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AGRONOMY 



well removed as not. Other species form certain short branches, 

 called fruit spurs, that bear many successive crops. It is neces- 

 sary, therefore, to know how each specimen fruits before it can 

 be pruned intelligently. The raspberry 

 and blackberry always fruit on canes 

 grown the previous year and do not 

 bear fruit on these canes a second time. 

 As soon, therefore, as the fruiting season 

 is over, the old canes should be removed 

 to make room for the new ones. When 

 the latter have reached a height of two 

 or three feet, the tips are also removed, 

 which causes side branches to form and 

 increases the wood upon which the fruit 

 is borne. In grapes the fruit is borne 

 upon the new wood, that is, upon wood 

 produced the same year as the fruit. In 

 training these plants it is customary to 

 allow one or more main stems to grow, 

 and these are trained upon posts, wires, 

 or trellises. From each joint of these 

 stems a branch arises which bears fruit. 

 After the crop is gathered these young 

 branches are cut back nearly to the 

 main stem, only mere stubs with two 

 or three buds being left. The following 

 season, when these buds begin to grow, 

 the best are selected to form the fruiting 

 branches for that year. Grapes should 

 be pruned when perfectly dormant. If 

 pruned later than February, they are likely to bleed and to be 

 harmed thereby. Apples, pears, and cherries form short fruit 

 spurs on the old wood. These bear fruit year after year, and 

 care should be taken not to injure them when pruning or 



FIG. 160. Fruit spurs on 



the second-year wood of 



cherry which may bear 



several crops 



