PRUNING THE TREES 



the vigor of a weak or declining tree. All prac- 

 tical experience teaches us that pruning is a 

 reasonable, necessary, and advantageous pro- 

 cess. True, it is often overdone, and improp- 

 erly done. As in many other things, certain 

 fundamental principles underlie and should 

 govern practice. When these are known and 

 observed, pruning becomes a more simple 

 matter. 



Heavy pruning during the dormant or winter 

 season stimulates the growth and tends to in- 

 crease the production of wood. In the same 

 way pruning during the summer or growing 

 season stimulates the growth and tends to in- 

 duce fruitfulness, if the tree remains healthy. 

 But this fruitfulness is apt to be at the expense 

 of the vigor of the tree. On the other hand, 

 the pruning of the roots of a tree tends to check 

 the growth of wood, the same as poor feeding. 

 As above noted heading back a tree when dor- 

 mant tends to stimulate it to a more vigorous 

 growth. 



The habit of growth of a variety has much to 

 do with its pruning. Some varieties of apples 

 are upright, others are spreading growers. 

 Climate and locality greatly affect these habits 

 of growth. So also the habit of a young tree 

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