106 PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF PRUNING 



this supply be small, no shoots at all may start. When 

 heading-in is employed woody shoots generally start most 

 strongly from the bud nearest to the wound. Those which 

 start from lower buds are usually less and less strong as 

 they are more and more remote from the cut. 



99. Stripping trees. A. W. Drinkard, Jr.,* reports an experiment 

 in which trees were stripped by the removal of strips of the bark 

 l /4 to l /2 inch wide from the trunks, beginning near the ground and 

 extending up to, and frequently above, the main branches. Several 

 of the main branches were stripped for 12 or 18 inches. Three to 

 five strips were taken from each tree. The strip was first marked 

 by a knife point. Then the bark could be readily peeled from the 

 tree. 



Trees stripped on April 23 made good growth and held their 

 leaves until late in the fall. The stripping wounds heal over very 

 well during the growing season. The operation does not completely 

 cut off the movement of water in either direction, but must inter- 

 fere with it in some measure, and the operation must administer a 

 shock more or less severe to the growth processes. Trees stripped 

 May 31 made excellent growth and the wounds healed well. When 

 the trees were stripped on June 23 it appeared that the growth was 

 noticeably interfered with, and the stripping wounds did not heal 

 rapidly. This appears to be too late to secure the best results from 

 the process. The removal of strips of bark from the tree trunks 

 does less injury to the trees than does ringing, and gives promise of 

 greater utility in practice. 



100. Ringing experiments. Drinkard also reports experiments! in 

 spring pruning accompanied by ringing. The trees showed very little 

 if any effect from ringing at various seasons after the spring prun- 

 ing had been performed. The formation of fruit buds was not 

 noticeably stimulated, being about the same as in case of check trees. 

 The amount of fruit set and the quantity harvested was not es- 

 sentially different from that of the check trees, and the wood growth 

 was about the same as normal. The trees in this series carried a 

 dense green foliage through the growing season, equal to that of 

 the check trees. It seems clear that the influence of spring pruning 

 in discouraging the formation of fruit buds is sufficient to overcome 

 any stimulative effect which otherwise might have been derived from 

 ringing. 



Maryland performed an experiment by ringing crab apple trees 

 to induce fruitfulness He found that ringing or girdling increased 

 fruitfulness, but he considered this operation as a measure that 

 could be applied under only special conditions. 



* Technical Bulletin 5, Virginia Experiment Station. 

 t Ibid. 

 Mass. Hatch Exp. Sta. Bui. 1. 



