200 



GARDEN GUIDE 



MELONS 



1 



Muskmelon 



Melons are delicious in the hot Sum- 

 mer days, and quite easy to grow. Make 

 a little mound about 2 ft. in diameter, 

 slightly above the surrounding ground 

 and, in its center, plant four or five seeds, 

 about 6 in. apart and 2 in. deep. Two 

 seeds may be put in each hole, but finally 

 thin out to four plants on each hill. When 

 these have made growth, about 2 ft. long, 

 pinch out the top. This will accelerate 

 lateral growth, and on these you will soon 

 see the young female or fruit blossoms, 

 which develop with amazing rapidity. 

 A piece of glass, slate or shingle 

 put under each fruit wiD keep them 

 off the ground and assist in hastening the matm'ity of fine, well- 

 netted specimens. When the fruit will leave the vine without being forced, 

 it is ripe and ready for the table. In northern locations where the seasons 

 are short, it is always a good plan to start at least part of the crop early in 

 paper pots or in frames. Heavy soil should be avoided, if possible. If it 

 must be used, add plenty of sand and leaf mold to the soil in the hill when 

 preparing it, and raise the hill shghtly; keep it flat but bring it a couple 

 of inches above the ground level. Should any fungous diseases develop a 

 spraying with arsenate of lead will usually be effective. Among good 

 varieties are Honey Dew, Rocky Ford, Emerald Gem, Hackensack; but 

 there are many others. Sometimes a local variety is the very best to plant; 

 watch your neighbors and adopt any variety which shows improvement, 

 or some special worthy feature. Never plant Melons near Cucumbers, 

 Gourds or Squash, as they cross-fertilize and become worthless. 



MUSHROOMS 



This crop is of such a character that unless one has patience and a 

 good deal of time and attention to bestow upon it, its cultivation had better 

 not be attempted. A hberal quantity of stable manure is necessary. This 

 has to be coUected, the long strawy material removed, the heap fermented, 

 and then the whole trodden firmly into a box, case, frame or bed in a dark, 

 moist cellar, or under the benches of a greenhouse. Dryness is deadly. 

 The bed must be kept moist and warm, and the air of the place where the 

 beds are should be moist; at any rate hot dry. The temperature should be 

 55 deg. to 60 deg. or 70 deg. in warm weather. 



Spawn, in the form of dry cakes a foot or so square, can be got from 

 the seedsman. He can also explain the general methods of cultivation or 

 one of a number of excellent books or Experiment Station pubhcations can 

 be consulted. The cake is broken into pieces an inch square and these are 

 buried in the hotbed, which should be 12 in. to 18 in. deep. The heat in 

 the bed should have receded to 80 deg. Then place a layer of 4 in. of soil 

 over the bed and beat this level. Whenever it gets dry, or before it gets 

 dry, water with tepid water. In five to ten weeks the mushrooms should 

 appear. Sometimes the surface of the bed is covered with straw. Beds 

 can be made out of doors early in April, 



