450 Cree's Systejn of Pruning Forest Trees. 



to produce leaves, and which will perform at least a considerable 

 part of the functions of the branch in its unshortened state. 

 The effect produced on the remaining part of a shortened 

 branch is to produce larger leaves the first year. This may be 

 accounted for from the quantity of sap intended for the entire 

 branch, which will ascend in the first spring, being now applied 

 only to the part remaining. And, besides the neatness and 

 uniformity of foliage which a tree so shortened is found to ex- 

 hibit, the leaves on these shortened branches will still remain to 

 perform their useful functions. I may add, that, under this 

 mode of pruning, I have found that trees in general will 

 advance in growth as much in one year as they will advance in 

 three or four years under similar circumstances, but when not so 

 pruned. 



At that period when the shortening and cutting off of the 

 branches should commence, 1 have stated the size which the 

 tree ought to be; but it remains to be shown how long the 

 practice ought to be continued, or, in other words, what pro- 

 portion the head of a tree ought to bear to the pruned trunk. 

 Pontey, Sang, and Monteath conceive that the growth of the 

 stem is as effectually promoted by having few branches to a 

 head as by many. Were this the case, there would be no need 

 of the care and attention of annual shortening and cutting off of 

 the branches, which I have stated to be the principle upon 

 which my system rests ; nay, further, it would set aside the 

 established opinions of physiological botanists regarding the 

 properties of the leaves in the elaboration of the proper juice of 

 the plant. Neither, were their assumption correct, would we 

 see those injurious effects result from sweeping prunings, as in 

 many cases practised, by which the trees remain almost sta- 

 tionary in their growth for a number of years afterwards. But 

 that the assumption of these individuals is incorrect, at a very 

 early period of my practice I received experimental conviction. 

 In one instance, I pruned a number of trees in a hedge-row in 

 the common way, but a few of them were pruned much higher, 

 leaving only a small top of branches. The trees were, in other 

 respects, similarly circumstanced as to luxuriance of growth. 

 And those which were most pruned not only at the time did not 

 keep pace in growth with the others, but, even at this distant 

 period, and it is now above twenty years since it took place, 

 these trees are still far inferior to the others. Examples of this 

 kind soon convinced me that extirpating many branches at once, 

 or leaving a small head, was equally ruinous to the proper growth 

 of timber. 



I have already stated that the cutting off of the branches 

 should commence when the tree is about 15 ft. in height. The 

 age of the tree at this height will depend upon the luxuriance 



