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BETTER FRUIT 



Page 21 



The SURE WAY TO SUCCESS 



in fruit raising is in producing the higtiest percentage of high class fruit to your entire crop. 

 No surer way to accomplish this can be had than by the purchase of 



A Hardie Hillside Triplex 



Side hills and bad soil conditions don't delay its high-pressure efficient work. A closely set orchard is not injured and 

 can be sprayed with ease. There is no machine to be compared with it. Get our catalog giving details. 



The Hardie Mfg. Co. ^l?nlXo^ 



49 North Front St. 

 on 



nitely postpones the production of 

 fruit, while limited quantities that will 

 become available early in the growing 

 season accelerates or increases fruit 

 production, providing sufTicient moist- 

 ure is available during the close of the 

 growing season. For best results I 

 want my trees to make a strong, vig- 

 orous spring growth, followed by a 

 long, slow sunnncr and fall growth. 

 SufTicient moisture during the close of 

 the growing season to perfect the de- 

 velopment of the buds formed early in 

 the summer is, to my mind, an ex- 

 tremely important factor and one that 

 cannot be profitably overlooked by any 

 practical fruit man. 



It might be interesting to know that 

 a large percentage of the fruit buds of 

 a tree are formed during June and July, 

 and that the available plant food and 

 supply of moisture during August and 

 September very largely governs the 

 spring in which they will bloom. Of 

 course variety enters into this also, and 

 while the very tardy bearers like 

 .Spitzenberg and Northern Spy respond, 

 they are rather slow as compared to 

 many early bearers. My attention was 

 first very forcibly directed to these 

 factors some five years ago while mak- 

 ing a critical study of two young peach 

 orchards, planted at the same time, by 

 the same party, from the same stock, 

 cultivated exactly alike, pruned the 

 same, by the same man, and separated 

 only by a wire fence. Yet one of these 

 orchards at that time was bearing a big 



crop of fine fruit, and has annually 

 since produced excellent crops. The 

 other orchard, up to last year, never 

 produced even a fair crop. Now don't 

 tell me it was due to frost, soil, rain, 

 ownership or the state in which they 

 grew, because these factors have all 

 been considered. Then, where is the 

 difference"? One property was given 

 annually a most thorough irrigation 

 during the months of August and Sep- 

 tember for the purpose (according to 

 the owner's viewpoint) of preparing 

 the trees for winter, the other was per- 

 mitted to remain dry during these same 

 months until the late September or 

 early October rains came. 



What, then, were the results? The 

 non-irrigated trees ceased to grow 

 early in August and dropjjed their 

 leaves by the end of the month with- 

 out developing fruit buds or piling up 

 reserve material for vigorous .spring 

 growth, while the irrigated trees con- 

 tinued to grow until late October or 

 early November and then reluctantly 

 dropped their leaves, but not until large 

 fruit buds had been produced in abun- 

 dance, and the twigs and bark were 

 gourged with plant food for spring 

 growth. These trees could not help but 

 bear fruit, and it would have mattered 

 little how or when they were pruned 

 so long as the fruit buds were undis- 

 turbed. They woidd have fruited just 

 the same. The non-irrigated trees 

 could not bear fruit because they were 

 too nearly starved, nor could any 



amount of pruning compel them to bear 

 fruit. This condition prevailed for 

 four years in succession. During the 

 months of August and September of 

 the fourth year, the non-irrigated 

 orchard received abimdance of water, 

 developed an enormous crop of fruit 

 buds and produced a good crop the fol- 

 lowing year. This same condition has 

 been repeatedly observed with refer- 

 ence to ajjple and pear trees, until now 

 we come to recognize the fact that 

 moisture during the fruit-bud forma- 

 tion period is quite as important a 

 factor as any other practice, art or 

 condition. 



After this rather lengthy introduc- 

 tion, I want to give briefly my plan of 

 pruning for fruit every year, and while 

 I recognize that it will not be appli- 

 cable to all conditions, yet I am sure 

 that it is worthy of the consideration 

 of every practical fruitgrower. From 

 the planting of the orchard up to the 

 third or fourth years, I desire a strong, 

 vigorous growth, and while I do not 

 save even one-half of the first two 

 years' growtli, it must be strong 

 enough to ))rovide the scalTold limbs of 

 the trees. From this time forward. 1 

 permit fruiting wood to form and even 

 permit the trees to bear limited quan- 

 tities of fruit, recognizing in this the 

 one fact, and that is the establishing 

 a relaticiu m- balance of nature between 

 wood formation and fruit |)roiluclion, 

 a balance llial nnist never afterward 

 he disturbed or broken. Trees brought 



