242 PRUNING. 



practice ; but regulating the number of flowers is 

 not so much practised as it should be. There is an 

 evident connection among- the fructiferous gems, even 

 before their expansion. The whole may require a 

 greater amount of nutrition than the tree is able to 

 supply for their perfect expansion ; but by reducing 

 the number, selecting the best placed and most pro- 

 mising, the residue will certainly come forth with 

 greater vigour, and consequently would more likely 

 set their fruit, as well as be followed by that of 

 increased size. The morella cherry, and several 

 other fruit trees, are lavish of flowers, which must 

 exhaust the tree ; and it is said that thinning them 

 with scissors before they blow well repays the labour. 

 Disbudding trees of their style of bearing, would, 

 however, be an endless task, and indeed unnecessary, 

 as the same object may be gained by a freer use of 

 the pruning knife. Destroying flowers is not a 

 pleasant affair to the anxious manager ; he would be 

 inclined to thin the fruit rather than the flowers; 

 both, however, may be done with advantage, espe- 

 cially in respect of weakly growing trees. 



Although the manner of bearing defines the plan 

 to be followed by the pruner, yet this may be de- 

 parted from. Those trees that usually bear their 

 fruit on longer or shorter portions of the last year's 

 shoots, as the peach for example, may be pruned in 

 such a manner as to be made to bear on shoots so 

 shortened as to resemble spurs. This mode of pruning 

 may be described in a few words : The tree is trained 



