-2- 



Treatlng Tree Vi/ou nds 



Tree surgery Is generally of little interest to the 

 coi-nmerclal fruit grower, and rightly so. If a fruit tree is 

 properly developed from the start, by encouraging rapid grov;th and 

 by maintaining a leader, there should bo little if any breakage of 

 limbs and consequently little need for repair work up to 30 or 40 

 years of age at least. Prevention is certainly better than cure 

 in the matter of decay in the apple tree. Only occasionally do wo 

 find an apple tree which justifies anything in the way of tree sur- 

 gery. The exception is found in the small planting, particularly 

 v/here apple trees are used as ornamentals in the home grounds. 

 Anyone Interested in the treatment and care of tree wounds v/ill 

 find in U. S. D. A. Farmers' Bulletin 1726 (published in 1934) an 

 interesting and practical discussion of this whole matter. The 

 discussion covers structure and life processes of trees, causes 

 of injury, and the details of treatment. The field of tree surgery 

 is discussed in an interesting and understandable v\/ay. 



Wh en a Li mb "Goe s Bad " 



Sow co"riimonly v;e find a weak, sickly looking limb on an 

 otherv>rise vigorous tree. Only recently a number of trees of this 

 type were observed in a Hampden County orchard where one side of 

 the tree showed exceptionally good vigor while the other appeared 

 to be dying gradually. A little investigation of the bark of the 

 trunk near the ground level often reveals the reason for differen- 

 ces of this kind. Much of this injury dates back to the cold 

 winter of 1933-34. Just why one side of the tree suffered more 

 than another may in some cases bo explained this way. In many of 

 our orchards on sloping ground erosion and cultivation in years 

 past have exposed a portion of the lower part of the trunk and of 

 the main roots which are ncrmally protected by a layer of soil. 

 Exposure at this point is sometimes due to a deliberate removal 

 of sod and soil around the base of the trunk for mouse protection. 

 Whatever the cause of exposure in the first place, low temperatures 

 have raised havoc with a very tender part of the tree. The con- 

 dition of the top today is often a direct indicator of the extent 

 of injury around the trunk. VJliere the Injury almost completely 

 encircles the trunk, the tree is In a bad way. Vi/here it affects 

 only a third or less of the circumference, only a limb or two 

 may be affected. To diagnose this kind of injury v/e suggest 

 scraping away the soil v/ith a hoe and examining the bark near the 

 ground level. If no injury is apparent at that point, it may be 

 well to look deeper for possible injury from pine mice, or higher 

 up on the trunk, for evidence of cankers or other destructive 

 agencies. 



Coope ra ting With the T ree 



XTaen we consider just how fruit is produced on a tree. 

 It appears that the fruit grov/er is in reality a grower of leaves 

 and not a grower of fruit. Without leaves there can be no fruit 

 so we set about to encourage the tree or other fruit plant in the 

 growth of an efficient set of leaves. We fertilize, we prune, 

 and we spray primarily to bring about good leaves. True, part 

 of our spraying is done to protect the fruit, but first of all we 



