USEFUL HINTS 



619 



Gumming. Gumming on fruit trees is practically confined to those producing stone 

 fruit. Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Apricots, Cherries, and Almonds are all prone to it, 

 and the intelligent cultivator dreads its appearance on the trees named almost as much as 

 an outbreak of canker in the Apple orchard. Fortunately, however, it does not spread 

 rapidly from tree to tree as canker does, though it is equally difficult to eradicate when 

 once it puts in an appearance. 



Its appearance at times is most puzzling, even to experienced growers, as, knowing 

 what conditions are likely to produce gumming, measures are taken to arrest it. This is 

 not so, however, with the amateur or young gardener. The latter especially often under- 

 takes the management of a valuable lot of trees either growing against walls in the open 

 or under glass. A few errors on his part in the cultural details may lead to much trouble, 

 if not the total loss of valuable trees, through the excessive exudation of gum from the 

 main stem or branches. 

 . One of the most fruitful sources is the too free use of the knife. Trees which produce 



FIG. 70. Evil effects of wire and tight shreds. 



FIG. 71. Gumming. 



stone fruit resent hard pruning more than either the Apple or Pear. Under proper treat- 

 ment pruning can and should be reduced to a minimum. This in the first instance is 

 accomplished by properly disbudding the branches in summer, and secondly by preventing 

 the formation of gross shoots. Rank-growing trees are more subject to gumming than 

 those which make medium growth and carry full crops of fruit annually. To severely prune 

 the former only makes matters worse. The fault can generally be traced to the border, 

 unless through some mishap the crop fails, and there is not the strain of fruit production 

 to balance growth. It is the roots, therefore, and not the branches that must be dealt 

 with. A firm and rather shallow rooting medium favours the formation of short-jointed, 

 healthy fruiting wood, support being afforded as the trees require it. Deep rich borders 

 of loose formation and overcharged with manure encourage soft strong shoots which 

 seldom become matured by autumn. With outdoor trees such unmatured wood is easily 

 injured by frost, and its effect is readily noticed the following spring, first of all by the 

 discoloration of the bark, forming patches of red here and there. These eventually turn 



