PRUNING. 459 



ground. It has never yet been trimmed except to regulate any 

 deformity in its shape, and this is so much the better. 



At the end of February or as early in the spring as may be, 

 we commence pruning. This consists only of shortening-in, 

 i. e. cutting off half the last year's growth over the whole out- 

 side of the head of the tree, and also upon the inner branches. 

 As the usual average growth is from one to two feet, we shall 

 necessarily take oft* from six to twelve inches. It need not be 

 done with precise measurement ; indeed, the strongest shoots 

 should be shortened back most, in order to bring up the others, 

 and any long or projecting limbs that destroy the balance of the 

 head should be cut back to a uniform length. This brings the 

 tree into a well rounded shape. By reducing the young wood one 

 half, we at the same moment reduce the coming crop one half 

 in number. The remaining half, receiving all the sustenance of 

 the tree, are of double the size. The young shoots which start 

 out abundantly from every part of the tree, keep it well sup- 

 plied with bearing wood for the next year, while the greater 

 luxuriance and size of the foliage, as a necessary consequence, 

 produces larger and higher flavoured fruit.* Thus, while we 

 have secured against the prevalent evil, an over crop we have 



also provided for the full nourish- 

 ment of the present year's fruit, 

 and induced a supply of fruit bear- 

 ing shoots throughout the tree, for 

 the next season. 



This course of pruning is fol- 

 lowed regularly, every year, for 

 the whole life of the tree. It is 

 done much more rapidly than one 

 would suppose ; the pruned wounds 

 Fig. 210. A peach tree, pruned by are too small to cause any gum to 



the shortening-in mods. flow . &nd j t j g done at the cloge 



of winter, when labour is worth least to the cultivator. 



The appearance of a tree pruned in this way, after many 

 years of bearing, is a very striking contrast to that of the poor 

 skeletons usually seen. It is in fact, a fine object, with a thick 

 low bushy head, filled with healthy young wood, [Fig. 210,] 

 and in the summer with an abundance of dark green, healthy 

 foliage, and handsome fruit. Can any intelligent man hesitate 

 about adopting so simple a course of treatment to secure such 

 valuable results ? We recommend it with entire confidence to 



* It is well, in shortening-back, to cut off the shoot close above a wood-bud 

 rather than a blossom-bud. Few persons are aware how much the size and 

 beauty of the fruit depends on the size and vigour of the leaves. We have seen 

 two peach trees of the same age side by side, one unpruned, and the other regu- 

 larly shortened-in, and both bearing about four bushels. That of the latter was, 

 however, of double the size, and incomparably finer 



