252 AMERICAN" POMOLOGY. 



ever kind, to the humble bushes and brambles that yield us 

 their abundant and most welcome fruits : the trailing vine 

 that adorns our arbors and covers our trellises with its 

 rich and tempting clusters of grapes, also needs to be prun- 

 ed. Many herbaceous plants are also submitted to judi- 

 cious pruning, and yield in consequence an increased pro- 

 duct of fruit. Our ornamental gardeners and plant-grow- 

 ers practice pruning most admirably upon their house- 

 plants, and by their successful practice, they produce the 

 most wonderful effects, which are manifested in the vigor, 

 thrift, symmetry, and blossoming of their specimens. 



And yet, when we come to travel about the country, 

 and to see the shrubberies, the parks, the orchards, fruit- 

 gardens, and vineyards, as they are, we shall be struck 

 with the great amount of ignorance or neglect manifested 

 by what we everywhere behold ! Still more shall we be 

 surprised, when we hear nurserymen and orchardists, men 

 who have had opportunities for extended observation, and 

 those too, who are considered successful cultivators, advo- 

 cate the idea that trees should not be pruned at all. An 

 apology may be found for them in the many instances of 

 bad pruning that may frequently be met with. They may 

 say that no pruning is better than such mutilation, and 

 with some varieties of fruit, they may have a show of 

 reason on their side, as there are many sorts that will 

 very naturally produce an open head, everywhere provided 

 with abundant fruit-spurs, which are the great desiderata 

 of the fruit-grower. 



We prune our plants for the most opposite purposes ; we 

 prune to make them assume some desired form, we prune to 

 produce symmetry, and we prune to torture them as much 



