Pruning Young Trees 91 



orchardmen that trees must not be pruned when the wood 

 is frozen. Pruning when the trees are in this condition 

 often results in bad wounds and the dying back of branches, 

 but this result is probably due to the agencies just men- 

 tioned rather than to the fact that the wood was frozen. 

 In any case the rule is a good one to follow. Then, too, 

 there is always more or less danger from winterkilling 

 after the time when early pruning is done, so that the 

 trees would need to be gone over a second time. 



From three to five limbs are now chosen to form the 

 framework of the tree, which should be cut back about 

 twelve inches from the trunk. The remainder are re- 

 moved. If the lowest branch has been taken out at 

 twenty inches from the ground, the highest branch should 

 be at least a foot above it; two feet would be better. A 

 common mistake is to cut trees back too far, thus crowding 

 the branches, as shown in Figure 19. Neither were these 

 branches thinned-out nor headed-in during the first season, 

 but were all allowed to develop into leaders. This latter 

 mistake often results in long, willowy branches that droop 

 with a load of fruit; and this is the main reason for con- 

 demning low-headed trees. 



Many growers carry their pruning up to this point suc- 

 cessfully, but fail to head-in the first season's growth, and 

 so miss one of the critical points in the proper formation 

 of the top. (Fig. 20.) 



It is a common notion that the branches gradually get 

 higher from the ground as the trees continue to grow. 

 The apparent gain in height is due solely to the increase 

 in diameter of the limbs, which soon begin to crowd if suffi- 

 cient space has not been left between them. The centers 



