1 Ava., 1901.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 205. 
The Orchard. 
FRUIT FROM OLD MELON SEED. 
A writer in the Gardeners’ Chronicle describes his experience in raising 
melons from old seed as giving better results than from young seed. His 
observations, which entirely contirm that of previous observers, are as follow:— 
“Tn a small melon-house I noticed two plants, which were very vigorous, and 
survived the first crop. They produced a good second crop of female flowers, 
but somewhat smaller, as were the male flowers, than usual. In the same 
house was a batch of young plants, with good male blossoms. I fertilised the 
females of the older plant with the pollen from the younger. The crop of fruit 
was nearly double that of the first. The fruits were large and of excellent 
quality throughout. A year or two afterwards, having to supply ripe melons 
in May and onwards, and having noticed that plants from old seed produced a 
less succulent growth than did those from young seed, for four years I raised 
my plants from old seed, always growing a few plants from new seed. I then 
fertilised the female flowers of the older plants with the pollen of the younger, 
which plants were invariably the more robust. The resulting fruits were more 
reliable in good quality, and, though the female flowers had been small, the 
fruits were large, weighing from 3 lb. to 7 lb.” Mr. Henslow has given very 
similar experiences on the Continent in his “ Origin of Floral Structures,” p. 
247. M. F. Cazzuola, in addition, found that melon plants raised from fresh 
seeds bore a larger proportion of male than female flowers; while older seed 
bore more female flowers than male. 
TO GROW WATER-MELONS CHEAPLY. 
The lowest depth of cheapness in growing water-melons has, we think, 
been reached by Mr. S. Eaves, nurseryman, in Brisbane. The seed of melons 
grown last summer was thrown out into the garden, where it germinated and 
produced vines, which in May bore excellent fruit. Two distinct crops of 
melons in one season seem phenomenal, but there appears to be nothing 
impossible with such a soil and such a climate as Queensland is blessed with. 
The Australian Field says that water-melons can be grown to excellent 
advantage in connection with corn or cotton, which should be planted 
as early as the season will permit of, leaving place at proper distances 
apart, say 10 to 12 feet each way, for the melon hills. It is best 
to have ‘no other plants with the corn or cotton, as the case may be, 
except the melons, which should be planted sufficiently close to amount 
virtually to a melon patch: All farmers of experience know that if there is a 
sufficiency of grain of any kind on the ground to make a full crop there is no 
room for anything else while said crop is growing. Hence the necessity for 
leaving spaces of 4 to 5 feet in which to construct the melon hills. If this 
arrangement was not made at planting time, a proper number of stalks should 
be removed to make the necessary room. 
The fruit of a vine will be worth more than that of the stalks removed. 
The vines run out to bear where they will be of but little or no detriment to 
the corn or cotton. Hence there is an actual gain in growing this joint crop, 
and especially when the first crop (corn) goes into decline before the melon 
crop comes on. 
