THE THINNING OF FRUIT 105 



Green ^ also suggests that the varieties of imperfect 

 flowering strawberries are more productive than the perfect 

 flowering sorts because of the latter's exhaustion in pollen 

 production. Later- the Ohio Station reported as follows: 

 "The average yield from each eighteen foot row of perfect 

 varieties (139 varieties) was 5.47 quarts, and from each 

 row of the same length of imperfect varieties (66 varieties) 

 was 7.19 quarts. There are some high-yielding perfect 

 flowered varieties, and some among the imperfect that 

 give low yields; but it is generally recognized as a fact that 

 the former, as a class, are less proHfic than the latter." 

 Fletcher,^ however, states that while this probably is 

 correct if applied to a grand average of all pistillate and 

 staminate varieties, it is not true when individual varieties 

 are considered. "For all practical purposes staminate and 

 pistillate varieties arc equally prolific." So this evidence 

 from other plants would seem to add weight to the theory 

 that fruit production is an exhaustive process in the economy 

 of the plant. 



91. Dependence of fruit on foliage immediately surround- 

 ing it. — The amount of elaborated food manufactured liy 

 the tree is governed by the area of healthy foliage that it 

 possesses. And, furtheraiore, each fruit depends largely 

 on the leaves in rather close proximity to it. Therefore, 

 because only one side of the tree or one branch is heavily 

 loaded, it does not obviate the need of thinning that part. 



92. Objects of thinning. — The objects of thinning fruit 

 may be summarized as follows : 



1. To increase the size, color, quality, and uniformity of 

 the fruit. 



1 Green, W. J. Bull. Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta., Vol. Ill, No. 7, 1890, 

 p. 221. 



2/6id., Bull. 236(1912). 



3 Fletcher, S. W. Strawberry-Growing, p. 130. New York, 1917. 



