FRUIT TREES. Chap. IV. 93 



Article VII. On Pinching Off. 



THIS operation, derived from viniculture & applied to all trees from which 

 superfluous shoots are removed, is performed without the help of metal instruments. The 

 thumb is enough & is preferable not only because it's quicker, but also because it 

 extirpates the shoot down to its rudiments. As a result, removal is complete & no other 

 branches will emerge from a knot pinched off this way, whereas if the shoot is cut with a 

 fingernail or with a pruning knife, there almost always are some small branches that 

 emerge from the rudiments remaining on the parent branch. 



A pruned tree hastens to make up its losses; & if its enthusiasm is backed 

 up by its strength, toward the end of April it will be supplied with more branches than it 

 had before it was pruned. To prevent the crowding caused by so many new shoots, the 

 ones that could only spoil the shape or the fecundity of the tree must be cut off right 

 away. Examples are 1°. those that emerge on the side of the branch that faces the wall, or 

 on its opposite side, & that never could continue in that direction. 2°. those that stem from 

 former prunings or directly from the trunk of the tree & that should be regarded as false 

 wood branches, unless they're needed to fill a gap, to replace some worn-out branches, or 

 even to revive an old tree. In that case they're preserved & they're treated with this in 

 mind. 3°. those that appear as doubles or triples from the same knot & that must be 

 reduced to the single one that's turned out the best & in the best condition. 



But this first job is merely a prelude to the pinching off that's done toward the end 

 of May. At that time almost all of the branches have developed from the last pruning & 

 from other places, & they've made enough progress to be able to discern their character 

 & to decide on a suitable treatment for each one. 



