198 



GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. 



valuable for protecting all plants liable to the attacks of 

 flying insects, and against the light frosts, so often inju- 

 rious to tender plants. Light, sandy soil is rather best 

 for cucumbers; the "hills" should be prepared in the 

 same manner as for Lima Beans, but set three feet 

 apart, dropping five or six seeds in each hill. Cucum- 

 bers may be sown about the middle of May, and in suc- 

 cession, every three or four weeks, until July. The 

 White Spine and Long Green Prickly are favorite varie- 

 ties. The Gherkin or Burr is by some used for pickling. 



EGG PLANT, {Solarium Melongena.) 



This is always an interesting vegetable to cultivate 

 being worthy of a place as an or- 

 namental plant, as well as being 

 much prized for culinary use. It 

 is a native of the Tropics, and 

 peculiarly tender. We find the 

 seeds will not germinate freely 

 under a temperature of seventy 

 degrees ; and even then, often 

 tardily, unless the conditions are 

 just right. Nothing suits them 

 so well as a warm hot-bed, and to 

 get plants of the proper size to be 

 set in the open ground by the end 

 of May, the seeds should be sown 

 early in March, and the plants 

 potted into small pots when an 

 inch or so in hight. But as only 

 a dozen or two plants are needed 

 for a family, whenever the plants 

 can be purchased conveniently, it 

 trouble to attempt the raising of them from seeds, unless 

 indeed there is room in a hot-bed, or hot-house used 



Fig. 83. — EGG PLANT. 



is never worth the 



