FRUIT CULTURE 133 



quite so sharp and clear a cut as you can with the knife. This 

 part of the shear is rather broad and somewhat bruises the bark 

 in the operation of making the cut, liut you can remove branches 

 to three-quarters of an inch in diameter with these shears, and 

 you can remove hirger branches if you are careful to bring the 

 branch back a httle so as to spring it. If you twist the shears 

 in working them you are almost certain to spring the branch and 

 make a ragged cut. 



For large branches the best implement I know of is the forest 

 tree pruning saw. That will remove branches up to three or four 

 inches in diameter, removing branches up to three inches very 

 readily. This is in the shape of a bow with a band saw across 

 the front. It works rapidly, and is made with a swivel, so that 

 the saw will twist in any direction, and you can cut quite a circle 

 in the forks of the branches, if you desire. It is pointed near the 

 end. 



For larger branches a carpenter's saw with a comparatively 

 narrow point is the best thing I know of. The saws which are 

 commonly called pruning saws, the old type that you see, which 

 are at least most commonly advertised, are too thick — the saw 

 blade is as thick at the back as it is at the teeth and therefore 

 pinches, and the steel in them is poor, and they work very hard. 



The saw that I like least of all is the very popular pruning saw 

 with teeth on both sides. The teeth on the top side I suppose were 

 made to catch in the branches above, or on your fingers. At least, 

 that is where they do catch, any way. (Laughter.) 



Now, with these few remarks as a sort of an introduction, I want 

 to ask you to look at some pictures which will illustrate the opera- 

 tions of pruning better than I can tell them. 



With young trees we have two types as a rule that we buy from 

 the nurseries; two general types. I would not want to tell you 

 how many types altogether. 



A two-year-old tree is a tree of this kind that has been headed 

 back in the nursery to whatever height the nurseryman thought 

 best. They carry a number of branches, usually from three to 

 seven or eight. If you get a tree that shows signs of three 

 branches, like this one, for example, you can usually be suspicious 

 that it is three years old. There are other tests as well, but that 

 is one of them. 



