25 



PRUNING. 



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There is no point in fruit growing upon which farmers 

 in general need education more than on the question of 

 pruning. We have seen fine trees all over the country 

 almost ruined by injudicious pruning. The time to begin 

 to prune young trees is the day after they have been trans- 

 planted. All superfluous branches should then be removed, 

 and the top kept constantly trained to suit the fanc}'' of 

 the owner. A little time spent when the trees aie young 

 will save days of labor afterwards, and save cutting off large 

 limbs when the trees get older. When this is properly 

 attended to, all the pruning can be done with the thumb 

 and finger. Do not be afraid of over-doing it ; there is 

 more danger of not thinning out enough. The limbs look 

 far apart, but they will be closer when they grow larger. 



In pruning larger and older trees, large limbs should 

 never be cut off if it can be avoided, unless they are dead, 

 but if they have to be lemoved, cover the wound with 

 a coating of paint or grafting wax to preserve the wood 

 until it grows over. About August look over all pruned 

 trees, and remove all the young suckers starting up where 

 the limbs were cut off. They are now easily removed with 

 the hand ; but if left, they rob the tiee of the sap that 

 should go to help regain what was lost by cutting off the 

 branches. 



It is impossible to tell what season of the year is the 

 best for pruning. The best authorities differ on this point. 

 I prefer early spring, just after the severity of the winter 

 is past. Plenty of leisure time is at least one argument in 

 favor of pruning at this season. At whatever season of the 

 year the work is done, it should not be done hurriedly. 

 We have known farmers toneglect to prune until ploughing 

 the orchard, and then to remove all branches interfering 

 with the team by chopping off with the axe ; others again 

 saw the limb off two or three or even six inches from the 

 joint, thus slowly but surely killing their trees. 



As a general rule the production of fruit and leaves is 

 adverse to fruitfulness. Cutting back the tops of overgrown 

 trees checks growth, and favors the production of fruit 

 buds; but such treatment, out of the ordinary course of 

 nature, should be cautiously applied, as the first crop gives 

 another check, and often materially injures the tree and the 

 character of subsequent crops. In the production of fruit 

 of the best quality, pruning is next in importance to good 

 cultivation. 



