PRUNING AND TRAINING. 119 



further encourage this lateral action, it is not advisable to 

 take out the overplus buds in the fall, at the same time 

 that the cane is disbudded, for the simple reason that the 

 plants are collecting food, and filling up the seemingly- 

 latent parts through the winter, excepting when the whole 

 structure is frozen, and the channels of absorption thereby 

 stopped ; consequently, all the buds receive a due share. 

 Although a portion of this stored up nutriment is wasted, 

 by allowing the useless buds to expand, we gain the ad- 

 vantage of encouraging a greater flow into the side branches 

 until the time when the unfolding leaves are enabled to 

 keep up the action. 



Another method of spur-pruning, and the one most gen- 

 erally practised, is to allow the cane to extend itself up- 

 wards each season, as above described, until it reaches the 

 top, and retain the side spurs closer and alternately 

 arranged along the cane ; each year resting, or not allow- 

 ing to bear, every alternate spur, and when pruning, the 

 cutting of all the spurs close down to one eye ; or leaving 

 those for fruiting the following season somewhat longer, 

 and in the next fall cutting the same spur close into the 

 cane; the object being to keep the side branches "at 

 home." Fig. 17 shows the cane when pruned. Very 

 good crops are often produced in this way, with Fig. IT. 

 otherwise good treatment ; but in the first instance 

 the bunches are generally small, and although in 

 the latter this is for a few years obviated, still there 

 is the disadvantage of having to cut back to the 

 main stem, and of trusting entirely to the buds which 

 may thus be prompted to push forth. This close 

 cutting weakens down the lateral force of the plant's 

 energy, in a short time the spurs become weak, and 

 the whole cane has eventually to be cut down ; by 

 which, to say the least of it, one year's crop is lost. We 



