BETTER FRUIT 



STATE ASSOCIATE EDITORS 



OREGON— C. I. Lewis. Horticulturist, CorvalUs. 



WASHINGTON — Dr. A. L. Jlelander. EntomoIOBlst : 

 O. M. ilorris. Horticulturist; W. S. Tbornber. Horticul- 

 turist. Pullman. 



COLORADO — C. P. Gillette. Director and Entoraolodst: 

 E. B. House. Chief of Department of Civil and Irrigation 

 Engineering. State Agricultural College. Fort Collins. 



ARIZONA— E. P. Taylor. Horticulturist. Tucson. 



WISCONSIN— Dr. E. D. Ball. Director and Entomologist. 

 Madison. 



MONTANA— O. B. Whipple. Horticulturist. Bozeman. 



CALIFORNIA— C. W. Woodwonh. Entomologist. Berke- 

 ley: W. H. Voldt. Entomologist. WatsonvlUe: Leon D. 

 Batchelor. Horticulturist. Riverside. 



INDIA.V.\— H. S. Jiickson. Patliologist, Lafayette. 



An Illustrated Magazine Devoted to the Interests 



of Modern, Progressive Fruit Growing 



and Marketing. 



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Entered as second-class matter April 22, 1918, 



at the Postofflce at Portland. Oregon, under 



the Act of Congress of March 3, 1879. 



Volume XIII 



Portland, Oregon, December 1, 1918 



Number 6 



Pruning the Sweet Cherry 



IN presenting a discussion upon the 

 subject of pruning the sweet clierry 

 I am aware that there are still those 

 who believe that cherry trees should 

 not be pruned. But surely the number 

 who hold this view is growing smaller 

 each year, — at any rate we are too far 

 advanced in these days to believe that 

 a rational system of pruning is harmful 

 to any fruit-bearing plant. If we do 

 not get results in pruning, it is because 

 the system and not the theory is wrong. 

 The sub.ject of sweet cherry pruning 

 needs more study and the material here 

 presented will, I hope, be helpful to 

 those who are really interested in prun- 

 ing this particular fruit. We may say 

 that a tree is well pruned so long as it 

 thrives and a desirable fruiting habit is 

 maintained. A pruning practice does 

 influence fruit-bearing, and I believe 

 that a careful study of the fruiting 

 wood of a tree will indicate whether 

 the tree has or has not been properly 

 pruned. 



To be a good pruner one must be a 

 good observer and we should cultivate 

 the habit of studying the plants we are 

 pruning. Like all stone fruits, the sweet 

 cherry responds promptly to jjroper 

 pruning and is a most interesting sub- 

 ject of study for the pruning student. 



This tree bears its fruit from axillary 

 fruit buds. In other words, the fruit 

 buds are developed in the axils of leaves 

 on the current season's growth and 



0. B. Whipple, Bozeman, Montana 



these buds open the following season, 

 and the fruits are born in clusters along 

 these twigs, which may be properly 

 referred to as one-year-old wood. Ter- 

 minal buds are, with very few excep- 

 tions, branch buds, and these continue 

 the growth of spurs or branches the 

 following year. These fruit buds are 

 born upon two types of one-year-old 

 wood — on short spurs as shown in Fig- 

 ures 1, 2A, .38 and other cuts where 

 short spurs bearing groups of buds 

 are shown, and at the base of longer 

 growths as shown in Figures 1, 4 and 5 

 and indicated the letter x. So far as 

 fruit production is concerned, it is then 

 measured by the amount and vigor of 

 these two types of fruiting wood which 

 the tree bears. 



Spurs especially are inclined to be 

 weak and unfruitful if the pruning of 

 the tree is neglected. Too many spurs 

 are thus left and many are either barren 

 or bear only one or two fruit buds. 

 Such spurs are well illustrated in Fig- 

 ure 4 and also in Figures 2B and 5. 

 Good types of fruiting spurs arc shown 

 in Figures 1, 2A, 3B, 5, 6 and 7. The 

 other type of fruiting wood is also ab- 

 sent in badly neglected trees. Strong 

 terminal growths are not only desirable 

 from the standpoint of immediate fruit 

 production, but the axillary branch 

 buds born upon these one-year-old 

 twigs give rise, when the tree is prop- 

 erly pruned, to strong, fruitful spurs 



Fir.uBK 1 — Bing fruiting wood, 

 natui'al size. 



l-'lCil'KE 2 — One-year-old spui'S 

 fruitful and barren. 



Fiouiu, 



Spurs one and five 

 > ears oUl. 



Figure 4 — Four-year-old branch of Bing. 



like those shown in Figures 1 and 2A. 

 These one-year-old spurs are very de- 

 sirable fruiting wood, but old spurs like 

 the one shown in F"igure 38 may be 

 maintained in a vigorous state by proper 

 Ijruning. This spur is five years old, 

 has borne annual crops, and is still in 

 good vigor, for it bears six or seven 

 good strong fruit buds. Vigor of fruit- 

 ing wood is then maintained by prun- 

 ing. If one should stutly a tree and find 

 much wood like that shown in Figure 4* 

 he would know that tiie tree had been 

 iiiider-pruncd. This branch is four 

 years old. It has borne very little fruit 

 and for a branch five feet in length it 

 t)ears very few fruit buds. It has each 

 xear made a good annual growth and 

 during the last three years has borne 



'Footnote. — Where the letters A, B, C, etc., 

 appear twice on the face of any cul, the reader 

 niay, in his miini's eye, assemble the l)rauch 

 liy placinj? the ends marked willi tlie same 

 letter together. The bi-anchcs were cut for con- 

 venience in pholiigraphing. 



