THE POME FRUITS 123 



feet apart. The quince is very shallow rooted; hence all deep tillage must 

 be avoided, and winter covers are always desirable. The general method of 

 culture and fertilization suggested for the pear are also advisable for the 

 quince. 



Pruning. Quince blossoms and fruit are produced on the ends of 

 twigs of the current season's growth. These twigs are developed largely 

 from the terminal buds of spurs or branches, or from buds near the tips of 

 the latter; hence too much cutting back may readily remove all the fruit- 

 bearing wood of that season. The pruning of the quince, therefore, should 

 be confined largely to the removal of dead or inferior wood, thinning out the 

 dense places and heading back the extra vigorous shoots, to promote the 

 development of fruit spurs and keep the trees in balance generally. Blight- 

 ing twigs also need as prompt attention here as in the case of the pear. 



Enemies. The worst insect enemies of the quince are the quince 

 curculio and the round-headed apple-tree borer. The latter can be con- 

 trolled as described for the apple, although more attention is likely to be 

 needed. The former is the chief cause of the "wormy" and knotty fruits. 

 It is very difficult to control, but the best methods are: (1) thorough 

 spraying with lead arsenate, at the rate of one ounce of the paste to a 

 gallon of spray, when the first injury appears and again a week later; and 

 (2) picking and destruction of all infested fruit about a month before the 

 normal picking time. 



The chief diseases are fire blight, leaf blight (Entomosporium macula- 

 turn) and rust (Gymnosporangium germinate). The first is controlled as in 

 the pear, the second by spraying as for apple scab and the third by removal 

 of all red cedars, or at least all diseased specimens, for a distance of at least 

 one-half mile of the quince trees. 



REFERENCES 



"Productive Orcharding." Sears. 



" Horticultural Manual," 2 vols. Budd & Hansen. 



"The Pruning Book." Bailey. 



"Systematic Pomology." Waugh. 



Pennsylvania Agric. Expt. Station Bulletins 115, 121, 128 and 141. 



New York (Geneva) Expt. Station Bulletin 406. " Dwarf Apples." 



Canadian Dept. of Agriculture Bulletin-: 



176. " Bacterial Blight of Apple, Pear and Quince Trees." 



194. " Apple Orcharding in Ontario." 



Farmers' Bulletin, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, 401. "Protection of Orchards from 

 Spring Frosts by Means of Fires." 



