266 



The Commercial Apple Industry 



The modified leader tree. 



In reacting from the two extremes embodied in the 

 strictly " vase-shaped " tree and the central leader type, 

 many commercial apple-growers in the leading producing 

 regions have adopted the " modified leader " system, thus 

 appropriating the best features in both extreme types. As 

 the name implies, this system develops a tree of a modified 

 leader type. 



Starting with a whip headed at 30 to 36 inches, four to 

 seven scaffold branches well distributed along a central 

 trunk after the fashion of an as- 

 cending spiral are permitted to re- 

 main and form the framework of 

 the tree. It is impossible to se- 

 cure all of these branches from a 

 single season's growth, from two to 

 three being selected the first year 

 and the remainder later. The per- 

 manent framework may not be se- 

 cured short of three or four years. 

 One point to be remembered is 

 that scaffold branches should be 

 spaced well apart. Branches that 

 are only two or three inches apart 

 will be entirely too close when the tree reaches maturity. 

 Some growers prefer scaffold branches one foot apart. 

 (See Fig. 7.) 



The leader is permitted to develop during the first three 

 or four years while the framework branches are being 

 selected. The first year's growth will usually consist of an 

 almost upright branch together with several laterals. It 

 may be possible to select two or even three well distributed 



FIG. 7. Mature Jon- 

 athan tree with com- 

 mon type of frame- 

 work. 



