248 



GARDENING FOE, THE SOUTH. 



ately thick; flesh, green, firm, rich, and high flavored. 

 Pretty early." (Downing.) Best for general use. 



Skillman'S Fine Netted. — " Earliest of the green-fleshed 

 melons. Small, rough-netted, flattened at the ends. Flesh 

 green, very thick, firm, sugary, and of the most delicious 

 flavor." [Downing.) 



Hoosalnee. — A Persian melon. Fruit oblong, oval, and 

 of good size ; skin, light green, netted ; flesh, pale green- 

 ish white, tender, sweet and rich ; bears well ; rather late. 



The pine-apple is one of this class, and one of the best 

 for forcing. Good and productive. 



Christiana. — Scarlet-fleshed; an orange-fleshed variety 

 from near Boston ; a week or ten days earlier than the 

 citron ; round ; skin dull yellow when ripe ; very good, 

 but inferior to all the green-fleshed sorts, though valuable 

 from its earliness. 



Netted Cantaloupe. — Fruit rather small, round, pale 

 green, netted; flesh, orange red, sweet and rich; the best 

 of the scarlet-fleshed, which are never equal to the others. 



There are also several varieties of winter melon culti- 

 vated in Spain. The best of these are said to be Melon 

 d'hiver d chair blanche, which will keep in a dry room 

 until February ; green-fleshed, juicy, sweet and good : 

 Melon oVhiver d chair rouge ; like the last, but red-fleshed, 

 and does not keep so well : Melon de Valence ; large, 

 egg-shaped, thin rind, shaded green, white-fleshed, juicy, 

 and very sweet, and an excellent keeper. 



An analysis of the melon shows it to contain about s0 | 100 

 of water. 



Culture. — The melon likes a rich, sandy soil, well ma- 

 nured, and deeply dug. If the soil is clay, it should be 

 corrected by the addition of charcoal-dust, sand, or leaf- 

 mould from the woods. The most luscious melons are 

 grown on new land, fresh from the woods. They like, 

 also, soil manured by cow-penning. In selecting seed, get 



