The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-06-15
Short Chapters or Veget BILE Culture.
THE MELON.


THE MELON.
The melon is more of field crop than a
garden crop, but few hills at least ara
usually included in the well conducted gar
den. There Is no more delightful vegetable
Ear "fruit'0 than it Is, and very few who
are properly situated for its culture neglect
the musk melon. As a breakfast fruit.
especially, it is appreciated by all classes,
and non-producers can usaully get them at
very reasonable prices. 1t cannot be es-
teemed very wholesome fruit, weak stom-
achs finding it usually rather difficult of
digestion. But when eaten at the first meal
of the day while fresh and perfectly ripe
and partaken, as it usually is, with plenty
of salt and pepper it can be eaten freely
with impunity by nearly every one who is
not exceedingly dyspeptic. In the cata-
Iogues nearly hundred different names
appear, but there are not that many differ
eat varieties by good deal The grower
does not want more than two or three kinds.
The green nutmeg. Stills hybrid, the citron
the Christiana, and Bay-view. the White
Japan and Wards Nectar present names
names enough from which to make choice
of two or three kinds to make melon culture
success.
The crop should be planted Just as early
as frost will permit, but there is nothi q
gained (but much to lose) by putting the
seeds in before the soil has warmed up suffi-
GENTLY. 1t is only the very early crop with
us that stands fair chance of escaping the
depredations of the melon norm. Some
years this insect is very destructive to the
melons while in other years it is not so bad.
We have had number of splendid melon
prospects totally ruined by this insect with
or without the combined help of one or two
other kinds-the flea beetle and the ~
spotted d1dbrotica. All other insects are
more easily combatted than the melon
worm,n which eats its way into the melon
from the under side mostly and causes
to decay. The late crop usually
stands a very slim chance where this insect
prevails to any great extent, as it often does.
Protection from their injurious attack can
be only partial, but with care injury may
be modified considerably, and In the chap
ters on insects suggestions will be made in
reference to manner OF treatment for &C.
compIishing it.
rich sandy loan is the most appropriate
soil for melons, as it is for most other plants
The melons can be planted in hills SIX feet
apart each way, leaving finally two vines to
the hill; or the rows may be or feet
apart and vine left every IS or 90 inches
in the row. Use enough seed TO insure
stand at once.
Hand frames may be used to give the crop
q prompt send off, as recommended for Gu
cambers in a previous chapter. As TO
manure, there are more ways than one for
enriching the soil suitably, but mixture
of bone dust and ashes, half and half, ap-
piled six to eight weeks before planting will
usually do good deal for the crop. Five
hundred TO thousand pounds per acre
should be appliedlf necessary. A top dress
ilg of nitrate of soda, 100 pounds or more
per acre. may be often be used to very great
advantage on the melon crop. Spread
broGdcasO just before or just after plant
ing. II docs not require very much cultiva-
ton for melons, but what is given must be
prompt and very shallow. The soil should
be thoroughly prepared for the seed, and if
the soil is good or we'll. manured the crop
will soon get beyond the need of work.
A little while. after the plants have begun
to run pinch or crop off the end of the vine
so as TO make it throw out laterals. The
vines must not be disturbed after the fruit
begins to set. If the hills are made 6x6
feet and two vines left to the hill it would
give 2,420 vines per acre If perfect stand
were maintained. Where the rows are six
feet apart with plant every twenty-four
inches there would be $3.50 vines per acre
In q full stand. The culture OF melons is
about the same in the home or market gar
dens. The thing is to plant good seed of
good variety, and to work the crop rapidly
from the very start. Do not let the weeds
get any start or allow the soil to become
hard and baked while the plants are young.
Stop all work as soon as first fruit sets.
S. A. c.