May  31,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER 
467 
Jottings  About  Melon  Cnltnre. 
(Concluded  from  page.  264.) 
From  the  beginning  of  June  onward  throughout  the  summer 
Melons  grown  in  suitable  houses  make  wonderful  progress,  and  unless 
tying  and  stoj  ping  are  regularly  performed  leaves  and  shoots  soon  get 
crowded.  ^  If  at  any  time  it  is  found  that  too  many  laterals  have  been 
retained,  it  is  better  to  remove  a  few  of  them  than  to  allow  cro,vding 
to  continue,  as  (  ne  firm  thick  leaf  produced  by  full  exposure  to  light 
is  better  than  two  weak  and  improperly  developed  ones.  In  order  to 
keep  the  roots  active  a  few  sub-laterals  should  be  continually  trained 
between  the  main  leaves  or  allowed  to  hang  over  the  top  of  the 
trellis,  or  along  the  front  of  the  house.  This  is,  therefore,  an 
additional  reason  why  overcrowding  should  be  avoided  in  the  early 
stages  of  growth. 
As  soon  as  the  young  roots  have  formed  a  network  in  the  soil 
added  at  the  final 
earthing,  regular 
feeding  should  be 
practised  till  the 
fruits  begin  to 
colour.  This  may 
be  given  both  in 
the  form  of  liquid 
manure  and  chemi¬ 
cal  fertilisers. 
Blood  obtained 
from  a  slaughter¬ 
house  diluted  with 
six  times  its  bulk 
of  water,  forms  a 
splendid  liquid 
manure  for  fruits 
of  all  kinds,  as 
well  as  plants  in 
pots.  In  country 
districts,  however, 
gardeners  cannot 
often  obtain  it,  but 
they  can  usually 
procure  the  drain¬ 
ings  of  stables  and 
cow  sheds,  which 
are  at  all  times 
valuable  for  feed¬ 
ing  plants  and 
crops.  I  like  to 
give  some  kind  of 
liquid  manure  at 
every  watering 
while  the  fruits  are 
making  their  first 
swelling,  for  to  a 
great  extent  the 
size  of  the  fruit  is 
determined  during 
that  stage. 
Chemical  ferti¬ 
lisers  given  in  the 
lorm  of  a  top¬ 
dressing  are  also  of 
immense  benefit, 
as  they  bring  the 
roots  to  the  surface  and  keep  them  wonderfully  active,  but  this  activity 
can  only  I  e  maintained  by  regular  dressings  with  such  fertilisers  till 
the  fruit  begins  to  change  colour.  If  their  use  be  discontinued  earlier 
the  plants  receive  a  check,  and  the  fruits  sometimes  do  not  finish  well. 
,  Some  cultivators  are  greatly  troubled  with  red  spider,  and  to  ch^ck 
it  syringe  their  plants  with  a  solution  of  softsoap,  with  which  a  little 
flowers  of  sulphur  has  been  mixed.  When  this  is  done  the  edges 
of  the  leaves  are  often  browned,  as  they  are  very  tender.  With  a 
liberal  feeding  at  the  roots,  due  attention  to  watering,  and  syringing 
the  plants  freely  during  bright  weather,  spider  ought  not  to  give  much 
trouble.  I  like  to  close  the  houses  about  2  p.m.  during  the  hottest 
weather,  at  the  same  time  syringing  every  particle  of  foliage,  and 
damping  the  floors  liberally,  the  process  to  be  repeated  an  hour  after 
during  exceptionally  bright  weather.  Under  such  conditions  both 
plants  and  fruits  seem  to  advance  by  leaps  and  bounds,  and  revel  in 
the  “  bottled  ”  beat  and  moisture.  Even  during  hot  weather  it  is 
necessary  to  warm  the  hot-water  pipes  slightly  at  night,  or  canker 
and  rotting  at  the  collar  of  the  plants  will  sometimes  take  place.  A 
quart  of  clarified  soot  water  mixed  in  a  3-gallon  can  of  water  is  an 
excellent  concoction  to  syringe  the  plants  with  occasionally  in  order  to 
promote  a  deep  green  colour  in  the  leaves,  and  keep  insects  in  check. 
