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FOUOLOGICAL PAMGRAFHS 



Looking Forvrard to the Fnining Seagon « Aboi;t the only excuse for pruning is 

 to provide a better harvest. The harvest season is an ideal tisie to decide what 

 ki^Td and amount of pruning is needed. Are the trees too thick, too tall, or are some 

 c:' the branches too low? Is there too much old wood producing small green fruit? 

 Should every other row be removed? September will shovr up the kind of pruning done 

 last March, 



Use of Paint Brush in an Orchard . In years past it was a common practice among 

 apple growers to paint pruning wounds in the hope that such treatment would prevent 

 wood decay. Not more than one grower in ten paints even the larger pruning wounds 

 today because fungicidal sprays and dusts seem to help in providing needed protec- 

 tion. In a vigorous tree, it is rare indeed for rot to develop in a pruning 

 wound, Old, winter injured Baldwins are of course, an exception-. At the present 

 -ime a much more efficient use can be made of the paint brush and left-over paint, 

 regardless of color. A paint mark on the trunk of temporary trees designates them 

 for whatever special pruning they need, and it stamps them for ultimate removal. 

 Paint marks on these trees are especially useful in a crowded orchard -v^rt^ere the owner 

 is not always sure which are permanent and which are temporary trees. By mapping 

 the orchard carefully at the beginning, painting the temporary trees and then 

 slashing these trees back as conditions require, much of the guess work in an 

 important operation is removed. We recommend a paint mark on every tree in every 

 other diagonal row. This mrk should be on the trunk or leader, and preferably on 

 •Uie same side of each tree. to permit prompt recognition at pruning time. 



Apple Tree Removal in Michigan To stimulate interest in the removal of old 

 and marginal orchards the Michigan Apple Commission has asked growers to pledge 

 themselves to remove 10^ of their acreage. It is reported that 7S% of the growers 

 in Michigan vrill have some trees removed before the year is over. This Vtrill involve 

 an estimated 2,000 acres or more. Lower net returns, if not an actual loss, on 

 these less desirable blocks is a good reason for their removal. New England has a 

 similar chore clamoring for attention, 



Vfood Chips for the Land This is the name of a new USDA Soil Conservation 

 Service publication (.Leaflet No. 323) which contains some valuable information on 

 the various uses of wood chips in agriculture. The author is A, C, iviclntyre. 

 Regional Forester of the Northeastern Region. This leaflet may be obtained from the 

 Superintendent of Doc-uments , U. S. Government Printing Office, Yifashington 25, D, G, 

 for 5 cents. It contains a section on Richer Soils and Crops, including fruit trees, 

 berries, vegetables and flowers. 



Note on Magnesium Deficiency . The leaf symptoms of magnesium deficiency in 

 apple trees are common to most grovrers, A browning betvreen the veins and a gradual 

 loss of the older leaves in late summer have been noted in many orchards during the 

 past 10 years. Previously the cause of this condition was not definitely knoi'vn. At 

 the Beltsville Plant Industry Station it has recently been found that these leaf 

 symptoms are more inclined to show up on the spurs of bearing trees than on non- 

 bearing trees. An analysis of different parts of the fruit has revealed the reason. 

 Seeds are fairly high in magnesium content, slightly higher, in fact, on magnesium 

 deficient trees than on normal trees. Thus the fruit on a tree with a full crop 

 creates a heavy demand for magnesium and since the seeds are able to compete with 

 nearby leaves, the latter are likely to "feel the pinch." Two trees of the same 

 variety growing side by side on a magnesium deficient soil, one with a heavy crop 

 and the other without a crop, may look quite different in late summer for the reason 

 stated above. In looking for magnesium deficiency symptoms, it is well to observe 

 bearing instead of non-bearing trees. 



