284 



BULLETIN 226. 



painting many wounds. Lead paint is the most satisfactory for this pur- 

 pose, but any durable paint is probably good. 



Thinning the tops. If the tops are so dense that air can not circulate 

 through them it is almost impossible to spray well. The moisture 

 remains long after every rain or dew, and so favors all kinds of fungous 

 growths. The fruit will be of poor quality and poorly colored. Dense 

 tops favor the development of insects and diseases, but not of apples. 



The frontispiece shows a 

 well-pruned tree. Notice 

 that the light shines through 

 the top in spite of the fact 

 that there is a large crop of 

 fruit and excellent foliage. 

 Contrast this with Fig. 59. 

 But even this latter orchard 

 is better pruned than the 

 average. 



Pruning should vary with 

 the thrift of the trees. If an 

 Orchard is so treated that the 

 leaves are small and the 

 growth very little, many 

 more limbs should be left 

 than in a thrifty orchard. 

 Poor color of the fruit in 

 tilled orchards could be im- 

 proved to some extent if 

 these trees were pruned 

 more openly. The tree in 

 FIG. 53. The long stub continued. The tape the f ront i S piece shows ideal 

 shows hoiv far the stick extends into the 

 rotten trunk. conditions. The air and 



light can filter through the 



top and reach every leaf and every apple. If this tree were not tilled or 

 fertilized it could have about double the number of limbs without making 

 the tops any denser. A neglected tree would be a mere skeleton if pruned 

 as this thrifty tree is pruned. 



When is the best time to prune? As a result "of a series of experiments 

 in pruning at various times in the year Professor Bailey concludes as 



