56 THE FIG: ITS HISTORY, CULTURE, AND CURING. 
are set in the ground to hold the branches apart. All leaves which in 
any way touch the figs should be removed, as they bruise the fruit and 
spoil its appearance. 
At the maturing of the fruit it often happens, especially with the 
Dauphine variety, that the fruit is too near the soil. The branches 
must then be somewhat elevated with studs or the fruit will spoil; but in 
no ease must the elevation be such as to raise the branches in an 
upright position—merely enough to bring the fruit above the ground. 
If raised too high the fruit will not ripen. In order to guard against 
spring frost the fig bushes are covered with light mattings early in the 
morning or in the evening when danger of frost is apparent. Another 
method is to create smoke by burning tar, straw, and damp wood an 
hour before and after sunrise. 
PRUNING BEARING FIG TREES. 
The first ripe figs are picked at the end of July, the last at the end 
of August. As soon as the last figs are harvested the fig trees are 
pruned. This operation consists in removing the wood which bore 
the figs just harvested, while the wood is cut close to the branch 
immediately below. The dead wood is then removed, as well as use- 
less suckers, and all which are not destined to produce fruit-bearing 
branches in coming years. The branches which are to bear the next 
season’s crop are not pruned, as such proceeding would ruin the crop. 
The next season, after the trees are disinterred, the process of pinch- 
ing the terminal and secondary buds is again gone through with, after 
which time no new treatment is required; but after the branches 
have reached a length of 6 to 10 feet they are too long to be practically 
handled and covered and must then be removed, not all at once, but 
gradually, a few a year, and new suckers allowed to take their place. 
In covering the branches after the trees have begun to bear it will 
be best to tie them in small bundles, 4, 6, or 8, according to the 
size of the tree. As a result of being covered yearly these branches 
never regain their natural vertical direction, but lean more or less 
horizontally. This also hastens the maturity of the fruit and is an 
element of success in the growing of figs in cold regions. Previous 
to covering the branches all leaves and figs should be removed, as 
they cause decay. 
COVERING THE TREES. 
Every year, in November, the fig trees must be interred in the soil 
in a way similar to that already deseribed for the cuttings. This, 
of course, is the chief work of the season, and entails as much labor 
as almost all other operations combined. If the trees have been 
planted slanting properly the difficulty of bending the branches is 
not great. On level ground the trenches should run in every direec- 
tion from the root, but on sloping ground they should always run up 
the hill or somewhat sideways. 
eee 
— 
