IS 



,S}'.s'77<;j/,I TIC POMOLOGY 



bear few fruit-spurs, others many; i)eaelies seldom have real 

 fruit-spurs. Fruit-buds of the p:rape are borne on shoots of the 

 current year's prrowth. Cultivation, fertilizers, pi-uiiin^', and all 

 cultural ojierations influence fruit-spurs profouiidly, notwith- 

 standin}? which they are used in distin<ruishinf]: varieties, so 

 that these organs must be fully described for each fruit. 



28. Annual rings. — A smooth 

 cross-section of the trunk of 

 pomological woody plants 

 shows a number of ring-like 

 zones in the wood which repre- 

 sent the wood-tissue produced 

 by the tree in one season of 

 growth ; these are called annual 

 rings. The width of these 

 rings varies greatly, depending 

 on the growth conditions of the 

 season in which the ring was 

 formed, on the age of the plant, 

 and on the species or even the 

 variety. Thus the annual rings 

 of the peach are wider than 

 those of the apple ; and the 

 rings in Mcintosh and Seckel 

 wood are narrower than in 

 most other apples and pears. 

 Usually the age of the tree is 

 the same as the number of annual rings, but not always as 

 occasionally two rings form in one year when growth is checked 

 and recommences. 



29. Pith, heart-wood, and sap-wood.— It is not within the 

 province of this text to discuss in detail the anatomy of the 

 stem; it suffices to name and describe so that thereby may be 

 identified such organs as may be used in classification. For this 

 purpose, the internal structure of a fully developed stem may 

 be divided as follows: The spongy tissue occupying the center 

 of the woody cylinder composing the stem of dicotyledonous 

 fruit plants is called the pith, or medulla. Surrounding the 

 pith is a very much thicker zone of hard heavy wood termed 



Fig. 10. Fruit-spur from Bart- 

 lett pear. a. fruit-buds ; b. fruit- 

 scars ; c. growth rings. 



