APPLES 



281 



top is at that time cut to within a few inches 

 of the Kiound. the tree will send forth via- 

 orous branches tliat will in two or three years 

 form a head equal to the first and ever after 

 be a more vigorous tree. — Ed. 



The Height of the Head 



A decisive choice must be made at tlie 

 very start as to the height of the head. 

 Shall the tree be low or high-headed? The 

 choice should usually be for a low-headed 

 tree for the reason that such a tree is 

 more easily sprayed and pruned and the 

 fruit more readily thinned and harvested : 

 crop and tree are less liable to injury by 

 wind: the trunk is less liable to injury by 

 sun scald, winter-killing and parasites; the 

 top is more quickly formed and the low- 

 headed tree soonest bears fruit. No ad- 

 vantage as to cultivation is gained by 

 either method over the other, as a well 

 trained tree with a low head, in which 

 the branches ascend obliquely, permits 

 the cultivator to come sufficiently near the 

 tree. It is a fact, for which no explana- 

 tion can be offered here, that the branches 

 of low-headed trees ascend more uprightly 

 than those of trees neaded high. By low- 

 headed is meant a distance from earth to 

 first limb of from one to two feet. The 

 peach may be headed at the lower dis- 

 tance, the plum, pear and cherry some- 

 what higher, while the apple should ap- 

 proach the upper limit. * 



U. P. Hedrick. 



Geneva. N. Y. 



Pnining One-year-old Trees 



With a one-year-old tree pruning is 

 easy. Remove the branches and cut back 

 the remaining whip to the heading height 

 desired. The reason for this cutting back 

 is that a tree of this age has not sufficient 

 space of hare trunk between branches for 

 final branch spacing. If the tree is two 

 years old as is usually the case with all 

 fruits excepting the peach or when the 

 one-year-old plants have been set a year, 

 the real work of heading may be begun, 

 but even now the required space for 

 proper heading hardly exists, and the head 

 cannot yet be wholly formed. This early 

 pruning is, therefore, all more or less pro- 

 visional though an ideal for the future 



• Our opinion is that the lower limit is better 

 than the upper. — Ed. 



tree must be plainly in the mind from 

 the start. 



Pruning for Wood 



When the head of the tree is formed 

 subsequent priming is directed toward the 

 formation of wood or of fruit-buds. If a 

 tree is bearing many small fruits, if the 

 top contains dead or dying branches, or 

 if the seasonal growth is short and scant, 

 it may be taken for granted that the 

 tree lacks vigor, or, in old trees, is pass- 

 ing into decrepitude. Such trees may us- 

 ually be rejuvenated by judicious prun- 

 ing. In professional terms the tree must 

 be "pruned for wood." Such pruning con- 

 sists in cutting back a considerable num- 

 ber of branches and in wholly removing 

 others. The practice is based upon the 

 fact that the development of the leaves 

 and shoots — vegetative activity — is de- 

 pendent upon a constant supply of the sol- 

 uble nutriment — the sap. Therefore, 

 when the size of the tree top is diminished 

 the remaining parts grow more lustily. If 

 half of the top of a decrepit tree is cut 

 away, the remaining half in the season 

 that follows will produce a leaf surface 

 often twice that which the whole top 

 would have borne. When trees are en- 

 feebled by age, injured by insects or fungi, 

 robbed of food and moisture by sod or 

 crops, or neglected in any way. there is 

 nothing which will more quickly stimu- 

 late them and renew their youthful vigor 

 than conservative surgery. Such pruning 

 for wood should usually he extended over 

 two or more years. In pruning for wood 

 the following rules are usually applicable: 



Weak-growing varieties may always be 

 pruned generously: strong-growing kinds 

 lightly. 



Varieties which branch freely need lit- 

 tle pruning. Those having unbranching 

 limbs should he pruned closely. 



In cool, damp climates trees run to 

 wood and need little pruning. In hot. 

 dry climates they need much pruning. 



Rich, deep soils favor growth: prune 

 trees in such soils lightly. In shallow. 

 sand.y soils, trees produce short shoots, 

 and the wood should be closely cut. 



The Form of the Top 



Two general types of top are open to 

 choice: the vase form or open-centered 



