FORMATION OF LEADERS. 81 



the others, just as two eyes are left beyond a bunch of grapes 

 to draw the sap to the fruit. These successive growths in the 

 summer pinchings may exceed the six inches by an inch or 

 two in some cases, especially in forerights, while they may 

 only reach to five inches in other cases ; nevertheless, the 

 rule is to keep them as near as possible at this extension. 

 In the winter pruning they will be shortened in alternately^ 

 as will be described. 



At the risk of tedious repetition, I must refer again to the 

 Frontispiece. 



The tree in the right-hand corner (marked 1st year) will 

 represent the appearance of the whole of tlie row of trees at 

 the end of the first year's training. This is the second year 

 of plantation. 



The tree with its single leader A will have readied more or 

 less to half-way, or two-thirds of the wall, supposing this to 

 be 12 feet high. A certain portion of the tree (that of last 

 year to which it was cut back,) will now appear clothed with 

 wood. The spurs on either side of the leader A will each 

 have their two shoots pinched back successively to, say, 6 

 inches in all. The foreright spurs and shoots on them are 

 also to be treated by pinching them as if they were on the 

 upper side of the leader ; but they are not shown in this dia- 

 gram, to avoid confusion. At the base of the single leader 

 A, and at 12 inches from the surface, a strong shoot from one 

 of the spurs has been allowed to extend for 12 inches later- 

 ally, so as to be in readiness to form the second leader B 

 when required ; but if allowed to extend, and to be turned 

 up when it reaches the 12 inches (which it is destined to do), 

 so as to form the second leader B, then it would injuriously 

 affect the growth of the first leader A. From this rule no 

 deviation must be permitted, I have spoilt too many trees 

 from impatience, not to warn others against this error. Cut 

 this lateral back in winter to a healthy bud, and guide it by a 

 light rod perfectly at riglit angles to the leader A. The tree 

 which is now being described does not show this lateral, be- 

 cause it is in the corner, but the second year's tree will show 



