96 



APPLE BRANCH 



Thkee-year-old Apple Branch 



is the difference between the 

 buds on the ohler wood and 

 those on the newest wood ? 



Branches. — From each open- 

 ing bud there grow a woody 

 shoot and a number of leaves. 

 From the bud on the end of 

 the twig another length grows 

 on the stem, and from the buds 

 on the side of the stem there 

 grow branches. Each bud that 

 grows usually opens in the spring 

 after it was formed. 80 side 

 branches are usually one year 

 younger than the stems on which 

 they grow. 



If all the shoots that start 

 should keep on growing, the tree 

 would soon become a solid mass 

 of branches ; but only a few 

 grow to much size. ^Vhy is 

 this ? 



Even though only a few 

 branches grow large, an apple 

 tree usually has too many limbs. 

 For this reason farmers prune 

 their trees by cutting out the 

 inner limbs so that the leafy 

 parts are like a shell over a hol- 

 low center. Then the branches 

 that are left will get more food 

 and sunlight, and will be the 

 more likely to bear good fruit. 



On the sides of the large 

 branches you may often see 



