168 
CALENDAR FOR JULY. 
Melons should have plenty of air through the day, but must 
be covered up close at night; water freely once or twice a week, 
and sprinkle the foliage of growing plants every evening. 
Salading must have constant attention ; small crops in quick 
succession are best. Endive may be planted largely for autumn 
and winter use, and the principal crop should be sown in the 
early part of the month; sow Lettuces, Radishes, and Onions 
every fortnight; Mustard, and Cress, and Rape, at intervals of 
four or five days. 
Pickling articles will soon be in demand; see that the Capsicums, 
Tomatoes, Nasturtiums, &c., are progressing : the first should be 
tied to sticks as they advance to guard against accidents, the 
second do better when trained against a wall, and should be kept 
constantly nailed up. Gherkins should have a little liquid manure 
occasionally. 
Keep down weeds of all sorts by the constant application of 
the hoe ; clear off exhausted plants immediately they cease to be 
useful, and observe that none of the standing vegetables become 
crowded, or all previous attention will be thrown away. 
The possession of a superior variety of any particular vegetable 
sometimes leads the gardener to seed-saving. For this purpose 
always select the very best plants, and particular care must be 
taken in order to have the seed true, that no other variety of the 
same kind be allowed to flower at the same time, or the chances 
are greatly in favour of the two hybridizing through the instru¬ 
mentality of insects, especially those of the Cabbage and Lettuce 
tribes ; the latter, from their continued habit of flowering, require 
a good deal of attention in gathering, as only a part of the seed 
will be ripe together. 
The most important point in harvesting seed of any kind, is to 
have it perfectly ripe before it is gathered, and to expose it to 
the sun for a few days afterwards, to dry out every particle of 
superfluous moisture; it may then be cleaned and put away till 
required for use. In connexion with this subject, a few words 
on keeping seeds may not be out of place: endeavour to have 
them always in a cool, dry place, of very equable temperature, 
for fluctuations of any kind are more destructive to their vitality 
than is generally supposed. 
