The Canadian Horticulturist. 



WINTER WORK AMONG FRUITS. 



HE above is the title of a paper by Mr. J.. B. 

 Pierce, a well-known member of the Ohio Horti- 

 cultural Society. We make a quotation from it 

 on Winter Pruning; but in reading them our 

 readers should be cautioned about the difference 

 in climate. Winter pruning must mean late fall 

 and early spring pruning with us in Canada, 

 because our winters are seldom mild enough to 

 favor this work in that season. Besides this, it 

 is important to coat with paint, or varnish, all 

 large wounds of our fruit trees, unless made fresh in the height of the growing 

 season, in order to prevent the drying of the wood, and cut portions of the 

 bark ; also to prevent injurious action of the cold upon the exposed cells. 



The longer I grow fruit, says Mr. Pierce, the more apparent it seems that 

 a grower of all kinds has many advantages over the specialist. The grower of 

 a single kind has but three or four weeks in which to market his crop, if it be 

 anything except apples, and if his one crop fails he mu^t depend upon something 

 outside of fruit for a living until another fruit season. 



On the other hand, the grower of all kinds is occupied in marketing from 

 June until January or later, and the same team and wagon and many of the 

 conveniencies used in gathering and marketing can be used all through the 

 season. The grower of summer fruits who has a local market may supplement 

 his garden with a winter apple orchard, and thus find work for himself and team 

 until near Christmas. Any one possessing a number of acres of orchards of the 

 various fruits, can generally find work for all mild days in pruning, removing 

 brush and rubbish and putting the orchard in first-class order. It used to be 

 supposed that pruning must not be done when the trees are frozen. 



By doing the pruning in winter many large orchardists are able to keep a 

 part of their men employed, when the men need work the most, and at the same 

 time have the spHng months for something else. Fruit trees do not freeze at as 

 high a temperature as water, and generally when the thermometer stands at 26 

 degrees or above there will be found no frost in the branches. If the orchard 

 is old and there are dead branches and sprouts started on the bodies, these may 

 be removed in the morning, trimming green growth in the tops later in the day 

 as the temperature rises. There is no way of telling on paper just how a tree 

 should be pruned, as each tree differs in its wants, and must be pruned accord- 

 ngly. The first thing is to remove all dead wood, and all branches that cross 

 or clutter the inside of a tree makini? it difficult to climb into it. 



