CHAPTER IX 
PRUNING 
Prounine Toots.—For pruning fruit-trees you do not need 
a knife. The only tools you need are a pair of secateurs 
or pruning-shears, a double-faced pruning saw (for cut- 
ting thick branches), a pair of long-handled shears for 
tall branches, a pair of ordinary steps, and a small pot 
of thick white paint. 
In broad, general terms pruning means cutting a fruit- 
tree with the view of (1) shaping it, (2) increasing its 
area of wood, (3) increasing the quantity of its crop of 
fruit. 
PRUNING FoR SHapPE.—As regards the shaping of the 
tree, the first three or four years are those of the most 
importance. The first pruning a young fruit-tree receives 
is the cutting off of the top at the time it is planted. This 
will give you what is known as a low-headed tree. At 
present this is the form of tree that is being most advo- 
cated in the West of America, from British Columbia to 
Oregon. At the same time you will find some orchard 
men who advocate heading the young tree at 34 or 4 feet 
above the ground. There is something to be said for 
both methods. With a low-headed tree you can more 
readily prune, spray, thin and gather the fruit. You do 
not require to use long ladders, but can generally perform 
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