Occasionally  one  hears  of  black  fly  being  troublesome  in  Melon 
houses,  but  it  is  usually  caused  through  not  keeping  a  sufficiently 
moist  atmosphere  during  the  growing  stage,  and  fumigating  is  the  best 
means  of  destroying  the  pests  when  they  have  obtained  a  firm  footing. 
If  only  a  few  shoots  or  leaves  are  attacked  syringing  with  or  dipping 
them  in  tobacco  water  effectually  prevents  further  trouble  in  that  respect. 
Melon  plants  if  in  good  health  should  seldom  require  shading,  hut 
it  is  not  wise  to  adhere  to  hard-and-fast  rules  in  such  matters.  After 
long  periods  of  dull  weather  if  the  sun  suddenly  shine  out  brightly 
the  plants  o^ten  show  signs  of  distress,  and  unless  shaded  for  a  few 
hours  may  be  seriously  crippled,  especially  if  carrying  heavy  crops. 
The  critical  time  is  generally  when  the  fruits  are  fully  grown  and 
before  they  begin  to  colour,  for  they  seem  then  to  feel  the  strain  the 
most.  In  the  earlier  stages  of  growth  jilants  will  sometimes  show 
signs  of  distress  through  mi-takes  in  watering,  as  it  requires  a 
considerable  amount  of  judgment  to  know  exactly  when  to  water.  With 
the  soil  packed 
with  roots,  and 
plenty  of  healthy 
growth,  during 
bright  weather 
frequent  and 
liberal  applica¬ 
tions  are  necessary, 
but  in  dry  dull 
weather  it  is  an 
easy  matter  to 
water  a  little  too 
soon.  The  time 
when  the  culti¬ 
vator  must  be  on 
the  alert  is  when 
a  dull  morning 
is  succeeded  by 
bright  bursts  of 
sunshine.  If  the 
promise  of  a  dull 
day  throughout 
had  been  fulfilled 
no  water  would 
have  been  needed, 
but  the  changed 
condition  of  the 
elements  renders 
water  absolutely 
necessary.  Hun¬ 
dreds  of  plants  are 
annually  brought 
into  a  state  of  semi¬ 
collapse  through 
delaying  the  appli¬ 
cation  of  water 
an  hour  too  long 
during  such  trying 
weather. 
I  am  no  advo¬ 
cate  for  the  com¬ 
mon  practice  of 
withholding  water 
almost  entirely 
when  the  fruit  is 
colouring,  through 
fear  of  causing 
them  to  crack,  as  I  have  practised  almost  every  conceivable  plan, 
and  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  although  water  is  not  required 
so  often  then  as  when  rapid  growth  is  being  made,  the  soil  should 
never  be  allowed  to  get  dry  enough  to  cause  the  plants  to  flag.  If  it 
does,  the  fruit  will  inevitably  crack  when  the  sap  again  expands  the 
contracted  tissues.  It  is  the  overdryness  at  the  root  before  water  is 
given  which  is  the  real  cause  of  cracking  in  such  instances,  though  in 
others  too  much  atmospheric  moisture  w'ithout  a  free  circulation  of  air 
will  have  a  similar  effect. 
Some  varieties,  such  as  Hero  of  Lockinge  and  The  Countess,  require 
to  hang  for  several  days  after  being  highly  coloured  before  they  are 
ripe  enough  to  cut,  and  when  a  few  Iruits  are  slightly  in  advance  ot 
others  on  the  same  plant  I  like  to  cut  the  stems  half  through,  just 
below  the  fruit,  to  lessen  the  supply  of  sap  in  that  direction.  After 
cutting  all  Melons  which  are  not  over-ripe  they  should  be  placed  on  a 
dry  shelf  in  a  warm  airy  house  for  a  day  before  being  sent  to  table. 
A  Melon  more  than  any  fruit  is  at  its  best  in  point  of  flavour  for  a 
very  short  time,  and  the  cultivator  should  learn  by  experience  just 
when  that  stage  is  reached. — H.  D. 
Fig.  125. — Seedling  Tuberous. rooted  Double  Begonia.  (See  page  400.) 
