CHAPTER XVIII 



PRUNING AND TRAINING PLANTS 



174. The Pruning and Training of Plants have for their 

 object the improving of the relations of the plant to 

 the sunlight and air. They are very old arts, that were 

 well developed before we understood how the sunlight 

 and air were of use to the plant. 



175. The Effect of Pruning. The practice of improv- 

 ing the usefulness of plants by removing some part is 

 founded on the the principle that 



suppression of growth in one part 

 stimulates growth in others. The 

 manner and season of pruning 

 govern the result. 



176. Pinching. If we should 

 pinch out the terminal bud from 

 a leafy branch during the rapid- 

 growing season of spring, as shown 

 in Fig. 60, it would result in a 

 temporary check to the lengthen- 

 ing of the branch and a more 

 rapid swelling and better nourish- 

 ing of the buds below. If only 

 the tip were removed, probably 

 only one of the buds left the 

 uppermost would form a new 

 shoot. This would soon grow out 

 and take the place of the one 

 removed. This pinching usually 



(118) 



Fig. 60. Pruning by 

 pinching. 



