PRUNING THE OLIVE 



405 



lut it clearly the part of wisdom to hold the olive to a low growth 

 in order that the fruit may be cheaply gathered, and this may be 

 done by proper pruning. 



PRUNING THE OLIVE 



Pruning policies as insisted upon in Chapter XII, have direct 

 bearing upon the commercial growth of the olive. The develop- 

 ment of the tree according to principles there laid down is prac- 



Bearing Olive tree before pruning. 



ticable and desirable. After proper low form is secured, satis- 

 factory bearing will depend upon regular pruning to secure new 

 bearing shoots and thinning to prevent the tree from becoming 

 too dense and bushy. The olive bears upon wood which grew the 

 preceding year, and upon no other. It is just as important, then, 

 to secure a good supply of such shoots as it is to secure new bear- 

 ing wood for the peach, and the ways to do it, by cutting back 

 and thinning out, are much the same. Keep the tree from running 

 out of reach of a step-ladder; prevent it from becoming a brush- 

 heap, for both these acts are essential to the growth of good 



