34 



RATIONAL FRUIT CULTURE 



was only one. The root should be laid bare, and the whole 

 of the sucker should be cut away. If a spot of tar, or a 

 styptic such as is used to prevent the bleeding of vines, is 

 applied to the wound, it will lessen the chance of any fresh 

 growth at that point. In very bad cases, where groups of 

 suckers are growing up around neglected trees, it may be 

 necessary to sever some of the main roots as in ordinary root- 

 pruning, and to drag up the ends with the suckers attached. 



Fig. 12.— The effect of not cutting away a sucker completely— several growing from 



the stump. 



But prevention is better than cure; and if the roots are sound 

 when a tree is planted, and if they are not afterwards injured 

 by the careless use of the fork or spade, it is unlikely that 

 there will be much trouble from this cause. .\ root may. as 

 it swells, come in cont;ict with n shar]i stone, which eventu- 

 ally penetrates it, and thus stjuts a sucker, but this does not 

 happen often. 



\Mli:\ TO STAKE PHUT TREKS, 



There is one precaution which should be taken— to stake 

 all trees which require staking before the holes are filled up. 

 It is easy to avoid the roots when they can be seen, but 



