Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
to remove weeds. This also makes spraying for insects easer since both the tops and
lower areas of the plant can be sprayed. In the case of most melons the vines grow
on the ground and spread out over the whole area planted. This makes weeding and
spraying hard, thus, mulch, either plastic or straw, placed on the area between plants
alleviates the need to weed.
Another way to avoid covering wide areas with vines, plants such as cucumber can
be grown on trellises (Fig. 4.17). Here the plants are trained to grow vertically on a
series of wires or ropes placed between posts. In this way the area between rows is
clear and can be cultivated to remove weeds and spraying is made easier.
Often melons and cucumbers are planted in hills rather than as individual plants in
rows. In this case soil is hilled up and several seeds planted in the hill. The multiple
plants then grow out from the hill or up on the trellis as the case may be. The areas
between hills may be covered by mulch to control weeds and moisture.
4.9.4 Harvesting, Preparation, and Consumption
Harvesting is done by hand picking the vegetables as they become ripe or in the case of
cucumbers when they reach the desired size. Once harvested cucumbers are washed and
can either be pealed and the inner flesh eaten or they can be eaten with the peal on.
Melons are also washed and the interior flesh eaten. Often melons are cooled before
eating. Squash are washed and all parts eaten. Cucumber, squashes, and pumpkin are
used as a main dish vegetable and are combined with other vegetables when
cooking. Cantaloupe and watermelon are eaten as fruits, in salads, and as snacks.
4.9.5 World Production of Melons and Cucumber
The major melon- and cucumber-producing regions of the world are China and Iran,
with China being by far the largest, producing over 50 percent of the world's melons
and cucumbers. Other important producers are Turkey, the United States, the Russian
Federation, Egypt, Ukraine, and Spain, which produce between 1 and 4 percent of the
world's production. These latter countries produce large quantities of only one or two of
these crops, while China produces large quantities of all.
k,2
PETIOLE
4.10
AND STEM VEGETABLES
4.10.1 Climatic Adaptation
Stem vegetables are those where it is primarily the stem of the plant that is eaten rather
than some other part. While celery is eaten fresh, the rest are cooked before eating. Veg-
etables such as asparagus, celery, and rhubarb are all adapted to temperate climates
k
Calculated from FAOSTAT (http://faostat.fao.org) data for 2004 and 2005 on the basis of hectares of
cucumber, gherkin, watermelon, and pumpkin, squash and gourds.
The petiole is the stalklike portion of the leaf that connects it to the main stem of the plant.
