SECEETARY'S PORTFOLIO. 341 



sky scrapers, for iiiiiny reasons, among the most important of which is the 

 gathering of the fruit, whicli can be more easily and better done. — E. F. 

 Guild. 



IN PRUNING STUDY Y^OUR VARIETIES. 



The lirst advantage is that you can form just such a top on your own trees 

 as you wisli, by cutting away sucli limbs as you don't want and shortening 

 those that are getting too long, making them spread more and thinning out 

 where they grow too thick and trimming up those that are Inclined to droop 

 and hang too low. But in order to do this successfully, you want to study the 

 nature of the tree. To illustrate, I will give some examples of familiar trees. 



Take a yellow Newtown Pippin apple tree. AVhen it is young and thrifty it 

 is inclined to shoot up very tall, with the branches close together, and, when 

 the tree gets in full bearing, the top will be bent and twisted all out of shape 

 by the weight of the fruit, and frequently the tree will be broken down and 

 spoiled. Or if it be not broken, the long limbs will remain bent over and 

 throw out a great many shoots from the upper sides of the limbs, and thus 

 make a thick and very ugly top. Now, by proper pruning at the right time, 

 we may avoid this, and this is the way to do it : — Out off all your limbs and 

 top of your trees when setting out, and then prune every year, so as to keep 

 the top in good shape, by cutting back those shoots that are growing too tall 

 and thus make them spread out more, and thin out where they get too thick, 

 and never suffer a tree to fork. When you see two or more branches of equal 

 size growing out from the main stem, cut off all but one and that from the 

 main tree. Let the branches grow up out from the sides, at proper distances 

 from each other, so they will have plenty of room to bear and mature fruit, 

 and, if properly shortened in, they will bear their crop of fruit well, without 

 breaking or bending out of shape. 



The Yellow Belleflower is of the opposite class of trees, and needs a different 

 treatment in some respects. Such trees are inclined to form a very thick top, 

 which grows low and spreading, and hangs too low if not trained upward. 

 Such trees need a good deal of thinning out amona* small branches, and in 

 such a way as to encourage the branches to grow u])ward. 



N'ow, if you commence pruning your trees while young and follow it up 

 every year (as you should), in a proper way, you can form just such a top as 

 you want. If your tree needs spreading out, cut the young shoots off just 

 above a bud on the outside of the shoot, and if you want to train the tree 

 upward, leave a bud on the upper side of the limb where you cut it off. These 

 rules will apply to all kinds of fruit and ornamental trees and shrubbery. — 

 Farmer^ s Advocate. 



ON PRUNING EVERGREENS. 



Many people do not understand that evergreen trees bear pruning as well as 

 most other kinds, and in many cases need it quite as much. We often see ever- 

 greens quite too tall for their location, and making a dwelling seem too low by 

 contrast. Others are too spreadimr, tlieir branches obstructing a pathway or 



