208 



PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF PRUNING 



nal growth may be cut back to the point where it is de- 

 sired to force out new laterals for another year's growth. 

 The cutting at this time seems to cause a thickening of 

 the branches, probably an accumulation of tissues around 

 the buds. 



With some varieties, probably, it will lead to direct 

 fruiting the following season ; with others, however, it 

 will simply tend to keep the trees in balance, and prob- 

 ably encourage earlier fruiting than would otherwise be 

 _ true. That is, re- 

 sults may come in 

 two or three years 

 rather than in one 

 year. If this prun- 

 ing is done at 

 about the right 

 time, very little 

 secondary growth 

 will take place, 

 and what does will 

 naturally be very 

 small. Of course 

 in many cases 

 these trees, four 

 to seven years of 

 age, do not hard- 

 en-up until late in 

 September or even in October, and then it would be too 

 late to do any pruning to advantage. Even though sum- 

 mer pruning with these trees might not lead to an increase 

 in fruiting the following summer, it would be a distinct 

 help in keeping the trees in balance, and in eliminating 

 the excessive cutting which might otherwise be necessary 

 the following spring. 



168. Trees eight to twelve years old, which should be 

 in fruiting but have never borne, have almost always 

 been over-stimulated over-pruned, over-tilled, over-irri- 



FIG. 172 



VIGOROUS GROWTHS FOLLOW THINNING 

 Bartlett pear spurs were thinned out of old tree. 

 Vigorous shoots resulted. At t are terminal fruit 

 buds; at a axillary fruit buds on last season's (one 

 year) shoots. 



