77 



as to give ample room, for a greater imml^er of leaders are necessary in thes& 

 prunes and plums than in any other variety of fruit, because the foliage is scanty 

 and the leaf very small, and unless a numl^er of leaders are obtained the foliage 

 is too scanty to protect the fruit and it is liable to sunscald on very hot days and 

 especially during hot winds. Hun and light can, even with a large number of leaders, 

 find free access and circulation, provided tlie tree is gi\-en a roomy base. 



The small growth round the base and up the main arms should not be removed, 

 but should be pruned every season. This shelters the main arms and trunk, 

 and later on this small growtli bears fine croi)s of fruit, which ri]iens later tlian the 

 fruit above, and extends tlie harvesting. The foui'th season tlie tree is still pruned 



j^^' 



3-^ig. ST. 



81io\viiig liDW tlie tree should lie tri>;iteil the tnllowing 



\Yi liter. 



fairly hard?and a fork obtained on each of the present leaders. After this the 

 tree must be specially treated to get the best results. Figure 86 shows how the 

 tree should be treated in the fifth winter's pruning ; the laterals and spurs are 

 carefully pruned and thinned, and the leaders are thinned out, only leaving those 

 required. These leaders should not be headed back, but left unpruned as shown 

 in the illustration. This is an average specimen of a very large acreage treated 

 in this manner. The small growth round the base, referred to before, \vill be 

 seen in flower. It will also be noticed how evenly distributed the fruiting wood 

 is throughout the tree. Although the tree shows splendid blossom, no fruit set, 

 owing to the strong growth the tree was making. The following winter the tree 



