50, postpaid; by express, 5 lbs. 

 or more, SOft per lb. 



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The Tables on Page 8 should be of special value in making variety selections of melons 



