PRUNING OF ORCHARDS. 347 



was brought to fill the holes. Set the trees about the same 

 depth as in the nursery. Carefully spread the roots out hori- 

 zontally, inclining downwards slightly ; not allow them to 

 interfere with each other, cutting all broken ends with a sharp 

 knife. I use no water, only to thoroughly wet the roots 

 before placing them in the ground, so that the fresh earth will 

 adhere to the tender rootlets. Tread the soil gently down 

 with the foot around the tree, when the hole is entirely filled 

 with earth. 



PRUNING. 



The pruning of the orchard can be done any time when the 

 sap is dormant, and should begin as soon as the tree is trans- 

 planted from the nursery. If attended to in season, and done 

 in a judicious manner, no instrument need be used, for the first 

 ten or fifteen years, larger than the pocket pruning-knife with 

 hooked blade ; but if neglected, the saw must be used to 

 remove the surplus wood. 



In forming the head, only three or four lateral limbs should 

 be allowed to grow, with the leading, upright shoot. This 

 leading, upright shoot, may be removed from upright growing 

 trees, as the Northern Spy, Lady Apple, early and late Straw- 

 berry, but never from those with spreading top or horizontal 

 growers, as the Greening, R. Russet, Gravenstein, P. Sweet, etc. 



I think those varieties with a round head, as the Baldwin, 

 Nonesuch, etc., are not improved by cutting out this leading 

 shoot. No invariable rules can be laid down in regard to 

 pruning ; yet we learn to remove all limbs which cross or 

 interfere with each other, or are so near above each other 

 that, if loaded with fruit or leaves, will rest on or chafe the 

 one below. Limbs should be removed where so thick as to 

 exclude the air and light. The first set of limbs should be at 

 right angles with the trunk, and radiate from it like the 

 spokes of a wheel. The next set should not be directly 

 above the first, but alternate with them, so that, if loaded with 

 fruit, it will rest upon two limbs, and not interfere with any 

 one below it, as would be the case if directly above. Like 

 an old stone-wall-layer, who, when asked how he laid wall, 

 said he did not lay one stone upon another, but one stone 

 upon two. All dead-wood and such lower limbs as show 

 signs of failing by being overshadowed, should be removed. 



