SUMMER CARE OF PLANTATION 



69 



prevent the entrance of decay. Very 

 large wounds four or more inches in 

 diameter should be re-creosoted each 

 year until healed over. 



The kinds of tools needed will 

 depend upon the character of pruning 

 to be done. For pruning berry bushes 

 the stout, single hand shears (Fig. 51) is 

 the best tool. Sometimes the double 

 handed shears (Fig. 52) is of service in 

 cutting thick and dense canes. These 

 two tools are also useful in pruning 

 fruit trees, though for use upon dwarf 



Fig. 50. Wrong way to hold 

 shears 



trees the knife (Fig. 49), if used only 

 when sharp, will make a better job. 



When necessary to remove limbs 

 too large for either style of shears 

 the saw is needed. The best style 

 (Fig. 53-1, 2) resembles a meat saw but 

 has a swivel at each end so the blade 

 may be turned at any angle a very 

 great convenience in sawing where 

 other branches would interfere with 

 ordinary saws. This swivel saw does 

 excellent work where the branches are 

 not more than two or three inches in 

 diameter. For larger ones a rather 



Fig. 52. Neglected Currant bush after pruning 



Fig. 51. Right way to hold shears 

 blade toward part to be left 



heavy, long but narrow- 

 bladed saw is best (Fig. 

 53-6). Positively the worst 

 saw is the double-edged 

 horror which until recently 

 has had perhaps the 

 greatest sale. Not con- 

 tent with making poor 

 cuts, it is prone to gash 

 parts of the tree that 

 should not be wounded 

 and, viper-like, lacerate the 



