162 PRUNING AND MANAGEMENT OF THE TEACH TREE. 



pinching, so that the one recently sprung from beneath run no 

 risk of being impoverished. This mode of treatment is so much 

 the more important in consequence of this kind of branches 

 existing more especially on the lower parts of the tree, towards 

 which we must lose no opportunity of inducing the flow of sap, 

 which has always a comparatively strong upward tendency. 



89. Second Sort. — Branches with Double Eyes (Fig. 2) ; and 

 Third Sort. — Branches with Triple Eyes (Fig. 3). These two 

 kinds of branches, which are the most common on Peach-trees, 

 are both pruned in the same manner. The branch which has 

 fruited is cut down to the successional shoot ; and the latter is 

 pruned on a wood-bud, leaving it long enough to have a sufficient 

 number of flowers. The shortening is made with the view of 

 leaving on each bearing-branch only as many fruits as it can 

 support without weakening itself, and also with that of concen- 

 trating the sap so as to favour the development of the buds, or 

 young shoots at or near the base, one of which becomes in turn a 

 successional shoot at the following pruning. 



90. In these, as in the preceding sort, it may happen that a 

 fruit-branch, pruned the year before on a single wood-bud, may 

 not have produced others at its base during the time of its growth. 

 It must then be cut back to the wood-bud, nearest to where it 

 was pruned before. If a lower eye do push, it must be treated as 

 directed (88). 



91. The fruit-branches on the upper side generally become of 

 a greater length than those on the under side, which tends to 

 cause more difficulty in getting buds to push near the base. In 

 this case, after having been pruned sufficiently long to preserve 

 the fruits, they are twined as will be shown at 93. If an eye 

 form at the base of any of them it is well to encourage its growth, 

 by pinching and cutting off, or disbudding, all the young shoots 

 above it, at the summer-pruning. Without the precaution of 

 pinching and disbudding, the upper shoots would absorb the sap, 

 and the lowest one would become so impoverished as to be desti- 

 tute of eyes at its base, and we should then be obliged to replace 

 with a better constituted young shoot, further situated however 

 from the main branch. 



92. The Flower-buds, on shoots from the upper sides of the 

 branches, are very often found at a considerable distance from the 

 base, and we are consequently obliged to leave the shoots much 

 longer than would otherwise be proper, in order to have fruit. 

 There is no objection to this, only it is advisable to take out the 



