o 



44 Appendix. 



Lastly, if the tree stubbornly, and, without apparent cause, refuses to 

 fruit, it may be often forced to do so either in whole or in part. Of course, 

 little of this applies to commercial orchards, for in such the common practice 

 is the best, either to dig up the unproductive tree if it be an old one, or to 

 top graft it if it be not so advanced in years. But to him who has merely a 

 small home orchard or a few trees in his backyard in town, it often becomes 

 ;i matter of great importance to make a particular and refractory tree bear. 

 Often It is a rare or a new variety, we have never seen the fruit, and we are 

 very desirous of testing whether it is worth keeping as it is or given a new 

 top of some more valuable variety. 



Productiveness may be accomplished in several ways. Let what I have 

 previously said be borne in mind, that the crude sap ascends the tree mainly 

 through the sap wood, while the elaborated descends through the inner layers 

 of the bark by means of sieve vessels ; that anything which decreases the 

 vegetative strength of the tree tends toward fruit production, and anything 

 that strengthens the tendency towards strong shoots and abundant leaves, 

 makes for reduced fruit production. The first way, and the most usual one. 

 to help productiveness, is to severely prune the roots. This is done by going 

 around with the spade and cutting as many roots as possible. This is a severe 

 tax upon the tree, as it not only impairs its strength forever, but it renders 

 it more liable to root diseases. On the other hand it is the most practicable 

 way, where we well know the kind of fruit it should bear, where we would prefer 

 a short lived tree with some fruit to one with none, and where we do not 

 care, for various reasons, to top graft it. By such pruning a large part of 

 the crude sap is cut off from the tree, and what is there becomes richer in food 

 materials and fruit production is stimulated. 



A second way, especially where we are not at all acquainted with the fruit 

 of our stubborn tree, is to make a strong downward bend in a shoot whicli 

 tends upward. This action separates the bark from the under side and tightens 

 it on the upper side. This allows the crude sap to mount in the wood but 

 cuts off more or less the downward flow of the elaborated. Much of this 

 material is deposited at this place, especially in new forming cells, as starch, 

 and fruiting may sometimes result in that branch. The same object can often 

 be accomplished by twisting the limb upon itself 180 degrees. A third way 

 is to cut a notch, the size depending upon the size of the twig of limb, just 

 below a well-formed bud. In this way the vessels leading from the wood into 

 the leaf are severed, crude sap is cut off, while elaborated sap accumulates its 

 food just above this bud. The reduced size of branch resulting from this cut. 

 aided by the excess of food materials in it, will often convert it from a leaf 

 bud into a fruit bud. 



Should any of these methods fail to produce fruit, ;i fourth and more 

 vigorous one will often succeed. This is by taking out a small ring of the 

 bark with a little of the adjoining underlying sap wood. This admits most 

 of the crude sap as before, allows all of the leaves above to do their work, but 

 cuts off the return of the elaborated sap. It is deposited above the ring and 

 while fruit formation is stimulated in that branch the ring will gradually heal 

 from the formation of starch parenchyma above, provided too wide a ring has 

 not been taken out. 



Where root pruning has failed to make a tree productive, or any of the 

 others failed to make a branch productive, a fifth and most radical treatment 

 will often prevail. This is to loosen and tear away a long and large strip of 

 Ijark. This will only be successful when two observations are kept in mind. 

 The cambium layer must be working, that is the bark must "slip" readily and 

 this must be. not in the first growth in spring, bur during the second period 

 of strong growtli, the last of July or the first of August. The following explana- 

 tion will make it plain why these two points should be observed. This taking 

 of bark is to give the tree a severe check, throwing it out of its vegetative 

 stage and turning it into fruit bearing, while at the same time we must not 



