MANURING AND PRUNING. 19 



surrounding air provides it with a large portion, which is taken 

 up in gaseous form by the leaves. It should therefore be the 

 aim of the cultivator to maintain on his trees as large a propor- 

 ♦jon of healthy leaves as they can carry. Whether the food is 

 taken up by the roots, or by the leaves, it is in the latter organs 

 that all the material necessary for the purposes of growth and 

 reproduction is formed and distributed. The leaves are in fact the 

 Iiaboratory of the plant, in which all the most important changes 

 of the vegetable fluids are carried out. 



The importance of maintaining at all tiijies a healthy crop 

 of leaves, cannot be over estimated ; and for this reason a systeiu 

 of pruning should be adopted by which they are made to 

 -<iistribute themselves with great regularity over the branches of 

 t/he tree, so as to place them in a position to carry out the work 

 "they are called upon to perform. 



PRUNING. 



The act of pruning is popularly supposed to cause the 

 production of fruit. That properly' carried out, it has this efle ct, 

 is not to be doubted, but the effect Ls uot so direct as i.s often 

 assumed. 



Given a young tree in good health, and with a single stem, 

 *he pruning should commence by the regulation of the primaries, 

 or first branches made by the tree. There should, as a general 

 Tule, be only three, or at most four primary branches left on the 

 ■Cacao tree. These should be encouraged to extend themselves 

 laterally, as they have a natural tendency to do, and should be 

 ■eencouraged to develop at regular distances the secondary 

 l9ranches. The tertiary branches should also be encouraged to 

 grow at regular intervals. 



In the primary stages, pruning should be performed before 

 :the wood becomes sufficiently hard to require the use of knife, 

 l)y the method known as " pinching." This is carried out with 

 Ibumb and finger, and all succulent shoots not required, can be 

 leaded back or " stopped" by this means. At all times, ifr 

 should be the endeavour of the pruner to maintain the tre& 

 ■well balanced (i.e.) it should not have one branch growing more 

 rapidly than another, so as to make the tree appear lop-sided 

 from any one point of view. Many of the older cultivators do 

 aiot regard this point sufficiently, iu carrying out, their prunin^r 

 -operations, and many branches are left, owing to their being 

 bearing branches, which for the permanent security of the tree, 

 "for its general appearance, and for its bearing qualities, should 

 Tie removed. It is much better to check at once the tendeuc^- 

 of a tree to assume an irregulir and uncultivated foiui, i.l.aii tc 

 .allow a branch grow for a time and finally be compelled tt 

 jremove it when o.; large size. 



