THE VEGETABLE MARROW. 
365 
them. If there be any come single or semi- 
double, with thick well-made petals, they may 
be saved to seed from, for they may throw 
many double ones with similar petals, and that 
is all we desire. By destroying all that do not 
exhibit some desirable property in a conspicuous 
degree, they may be got rid of before they have 
time to impregnate the better sorts ; for which 
purpose, the plants must be examined daily, 
and several times a-day, when once they begin 
to flower ; for a score or two will come out in 
a warm hour, and the sooner they are removed 
the better. There will be but few left out of 
hundreds. 
Of the few worth saving for some dis- 
tinct quality, let the half-dozen best flowers 
seed, because it is desirable to save the season, 
and begin sowing from the best as early as 
possible ; therefore, when the best flowers be- 
gin to open, mark the best six, taking away 
all others directly both below and above them, 
and watch the ripening, so that they be not 
scattered abroad. With regard to the pro- 
perties of the Hollyhock the following will be 
enough for the present ; we may be more ex- 
plicit hereafter. 
The flower should be round, and the prin- 
cipal or guard petals should be thick, entire 
on the edges, and lie flat, being free from 
puckering or frilling. 
The centre, which is composed of florets, 
should form half a ball, and the more it covers 
the principal or guard petals the better. 
These florets should be thick, large, whole 
on the edges, perfectly free from fringe, or 
notch, or raggedness all over. 
The colour should be dense, instead of wa- 
tery and transparent or washy as that of the 
Hollyhock is generally. The more bright and 
novel the more desirable. 
The spike should be close, the flowers 
touching each other, and tapering from the 
bottom to the top. The footstalks of the flower 
being longer at the lower end of the spike than 
at the upper end. 
There is no fixed height for the plant ; but 
the flowers should begin one foot from the 
ground, and open all at once. 
THE YEGETAILE MARROW, AND OTHER 
GOURDS. 
With the exception of the Melon, Cucum- 
ber, and Vegetable Marrow, few Cucurbita* 
ceous plants are cultivated in this country, 
or, if so, chiefly for curiosity or ornament. 
There are, however, some others worthy of 
notice even here, whilst their importance in 
hot climates can hardly be over-estimated. 
The Vegetable Marrow is supposed to be a 
variety of the Cucurbita Melopepo, the Melon 
Pumpkin, or Squash; it attains a considerable 
size when ripe, measuring about a foot iu 
length, and four or five inches through, being 
then rather strongly ribbed, although they are 
not so apparent when young. The fruit are 
generally used when nearly half-grown, al- 
though excellent in all stages, even when ripe, 
when it is superior to the pumpkin for pies. 
The flesh when boiled is very tender, mild, 
and buttery, and no doubt this will always be 
the sort preferred in English gardens. It was 
introduced from Persia before 1816. 
The other varieties of this plant, called 
Squashes in the United States, are very ex- 
tensively grown there, both for summer and 
winter use ; they distinguish two classes of 
them, the Bush and "Winter Squashes : the 
former being grown for summer use, and the 
latter, as indicated, for winter stores. The 
varieties are very numerous of the first section, 
including the fiat bush, the long bush, and the 
crooked-necked bush. These sorts are desira- 
ble for small gardens, as they do not run 
along the ground like the others, but form 
compact bushes, and are very prolific. Of the 
winter sorts, there are the white winter, the 
bell-slurped winter, the crooh-neched winter, 
and many others. Cobbett gives the prefer- 
ence to the flat bush for the summer, and the 
long white for the winter. In cooking, they 
require no peeling, but are merely washed 
clean, and plain boiled for about twenty mi- 
nutes, or until done. The winter sorts pro- 
duce much larger fruit than the others ; these 
latter should be gathered as soon as they are 
large enough for use, in order not to weaken 
the plants, when some will produce nearly a 
bushel of Squashes ; the very small fruit are 
said to form a better pickle than Cucumbers. 
The large Gourd is the Cucurbita Potira, 
the Potironjaunc of the French, and is a very 
strong grower, throwing out shoots twenty 
and thirty feet long in a few weeks, and pro- 
ducing enormous fruit; it has been grown to 
the weight of two hundred and twelve pounds 
the single fruit, in this country. "When ripe, 
the flesh is two or three inches thick, of a 
yellow or salmon colour, enclosing the seeds, 
which are stuck round the sides of the central 
cavity. In a young state, the fruit are very 
good, used as a Vegetable Marrow, or in soups, 
but it is too large a grower to be recommended. 
There are several varieties of it. 
Apparently, a variety either of this or of the 
preceding is the Coucourzelle, a Vegetable 
Marrow highly esteemed in France. It is a 
very rambling grower, and the fruit should 
be gathered as soon as it is out of flower, or 
it becomes too large for use ; it is then about 
six inches long, and nearly two through, very 
tender and delicious. 
Varieties of the Cucurbita Potira are the 
