January  9,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HOnriCULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
27 
strengthened  and  assisted  as  they  root  into  it,  the  blocks  mean¬ 
while  steadying  the  plants  in  position. 
TVTien  fixing  the  block  in  the  pot  or  basket  the  part  where 
the  plant  is  fastened  to  should  he  just  level  with  the  surface 
of  the  compost.  The  eyes,  then,  as  they  start,  will  be  clear,  and 
in  case  of  an  overdose  of  moisture,  will  not  be  so  likely  to 
decay  as  they  would  be  if  covered  with  peat  and  moss.  Although 
I  have  specially  mentioned  the  deciduous  Dendrobiums.  there 
:are  few  Orchids  that  would  not  be  benefited  by  this  method  of 
<establishing  provided  the  time  can  be  found  for  it. 
Musk  Melons. 
The  Musk  Melon  of  America  is  a  fruit  much  enjoyed  by  our 
brothers  across  the  Atlantic,  and  in  the  summer  time  the  New 
York  markets  do  a  thriving  trade  in  this  delicious  fruit.  They 
are  grown  by  the  fruit  farmers  of  Long  Island  and  New  Jersey 
in  large  quantities,  who  cultivate  them  by  the  acre  much  in  the 
same  way  as  their  Sweet  Corn  is  grown.  Perhaps  their  mode  of 
cultivation  of  the  Musk  Melon  will  be  interesting  to  the  readers 
When  labour  is  limited  most  of  the  pseudo-bulbous  division 
<3o  well  if  potted  up  in  clean  crocks,  the  plants  tied  firmly  to  a 
stake  to  hold  them  in  position,  and  the  crocks  placed  right  up 
to  the  base  of  the  pseudo-bulbs.  Water  may  be  applied  freely 
and  frequently  in  this  case,  as  it  nins  away  at  once,  while  if 
peat  and  moss  w^ere  provided  this  would  hold  moisture,  to  the 
detriment  of  the  young  roots  when  they  appear.  After  the 
plants  start  growing  the  peat  and  moss  must,  of  course,  be 
added,  and  the  treatment  gradually  altered  to  that  for  estab¬ 
lished  plants,  except  that  imported  plants  like  rather  more 
heat  than  those  that  have  been  a  year  or  two  in  cultivation. — 
H.  R.  R. 
of  the  Journal.  Their  first  point  is  the  soil  and  location,  choos¬ 
ing  a  rich,  warm,  and  somewhat  sandy  loam,  having  an  exposure 
in  which  it  can  catch  the  first  and  last  rays  of  sunshine.  It  is 
then  ploughed  in  the  autumn  and  cross-ploughed  in  the  spring, 
after  spreading  the  surface  thickly  over  with  well-rotted  farmyard 
manure.  It  is  then  well  harrowed  and  marked  out  into  beds 
6ft  apart  each  way.  ^  i  n  » 
On  each  bed  is  formed  what  the  Americans  term  hills  —a 
small  elevation  of  the  soil  about  twice  the  size  of  a  molehill. 
After  mixing  with  each  hill  a  good  shovelful  of  fine  manure  and  a 
handful  of  guano,  five  or  six  seeds  are  sown  per  hill,  this  being 
done  during  the  early  part  of  May  and,  for  succession,  till  the 
