50 



GOURDS FOR PERGOLAS. 



The abnormal summer of 1911, although 

 not suiting many subjects in the garden, colours 

 certainly favoured the growth of ornamen- 

 tal and other gourds, and all the varieties 

 that I grew fruited splendidly. The colours 

 also w^ere certainly more remarkable than I 

 have ever had them, although I have culti- 

 vated these very interesting plants some- 

 what largely for the past twelve or thirteen 

 years. 



In the early part of the season they cer- 

 tainly did not grow quite as fast as I liked 

 to see them^ there not being quite sufficient 

 moisture to suit them in the early stages, 

 but once I realised this there was no fur- 



ther need to worry, either about the growth 

 they made, or the manner in which they 

 set their fruit. Many of the smaller grow- 

 ing varieties, such as the orange, goose- 



of large dimensions. These large gourds not 

 only produce contrasts in the matter of size, 

 but it is in these that one obtains the best 



, none of the small ones being really 

 brilliant ; I might add that practically all 

 the large forms mentioned are edible, and 

 where well ripened can be kept and used 

 from right through the winter. The most 

 popular one probably from an economic 

 point of view is the Red Etampes, this 

 being much in demand for various purposes 

 on the continent, the chief use being for 

 soup-making. 



The Lagenaria family forms a quite dis- 

 tinct group of gourdsj the growth and 

 foliage be'ng quit-e silky to the touch. 



whilst those in the Cucurbit group are all 

 more or less prickly, and some of them are 

 apt to cause small eruptions or spots on the 

 arms of those working among them during 

 very hot weather. Another distinctive fea. 



to a collection a few at least should be tried, 

 as, even if they did not fruit, the fohage 

 and flowers are quite decorative. 



ITie cultivation of gourds is simphcity 

 itself. The young plants are raised as you 

 would raise vegetable marrows, gi^^ing a 

 little protection from cold winds at plant- 

 ing-out time. This should be done fairly , 

 early, so as to give the plants a good sea- ! 

 son's growth. The ground naturally should . 

 be well prepared for them, trenching it at 

 least three feet deep, previously giving a 

 fair dressing of manure. During hot dry 

 weather plenty of water will be needed to 

 keep them growing freely, and as the roots 

 are apt to keep fairly near the surface, a 

 mulching of suitable material will be of 

 much assistance to them. 



r 



Considerable attention is needed in train, 

 ing to keep the gr<jwths tied in, and dining 

 July and August the gi'owth is so rapid 



PORITON OF MR. T. STTVENSON'S «OLD MEDAL COLLECTION OF GOURDS. 



Exhibited at the meeting held by the Royal Horticultural Society, September 26, 1911, the aggregate weight of tho fruits being 



two tons. 



berry, yellow pear, white, striped, and bi- 

 color pear, the portmanteau, and bell- 

 shaped gourds carried fruit from four to 

 six inches apart, on growths from ten to 

 twenty feet in length, Sxich plants as 

 these, covering a pergola some sixty yards 

 in length, with practically every upright 

 supporting a different variety, made a 

 quite pleasing feature in the kitchen gar- 

 den, and cei-tainly elicited more attention 

 from visitors than many other subject* 

 upon which more time and money had been 

 expended . 



The small varieties in themselves make a 

 most pleasing display, but to produce a 

 really telling effevt some of the larger-grow- 

 ing varieties, such as the Giant Spanish, 

 Red Etampes, Grey and Green Boulogne, 

 Whale, Giant Turks Cap, Naples, Corfu, 

 Embroidered. Climbing Crook-neck, Olive, 

 and Hubbard gourds, must be employed, 

 especially where the pergolas or arches are 



ture of the lagenaria group is found in the 

 flowers, which are white, and usually borne 

 on a longer stem than that of the curcubit 

 section. This family includes all the diffe- 

 rent types of bottle gourds, some of these 

 being quite small, whilst others are so large 

 that, if hollowed out, they would hold a 

 couple of gallons of water. Some are of 

 the shapt^of clubs, bottles, syphons, powder 

 flasks, and snakes, and as the fruits of these 

 remain a beautiful shade of green till q\ute 

 late in tbe season, they are ako desirable 

 subjects for using on pergolas, in conjunc- 

 tion with the others But it cannot be too 

 distinctly understood that their fruits must 

 not be eaten, being <]('S( rih( d as bitter and 



probablv poisonous. Tlic sjttH it s and varie- 

 ties forming the hiKcnar ia j^i oup are natives 

 of tropical i-ountries, and it is doubtful if 

 they would fruit as w^ell every season as 

 they did during the past year, but from 

 the fact that they add variety and interest 



that they must not be left to themselves 

 many days, or they may be seriously 

 damaged by the wind. I have found thei^ 

 grow from eight to twelve inches to a foot 

 each day during this period. As the fruits 

 begin to swell, some support must be g^^'^'^ 

 to them, or they will soon break the growths 

 down. Strong yarn is sufficient for tn^ 

 medium-sized fruits, running it over thenj 

 in the same way that one often sees melons 



but the larger fruits will need soiw^- 

 ich stronger. The best material 

 have us* (l is liin. webbing, using it ni.tJi^ 

 same way as the string, and allowing plenty 

 of room for swelling. Even this must be 

 of great strength, as some of the larg^^ 

 varieties will carry fruit ranging from 

 to 1001b. If carefully looked after, a"^ 

 care taken to so arrange the varieties tba^ 

 several plants of any one variety are n^ 

 in clovse association, thev cannot fail to 

 of interest. Thomas SxEVEN^^f^^^' 



slung ; 

 thing muc 



