FRUIT TREES. Chap. IV. 71 



Proposition 6. The action of the sap on the buds of a branch is proportional to 

 their distance or their separation from the origin of the branch. 



New branches that stem from developing buds on a pruned branch will be 

 stronger the closer they are to the tip of the branch, (provided that it's not tilted 

 horizontally) & they'll be weaker the closer they are to its origin. Frequently, new 

 branches emerging from a vertical shoot within which the sap rises abundantly & 

 unimpeded are so consistently different in strength & length from the highest one to the 

 lowest that one could almost imagine that the effect of the sap on the topmost bud & on 

 the lower buds of a branch is like the pressure of a liquid on the bottom & on the sides of 

 a vessel. 



I added " provided that the tip of the branch is not tilted horizontally". Because if 

 a branch is curved, the greatest effect of the sap will be on the uppermost bud, or on the 

 one located at the top of the arc, where its growth will produce the strongest branch. The 

 other branches will have less strength the farther away they are from it & the closer they 

 are to the ends of the curved branch. 



These degrees of strength aren't in such exact proportion on horizontal branches 

 where the buds on the upper side normally produce stronger branches than those facing 

 the ground. Consequently, if the terminal bud is on the underside & the penultimate one 

 on the upper side is higher up, the latter bud will yield a stronger branch than the one at 

 the tip. 



So every branch that becomes strong at a place where it should be weak, or weak 

 where it should be strong, isn't a natural one & generally should be removed. 



