THE POME FRUITS 



461 



one end of each fastened to a single 2^-inch ring and with a similar ring 

 attached to the free end of each. These chains or wires must be exactly 

 equal in length, and they should just reach over stakes set at the distance 

 desired for the trees. 



Planting the Trees. — The avoidance of all unnecessary root-exposure 

 and thorough firming of the soil about the roots are the principal secrets of 

 success in tree planting. The soil on the immediate surface, however, 

 should be left rather loose. If the trees or soil are inclined to be dry, the 

 roots may well be soaked in water for several 

 hours before planting, but water is seldom 

 or never needed in the holes themselves. 

 Set the trees from one to three inches deeper 

 than they stood in the nursery. 



Little or no fertilization is needed at 

 planting as a rule. A good mulch of strawy 

 stable manure, however, will often help 

 greatly. It or any other mulch should be 

 accompanied by proper protection against 

 mice, and a screen of galvanized wire with 

 two meshes to the inch and about eighteen 

 inches square will probably prove most satis- 

 factory for this in the long run. 



Forming the Heads. — If one-year 

 "whips" are used, the only pruning needed 

 at planting time is to cut them off at the 

 height of twenty to thirty inches. As soon 

 as possible thereafter, four or five branches 

 should be selected to form the general frame- 

 work. The lowest of these limbs should be about 25 to 30 inches above 

 the ground, as the original height of this limb is the permanent one. 



The other three or four frame-work limbs should be selected above, at 

 intervals of six or eight inches, if possible, and with an even distribution 

 around the trunk so as to balance the top properly. This selection is 

 probably best made in the early part of the season's growth, at which time 

 the extra limbs should be rubbed off. In the open-center type of tree, 

 which is preferable for most varieties and localities, the central leader 

 should be eliminated at this time and should be kept from reforming later. 



This is usually sufficient for the first season or two, unless some of the 

 limbs get too long or begin greatly out-growing the others; in which case 

 they should be headed back. 



At the beginning of the next season some of the frame-work limbs will 

 need heading back to keep the tree in balance and avoid too rangy a growth. 

 Each of the primary limbs should develop two good branches during the 

 season following their selection, and all the others should be rubbed off 



1 Courtesy of The Macmillan Company, N. Y. From "The Principles of Fruit Growing," by Bailey. 



A Properly Pruned Young 

 Apple Tree. 1 



