THE PERSIAN MELON. 
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varieties, which have of late years been introduced from Persia. Of 
these, the Encyclopaedia of gardening makes mention of two only, 
viz. : 1st. the Dampsha, the distinguishing feature of which is, that, 
if kept in a dark room, it will remain good during the winter months. 
2nd. The sweet Melon of Ispahan : this is a large and very pe¬ 
culiar fruit, somewhat resembling in figure, a large swollen cucum¬ 
ber; its skin is extremely delicate, pale sulphur yellow, smooth, or 
with very few vermicular reticulations, flesh white, flavour luscious, 
abounding with a rich saccharine juice. This Melon appears to be 
the peculiar favourite of Mr. Knight, the venerated President of the 
London Horticultural Society; and some idea of his successful me¬ 
thod of cultivating it, may be gathered, by consulting pages 263 and 
302 of your Horticultural Register. I too, have raised this variety, 
and ripened the fruit during the present summer; but I withhold 
any paper on the subject, till my experience be more certain and 
determinate. 
The reader will perhaps be gratified by a reference to that useful 
work, Lindley s Guide to the Orchard, wherein the distinctive 
qualities and natural habits of the Persian tribe are ably and clearly 
detailed. At page 235, Mr. Lindley enumerates six varieties, and 
then observes, page 239, “ The melons of Persia differ remarkably 
from the varieties commonly cultivated in Europe. They are alto¬ 
gether destitute of the thick hard rind which characterises the lat¬ 
ter, and which renders the one-half of every fruit useless; on the 
contrary, they are protected by a skin so thin and delicate, that they 
are subject to injury from causes which would produce no percepti¬ 
ble effect upon the melons of Europe. Their flesh is extremely ten¬ 
der, rich, and sweet, and flows copiously with a cool juice which 
renders them still more grateful. To these important qualities, they 
in many cases add the merit of bearing abundant crops of fruit, the 
appearance of which is always extremely beautiful.” Further on, 
when describing the proper method of their successful culture here ; 
and that pursued by the Persian gardener in their native climate, 
Mr. Lindley proceeds thus :—“ They are found to require a very 
high temperature, a dry atmosphere, and an extremely humid soil; 
while they are at the same time impatient of an undue supply of 
moisture, which causes spotting and decay long before the fruit is 
matured.—It is not easy therefore, to maintain that necessary ba¬ 
lance of heat and moisture which in Persia arises out of the very 
nature of the climate and mode of cultivation. In that country, we 
are told, that the melon is grown in open fields, intersected in every 
direction by small streams, between which, lie elevated beds, richly 
