152 
dormant buds at the base of the shoot into active life. As previously 
said, the terminal bud should be a plump and healthy one. It 
should be directed either upwards, downwards, or sideways, so as 
to prolong the growth of branch outwards or inwards, or towards 
a lateral blank space. 
The growth of the main shoots is regulated by pinching, and 
should a third or fourth twig grow amongst them between the forks 
they are rubbed off. When the tree is ready for pruning a third 
time it has then, if three main limbs only, six branches, which, at 
the time of the 
THIRD PRUNING, 
are cut back to 6 to 12 inches, according to their strength. Two 
of the top shoots on each of these branches with an upward 
direction are left, and the lateral shoots from 
the other buds on the limbs below are 
pinched back in the summer time, when they 
are a few inches long, to three or four leaves. 
These little tufts of leaves shelter the 
branches, strengthen them by converting sap 
into woody tissues, and ultimately develop 
fruit spurs. Branches which approach the 
vertical line most are cut shorter than those 
inclined to an angle to thus force the buds 
at the base to grow. 
FourtH PRUNING. 
The same treatment described in the 
ease of the first, second, and third pruning 
is applied in the ease of the fourth pruning 
and generally at this age the tree will begin ** 
to bear readily. At this period a stocky, low Winter pruning of a 
standard tree will have been formed, which ee Meena g nae 
will have a well-balanced head of branches : 
growing in an upward direction, and carrying fruit spurs 
all along their length. Such a tree will resist high winds 
well, can easily be approached by horse and implements, so that 
comparatively little hand labour will be required to keep the 
orchard in a high state of cultivation; the crop will be evenly 
carried along the main branches, which will not stand in need of 
artificial props, lest they should break down under the load of fruit 
which, at this early stage, they will begin to earry. The pinching 
of the superabundant laterals is best done in the early autumn, 
when buds, which would otherwise have remained sterile, are trans- 
formed into fruit buds. This operation, saves much butchering 
in the winter time, as by suppressing either entirely or 
partly an undesirable shoot at an early stage, much sap, which 
