LUTHER BURBANK 



present stage of orchard development, to secure 

 a tree of perfect growth and form. 



This is true not alone of plums but of other 

 orchard fruits. Some of our best varieties of or- 

 chard trees, like the Bartlett pear, have branches 

 too slender and upright, and do not carry the fruit 

 well. The Bellflower, though a fine apple, makes 

 a weeping growth. The Newtown pippin makes 

 too slender and upright a growth. On the other 

 hand, the Gravenstein apple makes a very fine, 

 spreading tree, and the popularity of this variety 

 may be to some extent associated with the almost 

 perfect form of the tree itself. 



But it is one thing to observe that a tree is 

 imperfect, and quite another thing to take the 

 trouble to improve it. 



We know that the branch system should re- 

 semble a vase in form, avoiding brushiness, wood- 

 iness, or overgrowth. But many orchardists who 

 are well aware of this will not take the trouble to 

 prune the tree in such a way as to encourage this 

 development; nor will they consider the matter of 

 selecting a variety that tends to grow in the right 

 way without pruning. 



As to the leaf system, it is always desirable that 

 the foliage of a fruit tree should be large, thick 

 and abundant. 



In the case of cherries it is particularly desir- 



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