THE APPLE AND PEAR 



121 



spur shown in Figure 47 was about ten years old and was probably 

 not more than six inches long. It had borne at least five apples. 

 This is practically the only way in which apples and pears 

 are produced, upon these little spurs, so that the man who gets en- 

 thusiastic for cleanliness and prunes off alt of these little spurs 

 from his apple and pear trees is simply spoiling his chance of 

 getting any fruit from that particular part of the tree. Just con- 

 trast the pear branch shown in Figure 48, with its wealth of these 

 little spurs, with the young tree shown in Figure 46. In the one 



FiQ. 48. — .\ pear branrh ■well .supplied with fruit spurs. Such a branch i.<i capable of bearing 

 a maximum crop. 



case the owner stands a chance to have his tree loaded down 

 with fruit, while in the other he can not by any possibility get 

 fruit from that part of the tree where the fruit spurs have been 

 cleaned away. 



Two other facts in connection with these little spurs ought 

 to be kept firmly in mind. The first is that, as already hinted, 

 they continue to bear for a long series of years. It is nothing 

 uncommon for one of these spurs to continue to bear for twelve 

 or fifteen years and as it branches considerably it may produce 



