

PRUNING THE; LEMON 



461 



fruits ; the method of making a strong, short trunk, the arrange- 

 ment of branches, the prevention of long growths, the encourage- 

 ment of low, bearing twigs, the thinning of twigs to prevent the tree 

 from becoming too dense, the points to be observed in cutting back, 

 not by shearing but by treating each branch according to its position 

 and vigor all these must be borne in mind by the lemon pruner. It 



Lemon tree under-pruned to bring fruit a distance from the soil. 



must also be remembered that the work must be resolutely con- 

 tinued and the tree always prevented from wild growth and kept 

 down to bearing on the smaller twigs, which are promoted and 

 retained for that purpose. The building-down process described for 

 the young orange is easily applicable to the lemon. 



Old lemon trees which have been allowed to grow away into 

 a long, rangy form and to bear fruit too high for profit, can be 

 brought down to good form by severe cutting back and after- 

 treatment of the new shoots, keeping the smaller horizontal 

 growths and cutting out cleanly the strong upright shoots, or cut- 

 ting them back if more branches are needed. The time for pruning 

 the lemon depends upon the end in view; if a young tree, to 

 promote wood growth, prune at the opening of the growing season 

 in the spring; in older trees, to repress growth and advance fruit- 

 ing, prune in midsummer. 



When it is remembered that harvesting lemons is a continuous 

 operation as will be stated presently, keeping the bearing wood 



