C U C U M 1 S. 443 
It has lately been affirmed that it is a native of Calmuc 
Tartary ; but it is difficult to determine the original 
country of thofe plants which have been cultivated time 
immemorial. It appears from Lobel to have been culti¬ 
vated in England before 1570. Gerarde (1597) fays, 
that he has “ feen at the queen’s houfe at St. James very 
many of his firft fort (green with a red fleffi) ripe, 
through the diligent and curious nourifhing of them by 
a fkilful gentleman, the keeper of the faid houfe, called 
Matter Fowle ; and in other places, near unto the right 
honorable the lord of SutTex houfe of Bermondfey, by 
London, where from year to year there is very great 
plenty, efpecially if the weather be any thing tempe¬ 
rate.” Parkinfon (1629) informs us, that “melonshave 
"been only eaten by great perfonages, becaufe the fruit 
was not only delicate but rare; and therefore divers were 
brought from France, and lince were nurfed up by the 
kings or noblemens gardiners only : but now divers 
others, that have (kill and conveniency of ground for 
them, do plant them and make them more common.” 
7. Cucumis dudaim, or apple-ffiaped cucumber: an¬ 
gles of the leaves rounded ; fruits fpherical with the na¬ 
vel retufe. Flowers yellow, divided into five or fix 
roundiffi fegments, (lightly crenate on the edge. Fruit 
the fize and form of an orange; the rind fmooth, fome- 
times fparingly wai ted, (lightly furrowed only at top, va¬ 
riegated with green and dark orange, and oblong unequal 
green fpots, when the fruit is full ripe becoming yellow 7 , 
and at length whitiffi : it has a very fragrant vinous 
mu(ky fmell, and a whitiffi, flaccid, infipid, pulp. It is 
a native of the Levant. Dillenius fays that the feeds 
which grew in the Eltham garden (1732) were reported 
to come from Morocco, and w 7 ere received from Mr. 
Peter Collinfon, who had them from lord Petre. It 
flowers in July and Auguft. 
8. Cucumis chate, or hairy cucumber: hirfute; angles 
of the leaves entire, rounded; fruits fufiform, drawn to 
a point at each end, rough with hairs. Stems decum¬ 
bent, cirrhofe, obfcurely five-cornered. The whole plant 
covered clofe and thick with foft, white, pellucid, hairs, 
like the germ in the common melon, which differs from 
this in being rough, with fti.ffiffi, conical, diftant, hairs. 
The fruit fvvells in the middle, is rough, with erect 
white hairs, and has a beak at each end. Found in the 
fertile earth round Cairo, after the inundation of the 
Nile, and no where elfe in Egypt; Linnaeus fays Egypt 
and Arabia. Native of the Levant. The fruit is ra¬ 
ther watery ; the flefli almoft of the fame fubdance with 
the melon; the tafle fomewhat fweet and cool, but not 
fo cool as the water-melon. The grandees and Europe¬ 
ans in Egypt eat it as the mod pleafant fruit they have, 
and that from which they have lead to apprehend. 
With us it is very indifferent. 
9. Cucumis fativus, or common cucumber: leaves 
ftraight between the angles; fruit oblong, fcabrous. 
The common cucumber, fo generally cultivated for the 
table, is fo well known as not to require a particular de- 
fcription. We may,_however, remark, that the leaves 
differ from thofe of the melon very much in their form, 
running out into (harp angles, efpecially at the end, with 
the line between the angles firait, having the nerves 
rominent on the upper furface, and very rough, with 
riffles; they arealfo of a firmer texture. In the flow¬ 
ers, the fegments of the calyx are much longer ; the co¬ 
rolla of a deeper yellow, each petal or part much 
wrinkled, commonly rolled in at the edges, the ribs at 
the back briflly, as in the melon, and the principal rib 
ending in a long green point ; there are no veftiges of 
antherae in the female flowers, and the germ is very ob¬ 
long, angular, but obfcurely, not hairy, but muricated 
with prickles arifing from a fmooth warty fubdance ; in 
fome of the highly-cultivated varieties this natural prick- 
ifnefs vaniffies. 
