90 



POMOLOGY 



An excess of either 

 vigorous growth 

 80. Theoretical 

 importance on 

 must have as 

 ground a body 

 based largely on 

 biochemical, and 

 analyses, and with 

 bulky to handle 

 mation comes 

 or postulates now 



relative carbohydrates and hence increase the relative pro- 

 portion of moisture and nitrogen; or the application of a 

 quickly available form of nitrogen, such as nitrate of soda 

 or sulfate of ammonia, would produce the desired result, 

 treatment would push the tree into 

 and again reduce flowering. 

 considerations. — Any theory of 

 pruning 

 its back- 

 of facts 

 chemical, 

 physical 

 plants as 

 as fruit-trees such infor- 

 slowly. The speculations 

 available can scarcely be tenned 

 theories, but recent work is in 

 material advance of the former 

 "philosophy" expressed on the 

 suliject and the near future will 

 undoubtedly reveal much of fact 

 that is now lacking. 



Commonplace as pruning 

 seems, it is a singular practice. 

 It might at first thought be 

 likened to the thinning of plants 

 which are growing very close 

 together, and yet it is funda- 

 mentally different because the 

 various parts of the tree possess a single or common root 

 system. Again, the branches of a tree seem, in many ways, 

 to be independent units, yet they are members of a single 

 whole. However, all the different parts are usually not so 

 placed as to be favorable to high-grade fruit production or 



Fig. 25.— 

 Showing a 

 type of growth that 

 follows when the ter- 

 minal is not removed. 

 The buds which give 

 rise to shoots are us- 

 ually not confined to 

 the terminal ones. 





