22 THE COMPLETE GARDEN 



systems. On all transplanted stock the roots should be pruned to re- 

 move diseased, dead, or bruised portions. In older plants tap roots 

 may be shortened if the cutting is done judiciously. Many trees, 

 especially older trees, are moved more safely in the winter if they are 

 root pruned not later than the last of the previous July. In trans- 

 planting fine old specimens of beech and boxwood it is sometimes 

 necessary, and always advisable, to root prune the trees for two 

 seasons prior to the time of transplanting, in order to insure the greatest 

 possible success. 



Hedges. Most hedge plants, such as the Japanese barberry 

 and the privet, if allowed to grow as specimen plants unrestrained 

 by severe pruning, will produce a considerable quantity of flowers 

 and also of fruit. This is especially true of the Japanese barberry, 

 which has interesting fruit. If these plants are grown in hedges, 

 which are subject to frequent and severe trimming at least three or 

 four times during the growing season, then all of the flowers are surely 

 removed and if the flowers are not removed, then at the time of the 

 next pruning the fruit is removed, therefore very few of the hedges of 

 this character ever produce any fruit. The only way in which to 

 have a hedge such as a Japanese barberry hedge, with a quantity of 

 fruit upon it, is to prune the hedge during the very late winter months 

 or early spring months and not to prune it again until after the fruiting 

 season is over. 



Hedges which are allowed to grow naturally require but little prun- 

 ing, except the removal of dead and diseased wood and the checking of 

 any portion that becomes too rampant or destroys symmetry. It 

 often becomes desirable in the development of hedge plants to keep 

 the growth within certain well-defined limits of height, after the plants 

 have become a few years old. This requires judicious pruning, con- 

 sisting of the removal of many of the older branches each year, but 

 never a heavy shearing which cuts the entire top of the plant, regard- 

 less of the size or age of the branches, to a fixed height. 



Hedges which are trimmed formally should be kept uniform in 

 height and thickness. One late winter and two or three summer prun- 

 ings during the growing season are better than one heavy pruning 

 yearly. Hedges will do best if kept in a flattened ovoid shape with the 

 widest part at the base (Plate V). In this way all the leaf surface 

 will receive a more nearly equal portion of light, and leaves will grow 



