444 Journal of Agrlcultitre. Victoria. \ 10 July, 1911). 



ORCHARD AND GARDEN NOTES. 



E. E. Pescott, F.L.S., Pomologist. 



The Orchard. 



Pruning. 



Pruning operations will now be in full swing. In pruning the young 

 ti^ees, heavy pruning will be required in order to produce strong growths 

 and a good frame, but as the tree advances in age the pruning will be 

 reduced considerably. It should be renaembered that strong, heavy 

 pruning results in wood growth, land 'that weak pnining steadies the 

 tree, and promotes an even growth. When framing land building a tree, 

 the former consideration is observed, and when the itreie is coming into 

 fiiiit bearing or is mature, it will be pruned according to the latter. 

 Any operation that will cause the itree to produce less wood growth will 

 induce the tree to become more fruitful, iprovided the tree be in a 

 liealthy condition ; so that when trees are mature, pruning operations, 

 as a rule, ;'hould not he severe, but rather the reverse. 



Old fruiting wood, and dead and dying wood should 'always be 

 removed, and aged spurs should be considerably reduced, in order to 

 make them produce new growths. Crowded and overlapping laterals 

 should be shortened back; fruiit-ibearing in the higher portions of the 

 tree should not be encouraged ; land due 'consideration sihould be given 

 to the admission of light and air to all parts of the tree. 



Where varieties of fruit trees are prone to beai'ing crops everj- 

 second year, their lateral ,system should be pruned ,so that they will not 

 produce too heavy a crop in the fruiting year; and at the same time 

 they will produce wood in their fruiting year to give a crop in the 

 subsequent season. 



A model tree will always be light on its toipmost leaders, bearing the 

 major portions of the crop in the lower regions of the tree. The main 

 point to be noted is that a heavy wood growth in the upper portion of 

 the tree tends to reduce the bearing capabilities of the tree in its most 

 useful parts. 



Drainage. 



The rains of winter will ^always show the necessity for draining 

 orchards. Where imder-soil drains do not exist, the trees are bound to 

 suffer. If the damage is not immediately apparent, it will be later 

 found thait in some way loss will accnie. Either the tree will be 

 weakened by tihe loss of roots through rotting, or it will be devitalized 

 so that it will not carry a satisfactory crop of fruit. Too often surface 

 drainage is relied on to remove the so-called surplus water. There 

 should be no surplus water for .surface drains. The water is only 

 surplus or excess wflien it is in the soil. Two circumstances, and two 

 only, pennit of surface drainage. First, when it is necessary to carry 

 away excessive storm water; and, seoond, when it is practically impos- 

 sible to find an outlet for under-drains, owing to the low-lying situation 

 of the area. 



The term " surface drainage " does not apply to oi>en drains, which, 

 owing to their depth, act also as soil drains; neither does it apply to 



