PRUNING MATURE TREES 



267 



tance. Heavy pruning was resorted to, and last year the usual 

 winter pruning was supplemented by summer pruning. 



Previous work of a similar nature had proved that in seasons 

 of average moisture the Greensboro and all earlier varieties set a 

 crop of fruit buds after harvest. Greensboro ripens the first week 

 in June; Red Bird ten days or two weeks earlier. These two va- 

 rieties were pruned the second week in June. The trees were di- 

 vided into four groups, with an unpruned check row, and in each 

 group the wood of the previous year's growth, whether it had pro- 

 duced peaches or not, was pruned back to varying lengths, from 

 1 to 8 inches. 



FIG. 229 GREENSBORO, FIVE YEARS OLD, PRUNED IN AUGUST 



By far the best results attended the close pruning. Where the 

 spur was very short the new growth in many cases sprang from 

 its base and, at most, it was close to the main limb that supported 

 it. But in the long spurs in most instances the new growth was 

 near the extremity of the spur, thus defeating measurably the pur- 

 pose of the pruning. Many spurs did not send out new shoots. 



In all cases of early pruning the new wood was well set with 

 fruit buds during the season, as is shown in Fig. 227, a picture of a 

 Greensboro tree photographed when in full bloom in April. It is 

 difficult by photography to show the fruit on the tree because leaves 

 and fruits are so nearly the same color and the picture is necessarily 

 greatly reduced. As the peach blooms in advance of leafage, the 

 blossoms show exactly the location of the fruiting wood and trees 

 in full bloom are therefore used in illustrating this article. 



