PRUNING. 



before removal. Now it is plain that the more of buds and leaves there are on a tree, 

 the greater will be the demand upon its stock of sap or nutrition, and vice versa. 

 Hence the reason for recommending to reduce the tops of trees at the time of trans- 

 planting. For this reason' we can not transplant deciduous trees safely while in full 

 foliage. Even Strawberry plants root better by having a portion of their leaves 

 removed ; and hence the use of bell-glasses and other contrivances to prevent evapo- 

 ration from the leaves of newly-inserted cuttings. A tree transplanted with a small 

 number of roots, or damaged roots, and a branchy top, will suffer from the evapora- 

 tion of the leaves, just as a cutting with leaves would if it were freely exposed to the 

 air, though perhaps not to the same extent. Some trees will bear planting with 

 smaller roots and larger tops than others — such, for instance, as the Poplar and Wil- 

 low, and all those that root easily and rapidly, and have large sap-vessels through 

 which nutriment absorbed by the roots can pass quickly to the leaves. 



But we must remember, too, that leaves are necessary to the growth of roots. It is 

 true that new roots are formed in the absence of leaves. We can see this illustrated 

 in the case of early autumn-planted trees or cuttings : yet these roots would not attain 

 any considerable development, nor survive long without the action of the leaves ; for 

 these may be likened to the animal stomach, in which the indispensable process of 

 digestion takes place. No matter how abundant or healthy may be the roots, or how 

 liberal the supplies of nutriment presented to them, if the leaves be not present to 

 draw it upward and assimilate or digest it, growth can not continue — the roots will 

 cease to lengthen, and ultimately perish. This is forcibly demonstrated in the case of 

 trees that have been stripped of their foliage by insects, or some accident, — the roots 

 cease to grow ; but as soon as new leaves begin to appear, new roots are formed 

 simultaneously : and if one side of a tree be stripped of its foliage, the roots more 

 directly in connection with that side will cease to grow until new leaves appear. In 

 propagating plants from cuttings, it is necessary, in many cases, and indeed in almost 

 all cases where young wood is used, to leave a certain number of leaves. Cuttings 

 that root without leaves are those of a soft nature, having large cells or sap-vessels 

 full of organized matter or tissue capable of developing roots and sustaining them 

 until the leaf-action commences. 



From all this we see how important are the leaves, and how' easy it would be by 

 excessive pruning to hinder rather than promote the formation of roots. There is a 

 medium which should be aimed at in pruning, to induce growth after removal. If 

 the roots are much injured, or naturally meagre or defective, a very small number of 

 active buds should be retained, just sufficient to stimulate and sustain circulation of 

 the fluids. In such cases it may be necessary to cut back every young shoot to one 

 or two eyes. Where the roots are abundant and sound, it will suffice to cut out the 

 weak inside shoots, and shorten the stronger ones about one-half. In doing this, a 

 large number of buds are removed, and whatever force there is in the tree is thrown 

 into the remaining shoots, and young wood will be formed where we should have 

 nothing but leaves if the tree had not been pruned. The growth of young 

 s favors the formation of roots. If we examine trees now that were transpl 



