FRUIT -BEARING IS A HABIT 163 



carried so far as to make the plant over -vigorous 

 and under -fruitful. Heavy pruning may do the 

 same. Other conditions aside, deep notching of 

 the twig above a bud, tends to make the bud pro- 

 duce a long, woody shoot; notching below the 

 bud tends to make it develop a fruit -spur (see 

 Section 13). Heading -in tends to start woody 

 shoots from the buds near the cut. Girdling 

 just through the bark (or ringing) tends to de- 

 velop fruit-buds above the wound. If, however, 

 the girdle is below the foliage (that is, on the 

 stem or trunk), new shoots which may arise below 

 the wound must grow at the expense of material 

 stored in the part below the wound ; and if such 

 stored nutriment is small, shoots may not be able 

 to start. Girdling by cutting through the young 

 wood tends to develop strong growth below the 

 girdle and to starve and kill all the parts above it. 

 In a word, a strong supply of root -sap tends to 

 stimulate wood growth ; a pronounced deposition 

 of elaborated food tends to develop fruit -buds. 



12. Fruit -bearing is determined more by the 

 habitual performance and condition of the 

 plant than by the kind or extent of pruning; 

 it is associated with a quiescent rather than 

 with a stimulated or fitful state ; and the 

 habit is more amenable to treatment when 

 the plant is young than when it is old. 



Plants vary greatly in fruit -bearing. Some of 



