-3- 



in width and, if necessary, more canes cut out so as to obtain a spacing of 

 approximately o inches or so between remaining canes. This procedure should 

 result in a narrow row having approximately 25 canes per 10 feet of row length. 

 To the inexperienced person a row so treated will appear excessively thin. How- 

 ever, under these conditions the maximum number of buds will develop fruiting 

 laterals, air circulation will be good, and the pickers should find most of 

 the berries. 



Heading back of these canes is best delayed until growth has started and 

 one can observe the amount of killing back which has taken place during the 

 winter. In the absence of winter killing, the amount of heading back will depend 

 upon \jhether or not the canes are to be given support. If support is used, a 

 5 to 6 foot heading is entirely reasonable, but if they are to be grown without 

 support they should be shortened to about 4 to 4% feet with most varieties. 

 Otherwise, the weight of the fruit and foliage will cause the canes to bend 

 and the fruit to become dirty in the soil. Longer canes tend to bear somewhat 

 smaller sized fruit which ripens slightly earlier as compared with fruits on 

 canes which are shortened somewhat more. However, since every bud on the 

 cane is potentially capable of producing a fruiting lateral and the greater 

 the length of the cane, the fewer is the number of basal buds which develop 

 into fruiting laterals, there may be little difference in total production 

 between canes that are headed at 4% feet and 5% feet. 



---A. P. French 



I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 



POMOLOGICAL PARAGRAPHS 



Winter Injury 



Live peach buds were found in two small orchards in Barnstable County. 

 According to one of the growers, the minimum temperature recorded in his 

 orchard during the week of January 14th was -9^F. 



In peach orchards visited in Plymouth and Bristol County, little or no 

 wood injury was evident. However, this was not the case in Norfolk County. 



Pruning Grape Vines 



Frequently when walking out to the orchard during fairm visits to discuss 

 pruning of tree fruits, the grower will v;ant to know how to prune that grape 

 vine or vines in the backyard. The leaflet titled "Grape Culture in Mass- 

 achusetts" describes the training and pruning of grape vines. This leaflet 

 may be obtained from your County Agent or from the Cooperative Extension 

 Service, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. 



---W. J. Lord 



I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 



