Pruning and Training Plants 119 



gives a stocky growth to the branch and favors the 

 formation of fruit-buds (T[ 159). 



177. Summer Pruning of Blackberries. If the new 

 shoots of blackberries be pruned off, the buds below 

 will form several branches. As the fruit of the following 

 season will be borne on this growth, we see how summer 

 pruning may increase the fruitfulness of blackberries. 



178. Light Pruning in the Dormant Season stimulates 

 branching. If a branch, like the one shown in Fig. 72 

 on page 127, were pruned at X, two, or possibly three, 

 of the next lower, buds might grow into fairly vigorous 

 leafy branches, with many strong buds. If left unpruned, 

 it would probably grow straight out, forming a slender 

 shoot with very feeble side branches, too poorly nour- 

 ished to form many fruit-buds. Thus we see that prun- 

 ing may stimulate branching, thickening of the stems, 

 and a freer formation of bearing wood (branches with 

 flower-buds) . This kind of pruning is often practiced on 

 all kinds of orchard trees and berry plants, and is fre- 

 quently referred to as " cutting back" or "heading-in." 

 This kind of pruning is quite necessary for the first few 

 seasons' pruning of newly set orchards. 



179. Why Prune Plants? We see from the illustra- 

 tion given that pruning may be used to (1) check growth, 

 (2) induce branching, to give correspondingly more leaf 

 surface. The latter causes the branches to be better 

 nourished and, hence, to grow thicker and form more 

 flower-buds. (See t 159.) Any kind of pruning that 

 retards growth tends to increase fruitfulness and a bet- 

 ter ripening of the branches. Pruning is sometimes ob- 

 jected to, with the idea that nature knows what is best 

 for the plant. Persons who advocate no pruning forget 

 that orchard plants are grown in an environment that 



