90 state: pomologicai, society. 



happens that in very rich soil or in very moist locahties fruit 

 trees grow vigorously, but do not fruit well. It is then neces- 

 sary to do something to check the growth and induce fruitful- 

 ness. This may often be accomplished by seeding the orchard 

 to grass. How long grass should be allowed to remain can be 

 determined only by the growth, fruitfulness, and appearance of 

 the trees. If tne erowth becomes very weak, and the leaves 

 are light-colored, it is an indication that cultivation should be 

 resumed. Indeed, it should have been resumed before these 

 conditions appeared. 



THINNING FRUIT. 



Thinning the fruit of trees that have a tendency to overbear 

 is recommended very generally and practiced very little. Few 

 extended experiments in thinning fruits have been reported by 

 the experiment stations, but where thinning has been followed 

 systematically for a number of years in commercial orchards, 

 it has been found profitable. 



The number of fruits produced per tree may be regulated in 

 two general ways: By pruning away a part of the branches 

 to prevent the formation of too much fruit, or by picking off the 

 superfluous fruits after they have formed. With such fruits as 

 grapes, raspberries, blackberries, and the like, the former 

 method is employed almost exclusively. An experiment reported 

 from New York Cornell Station indicates that in the 

 case of blackberries and raspberries, no means of regulating 

 the number of berries per plant is necessary other than the 

 annual pruning. 



Among orchard fruits, perhaps none need thinning as much as 

 Japanese plums, except, possibly, peaches, which, in commercial 

 orchards, are thinned more systematically than most other fruits. 

 It is reported that in favorable years the fruits of Japanese 

 plums set so thick as to hide the limbs. In fact, the tendency 

 to overbear is considered by some to be one of the greatest 

 faults. Thinning the fruits of these plums has been favorably 

 reported on by the Alabama College Station. The size of the 

 fruit was increased noticeably by thinning.* 



The tendency to overbear is also seen in varieties of native 

 plums, as is shown by an experiment with the Gale seedling 



