THE APPLE 



41 



a wound that can be easily covered. The axe should 

 never be used for this purpose, as with each blow the 

 wood is split in toward the center and a much larger 

 wound made than when the saw is used. When large 

 branches are cut off, the saw should be placed on the 

 under side and from one-fourth to one-half of the 

 thickness be cut here before the cut is made from the 

 upper side, by which means 

 splitting down or tearing off 

 the bark is prevented. 



Many forms of saws are 

 offered, but those with a 

 long, slender blade (Figure 

 23) are best, as they may 

 be used when two branches 

 come together, or they can 

 be attached to a pole for 

 cutting off small branches or 

 suckers at considerable dis- 

 tance from the ground. The 

 Paragon curved saw, Figure 

 24, with the teeth on the 

 inner curve facing the 

 handle and those on the 

 outer curve facing the point, 

 is better than the straight 

 form, as no pressing down 

 upon the saw is required, 

 only pushing or pulling to cause the teeth to cut into 

 the wood. Most of the saws of this kind in the market 

 have six or eight teeth to the inch, which causes them 

 to cut slowly, while if they had five teeth to the inch 

 they would cut much faster. 



The pruning hook (Figure 25) is a very useful 

 tool, as with it small branches at the ends of the tree 

 can be removed without using the ladder to reach them. 



Pig. 25-Pruoing Hook 



