WHY WE PRUNE 135 



evolution of horticulture, is not to be compared 

 with pruning in producing a sense of fellowship 

 with plants. In fact, spraying has the opposite 

 effect with me. When I have sprayed a plant, I 

 am conscious that I have besmeared it, and have 

 taken a mean advantage of a lot of innocent 

 and defenseless bugs ; and I want to quit the 

 premises forthwith. 



We shall now try to find a few general state- 

 ments, upon which we can all agree, respecting the 

 principles which underlie the practice of pruning 

 and training. Some of these principles follow 

 from a general consideration of the way in which 

 a plant lives and grows, some of them are re- 

 statements or summaries of discussions in the 

 preceding chapters, and others are suggested by 

 direct experiment. All of them are intended to 

 be general truths, not statements of specific facts. 

 Writings on pruning are usually confusing, be- 

 cause they are a mass of details, facts and opin- 

 ions, with little effort to arrive at laws or prin- 

 ciples. I advise beginners not to read them. 

 Principles must come first if practice is to be 

 satisfactory. The details are to be worked out on 

 the plant itself, after the operator has learned 

 why. Before entering upon this disputed ground, 

 we may pause to say that the reasons for pruning 

 may be ranged under eight general heads: 



1. To modify the vigor of the plant. 



2. To produce larger and better fruits or flowers. 



