326 



SATURDAY IN MY GARDEN 



along its whole length, while the leaf s'em will be smoother and 

 will bear only the slightest little knots which indicate the points 

 at which new leaves will be formed in the spring. The fruit 

 spurs of a p'um-tree will be smooth and brown. Another point 



to remember is that the fruit 

 bud in the case of trees which 

 bear on old wood is rarely found 

 en one-year-old shoots. It is 

 nearly always formed on the 

 spurs and short side growths of 

 the second and later years. Let 

 these principles be kept clear y 

 in view, and most of the diffi- 

 culties of the inexperienced 

 growers of fruit trees will be 

 removed. 



The pruning of the trees is 

 best accomplished when they are 

 at rest that is to say, after he 

 leaves have fallen in the autumn, 

 and before the sap begins to rise 

 in early spring. From the end of 

 December to the end of January 

 is an ideal period within which 

 the work may be carried out, and 

 it is not a bad plan to get it 

 Diagram 55. SUMMER PRUNING, done during a spell of dry, frosty 



This diagram shows the differ- weather 



latter, on the left, should be short- only implement required is a 



ened as indicated by the arrow. g OO( J pruning knife, which should 



be made of the best steel, and be curved in the blade, so that the 

 user can obtain a good grip of the wood and make his cut with 

 precision. In the case of older trees, wh : ch have been neglected, 

 a hand-saw may have to be brought into operation for the 

 i-envoval of stout branches Where sawing takes place, however, 



