EXPERIMENTS CONDUCTED WITH A VIEW TO CONTROLLING DISEASE. 65 



6. PRUNED THREE WINTERS AFTER PLANTING, THEN EVERY SECOND WINTER ONLY. 



Tree No. 

 1 

 2 

 3 

 4 

 5 

 6 

 7 

 8 



(TREES PLANTED AUGUST, 1909.) 



Variety. 

 Rome Beauty 







Dunn's Favourite 







Cleopatra 





 Jonathan 



Clean. 



11. AT MESSRS. NORTH & BRADY'S ORCHARD, WEST TAMAR, TASMANIA. 



This is the second year of the experiment, and the Cleopatra trees are now seven years old 

 from the time of planting. They were pruned on 31st July, 1914, and the fruit was picked on 17th 

 March, 1915. 



The annual rainfall was only about 20 inches, as compared with 25 inches the previous year. 

 The summer rains were very light, and the season altogether was a very dry one. 



While the trees generally yielded from 1 to H bushel cases, it was noticeable that the unpruned 

 trees were the most prolific, and yielded on an average 2| cases. This was in striking contrast to the 

 first year of the experiment, when they yielded only about one-third of a case. The remark was then 

 made, and the results justified it, "It sometimes happens that where strong growing trees are left 

 unpruned they bear very light the first year, but have a good crop the next." 



TABLE XXXV. RESULTS OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF PRUNING ON CLEOPATRA APPLE TREES 



SEASON 1914-15. 



Pruning. 



Severe 

 Light 

 Leader 

 Unpruned 



No. of Trees. 



6 

 6 

 6 

 5 



Yield. 

 Ibs. 

 206 

 357 

 361 

 517 



Clean. 

 Ibs. 

 111 

 259 

 332 

 478 



Pitted. 

 Ibs. 

 95 

 98 

 29 

 39 



Per cent. Pitted. 



46 



27 

 8 



7 



These results show that severe pruning encourages the Pit, and when I inspected the trees 

 early in February, not only was it very conspicuous, but its effect on the fruit was very pronounced. 

 When the crop is relatively light and the fruit rather large, as in the unpruned trees the previous 

 season, the Pit may develop badly hi spite of the absence of pruning. 



12. AT G. S. CARRUTHERS' ORCHARD, NEW NORFOLK, TASMANIA. 



Although the trees are 14 years old the crop was practically a failure, since the 24 trees only 

 yielded altogether about one bushel case of fruit. No manure had been applied, and the soil is 

 undrained, so the conditions were unfavourable for cropping ; still this would not account for such a 

 low yield. During the month of October the weather was hot and dry during the day, followed by 

 frosty nights, and this destroyed the blossom. The rainfall for October was only 38 points, and this 

 is the lowest in the last six months of the year. In the previous season the unpruned trees gave the 

 lowest yield and the largest amount of Pit, and in order to ensure a crop if possible they were liberally 

 supplied with fertilizers during the winter. The soil on analysis gave an acid reaction, and each tree 

 received a dressing of 20 Ibs. of fine unburnt limestone. 





