The Bulletin 15 



Pruning the Pear Tree. 



The pear tree is pruned to check the succulent wood growth and to 

 control blight. The training and shaping of the young tree is the 

 same as that of the apple tree. After the pear tree becomes six or 

 eight years old not as much winter pruning will be necessary and 

 more summer pruning should be given. The heavy succulent growth 

 is due to strong root growth. It may be advisable to prune the roots 

 during the winter rather than the branches. This is done by exposing 

 the root system in the winter time and cutting one of the main roots 

 with an axe, leaving the part cut off in the soil. Water sprouts are re- 

 moved during growing season. 



The wounds on pear trees should always be well disinfected with 

 bichloride solution immediately after the branch is cut off. It is more 

 important to disinfect the wounds than to disinfect the tools. Every 

 precaution should be taken not to infect the wounds with the blight 

 disease by improper pruning. The wounds should also be painted over 

 with the tar creosote paint mentioned above for apples. All fruit 

 spurs on main trunk and lower parts of main branches should be re- 

 moved. Prune in the winter to cut out blight cankers and in the sum- 

 mer time to check spread of blight disease. Dead, diseased and inter- 

 fering branches should be pruned out at any time of the season. 



Pruning Peach Trees. 



The peach, like all other fruit trees, requires annual and thorough 

 I»runing from the time of transplanting. The growth is more vigor- 

 ous and free from diseases. For this reason, the large amount of 

 wood growth produced will require more severe pruning. The fruit 

 buds are borne in pairs on long whips formed the previous season. 

 These whips or shoots grow out on the ends of previous season's 

 branches. If peach trees are neglected and not pruned, all the fruit- 

 ing whips will be produced on the ends of long branches. The lower 

 branches will be shaded by branches above forming long top-heavy 

 branches which will break off when a crop of fruit is borne. This 

 habit of the tree can be corrected by cutting off the ends of the new 

 shoots and cutting out the growth in the center of the tree to admit 

 air and sunlight in order that shading and crowding of the branches 

 may be prevented. The peach twigs require sunlight for best develop- 

 ment; for this reason an open head should be the plan of pruning 

 peach trees. 



Pruning OxE-YEAK-OLn Peach Trees. 



Peach trees should be headed low enough to permit the examination 

 of the base of the trunk for borers and to enable the cultivation of the 

 trees. The tendency to produce tall growth should be checked by cut- 

 ting off the length growth and heading the tree at proper height of 

 about eighteen inches from the ground. 



The pruning at time of trans])lanting should consist of cutting out 

 the central branches and cutting out all unnecessary growth on the 

 main stem except four branches. These branches are spaced three or 

 four inches apart and are cut back to short spurs two or three inches 

 long as shown in diagramatic illustration (Fig. 11). These spurs 