The principal varieties are the following : 1 . Com¬ 
mon rough green prickly ; fix or feven inches long, with 
a dark green (kin, clofely fet with finall prickles ; hardy, 
a plentiful bearer, but does not fruit early. 2. Short 
green prickly ; three or four inches long ; (kin rather 
fmooth, but having fmall black prickles ; one of the 
hardied andearlied forts. 3. Long green prickly ; from 
fix to eight or nine inches long, thinly fet with prickles; 
this is a good bearer, and the bed for main crops ; 
there is a variety of this with white fruit. 4. Early 
green cluder; (liortiffi, early, and remarkable for the 
flowers appearing in cinders. 5. Long fmooth green 
Turkey ; the (talks and leaves much larger than the for¬ 
mer forts ; the fruit is generally twice the length (ten 
to fifteen inches), and has a fmooth rind without prickles. 
6 . Long fmooth white Turkey ; differs little from the 
foregoing, except in colour ; it is, however, lefs watery, 
■and is therefore generally better edeemed. 7. Large 
fmooth green Roman ; the plants are very drong ; and 
the fruit large, long, and quite fmooth. 8. Long white 
prickly Dutch ; fruit eight or ten inches long, white, 
with fmall black prickles ; a bad bearer, at lead with 
us, and not fo hardy as the common forts ; but the fruit 
is lefs watery, and has fewer feeds. The four lad vari¬ 
eties are all, indeed, but indifferent bearers; but the 
fruit being very large, handfome, and well-taded, fome 
plants ffiould be admitted, where there is room. Parkin¬ 
fon informs us, that prickled cucumbers, which were 
then much ufed for fauce all winter long, came from be¬ 
yond fea ; and though fome drove to equal them, yet 
thefe were nothing comparable to the former. The 
plants of this genus in general, or, to fpeak more pro¬ 
perly, of this natural tribe, are confidered as cooling ; 
the fpecies mod in ufe is the common cucumber; tins, 
however, when it is too large, or advanced beyond a cer¬ 
tain period of its growth, acquires a bitternefs and then 
becomes unwholefome. The feeds of cucumbers, me¬ 
lons, &c. were formerly ufed in medicine, under the title 
of the cold feeds, in emuliions, &c. In Italy they call our 
cucumbers citrulli, water-melons and pompions, cucumeri ; 
in Spaniffi it is called cohombro ; in French, concombre ; in 
Swediffi, gurka ; in Daniffi, angurke, agurke ; in Dutch, 
komkommer ; in German gurke, kukummer. 
10. Cucumis anguinus, or ferpent cucumber, or melon: 
leaves lobate; fruits cylindric, very long, fmooth, and 
even, writhed. Flowers fmaller than others of the genus, 
and with a long tube ; leaves a palm long and broad ; 
divided, but not very deeply, into five or feven fegments, 
obfcurely toothed at the edges; the fruit or cucumber 
is three feet or three feet and a half long ; it is never 
(trait, but (trangely twifted, fo as to referable a fnake ; 
it is externally of a greyiffi-green, and grows very red in 
time ; the odour is rank, and the tafte bitter. 
11. Cucumis flexuofus, or flexuofe cucumber, or me¬ 
lon : leaves angular-fublobate; fruits cylindric, furrowed, 
curved. Fruit the fize of a large pear, of an oblong 
cylindric form, fmooth, eatable, and delicious. It is 
cultivated about Nagafaki and elfe where in Japan; is 
ripe in June, and is called by the Dutch banket-mdon. 
12. Cucumis conomon, or Japan melon: leaves angu¬ 
lar-fublobate, toothed; fruits fufiform, ten-furrowed, 
fmooth. Fruit the fize of a man’s head, or larger, ob¬ 
long. It is cultivated every where in Japan ; the fruit 
preferved .is fold under the name of connexion, and is a 
common food among the Japanefe; it is alfo frequently 
eaten by the Dutch at Batavia, and is fomecimes brought 
to Holland. 
13. Cucumis Maderafpatanus, or Indian melon : leaves 
cordate, entire, toothletted ; fruits globular, fmooth. 
Flowers white, axillary, on many-flowered peduncles ; 
fruit half an inch in diameter, yellow. Native of Cey¬ 
lon, and others parts of the Eaft Indies, of Cochinchini, 
and alfo of the Cape of Good Hope. 
Propagation and Culture, 1 to 5, and 10 to 13. Thefe 
being annual plants are railed from feed; coming from 
hot 
