- 7 



pruned back to an apple and non-fruiting limbs are thinned out by 

 cutting to a lateral branch. Suckers and upright growth are re- 

 moved. Improved fruit color results and stronger flower buds de- 

 velop in the interior area of the tree. Some orchardists leave 

 about two inches of the current season's growth. Buds on this ba- 

 sal stub often regrow if cuts are made before August. 



Peach trees respond more favorably to summer pruning than do 

 apple trees. Pruning is usually delayed at least until bloom. 

 Pruning cuts heal more readily when performed at this time of the 

 year and the seasonal application of fungicides helps to reduce 

 canker difficulties. Pruning at this time of the year also accom- 

 plishes some fruit thinning. This pruning is best described as 

 dormant season-type pruning performed in early summer. 



Summer hedging of peach trees has some advantages. The hedge- 

 row concept of peach culture being researched at Purdue University 

 involves summer pruning to dwarf the tree. Some Michigan orchard- 

 ists have practiced mechanical topping of peach trees not trained 

 to a hedgerow. The trees are mechanically topped and sometimes 

 hedged in late July to control tree height and to admit liglit into 

 the tree. There is very little regrowth the same season. Growth 

 in the top of the trees the following season is less vigorous than 

 that normally experienced with dormant-season hedging. Some vibra- 

 tion of the tree occurs during mechanical hedging and the nearer 

 to harvest the practice is performed, the more fruit is shaken from 

 the tree. Experience suggests that the tree should be very vigor- 

 ous before being subjected to hedging. 



Mechanical topping and hedging stiffens the scaffold branches 

 and more growth occurs in the lower part of the tree. Admitting 

 light to the interior of the tree has made possible the retention 

 of more fine wood over a longer period of time. After several 

 years, one peach grower had to thin-out the bottom area of the 

 topped trees to enable pickers to reach fruit in the lower inter- 

 ior of the tree during harvest. 



Peach trees subjected to severe early-season summer hedging 

 have sometimes been severely winter-injured the following winter 

 if extreme winter temperatures occur. 



(Will he continued, in the Maroh-April^ 1978 issue) 



*************** 



POMOLOGICAL PARAGRAPH 



Supplies for trellising apple trees or growing them as slender 

 spindles^ WT. Loren dT Tukey, 103 Tyson Building, University Park, 

 Pa. 16802, has compiled a listing of commercial suppliers of mater- 

 ials used in training trees on trellises or as slender spindles. 



You can obtain a copy of this list from Dr. Tukey. 



