57 
pruning, but that is only theoretically correct. A cutlass 
should be strictly prohibited for that purpose. ‘he proper 
tools are a knife, a saw, a pair of hand shears and a pair 
of long-handled shears. These tools should all be kept 
sharp and no laborer should be allowed to prune until he has 
been taught to do it properly. A branch, whether small or 
large, should always be cut off so close to the trunk or limb 
that the scar will heal over without leaving any perceptible 
mark. ‘The cut should be clean and smooth. Ii the edges 
are ragged they should be trimmed off with a sharp knife. 
If the branch to be removed is large and heavy it should 
be sawed off a distance from the trunk to relieve the weight 
and prevent it from splitting after being partly sawed off. 
The stub can then be sawed off close to the trunk, the edges 
trimmed with a knife and the scar painted over. For covering 
scars alomst anything that will stick and seal the cut over 
can be used. ‘I'he main thing is to prevent the entrance of 
fungi until the scar has healed over. If the scar is not too 
large a coating of carbolinium may be sufficient as that wi'l 
keep it aseptic, but on large scars some kind of paint or coal 
tar must be used. When removing small branches no such 
precaution is needed as such scars will heal over quickly. 
Unfortunately trees are usually injured in other ways 
than by pruning. All old trees show more or less scars 
caused by the cutlass when cutting weeds in the plantation 
and by the picking tools when gathering the crop. Such 
injuries are usually the indirect cause of fungus diseases. 
Most planters know that canker is caused by fungi but the 
laborers do not realize that any little rift in the bark caused 
by sharp instruments immediately becomes a harbor for 
fungus growth. 
Old plantations are very much more difficult to handle 
than trees which have been properly cared for from the 
