396 



THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



it grow upright or at least to increase that tendency, branches should 

 be cut back just above inside buds, On the other hand, the Rome Beauty 

 tree has a habit of growing upright, similar to the Bartlett pear, and 

 by cutting branches in each case just above outside buds the tendency 

 will be for outward growth and consequent spreading of the head. 

 More attention to this particular phase of the pruning operation will be 

 more necessary during successive seasons than during the second. 



The desired number of branches having been selected and cut back as 

 shown in the figures, the tree is now ready for the third season's growth. 



Pruning the Third Season. 



The third season's pruning is just as simple as the second and consists 

 in the removal of surplus branches of the previous season's growth and 

 the shortening in of those left. If five scaffold branches were left in 



Fig. 103. — Young apple tree started with three scaffoM branches, a.'ter it Ii^is 

 been pruned the third season. (Original.) 



pruning the second season, then two strong growing, healthy branches 

 should be selected and left on each of these which with a few laterals 

 that they support should be cut back severely. Thus we would have a 

 tree with a trunk which has had three years' growth; from this trunk 

 would be five branches which have had two, and in turn each one of 

 these supports two main branches or ten in all, which have had only 

 one year's growth. If instead of the five scaffold branch tree we develop 

 a head with three and allow each one of these to support three there 

 would be only nine of the one year old branches left, which is, however, 

 enough with the laterals that they in turn will develop, to make a big 

 tree capable of bearing just as much fruit as the former and usually 

 having the advantage of extra strength of branches. Fig. 103 represents 

 such a tree. 



