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fluous shoots and cutting back the new growth which is to be left. 

 Branches which rub or are inclined to form bad crotches should be 

 removed. Too many branches should not be allowed to grow into 

 the center of the tree as it is desirable in Wisconsin to keep the head 

 quite open to permit the entrance of sunlight and allow good air cir- 

 culation through the top. Pruning for subsequent years will follow 

 closely that outlined for the third season. 



Pruning Neglected Trees. One may find himself in possession 

 of an orchard in which the pruning has been neglected. Putting 

 such trees into good condition is quite a difficult problem. The first 

 thing that the grower should realize is that usually this operation 

 will require more than one year. As a rule the top of a neglected 

 tree resembles a brush heap. It is very dense and a large proportion 

 of this growth should be removed. However, if this is done in a 

 single season, the tree is forced into heavy top growth, and conditions 

 are almost as bad at the end of the season as they were at the begin- 

 ning. 



In pruning a neglected tree the first thing is to cut out the dead 

 wood. This should be followed by removing the water sprouts or 

 suckers that have arisen from the main branches. If these are not 

 numerous, the more seriously interfering branches will next receive 

 attention. Usually this is about all that it is advisable to do the first 

 season unless it is the intention to replace the old top when, of course, 

 the pruning will be much more severe. 



Pruning the second season consists in removing the new growth 

 of water sprouts and further opening up the top if desirable. Unless 

 the top is to be renewed, it is advisable to remove no more large 

 branches than is necessary as this is likely to leave large openings in 

 the tree. If the tree has begun to make much growth at the ends of 

 the branches, these twigs may be headed-in as in the regular pruning. 



Spasmodic Pruning Undesirable. Pruning should be an an- 

 nual operation. Many growers prune at intervals of three or four 

 years, but this is a very undesirable method. In the first place, it 

 will take less time to prune properly when done at least once every 

 season than to let the growth accumulate for three or more years, 

 and the results will be much more satisfactory. A small branch or 

 twig is much more quickly removed than when it has grown for a 

 considerable time; it has not made so large demands upon the tree 

 for its food supply and has caused no evil effects by crowding other 

 branches which it is desirable to leave for permanent use. 



When done at long intervals, pruning has a tendency to disturb 

 the equilibrium of the tree, and to retard or diminish fruit produc- 

 tion. It is evident that if no pruning is done on a tree for a period 

 of years, that the amount of wood to be removed at one time will be 

 much greater than if annual pruning is practiced. Heavy top prun- 

 ing tends to wood production. As a tree cannot turn its activities 

 strongly in two directions at the same time, it follows that fruit pro- 

 duction, will be reduced until the tree has regained its equilibrium. 

 This balance is quite difficult to obtain for the vigorous vegetative 

 growth induced by the heavy pruning runs quite largely to the pro- 



