236 Principles of Plant Culture. 
418. Where and How should the Cut be Made in 
Pruning? Since the movement of food is from the leaves 
toward the root (80), it follows that when a branch is cut off 
at some distance from the member that supports it, the 
wound cannot “heal” (73) unless there are leaves be- 
yond the wound to manufacture food, and thus make a 
growth current possible. The cut should, therefore, be made 
close enough to the supporting member so that it can be 
Fig. 153. Fi. 154. Fig. 155. 
Fig. 153. Showing the proper place to make the cut, in pruning. A wound 
made by a cut on the dotted line A-B will be promptly healed. One made on the 
line C-D or E-F will not. Ip Fig. 154, the lower branch was cut off too far from the 
trunk. 
Fig. 154. Showing how to make the cut in pruning large branches. The upper 
cut, all made from above, permits the branch to split down. The left cut, first 
made partly from below, prevents splitting down. 
Fig. 155. Pruning to an owlside or inside bud. Cut asin the figure, the upper- 
most bud would form a shoot that tends to vertical. Cut on the dotted line, 
the upperraost bud would form a shoot tending to horizontal. 
healed from the cambium of the latter. In woody plants, 
there is usually a more or less distinct swelling about the 
base of a branch (Fig. 153), produced by the cambium of 
the supporting member and just beyond this swelling, a 
more or less distinct line marks the point where the cam- 
bium of the branch and of the supporting member unite. 
In a healthy tree, a wound made by a branch of reasonable 
