82 



I'RINCirLES AND PRACTICE OF PRUNING 



like the landscape gardener, look to the health of their 

 trees, shrubs and vines, but their main aim is the flower 

 or the fruit. 



77. Pruning principles classified. — While these three 

 men differ in their ultimate aims, the methods they em- 

 ploy may be grouped under two main heads; iiamcly, (1) 



those which consider the health 

 and the behavior of the plant — 

 pruning proper, and (2) those 

 which consider the develop- 

 ment of size and form of the 

 ])lant — training. While these 

 jirinciples are more or less dis- 

 tinct, some of them neverthe- 

 less blend into each other. They 

 may be summarized in the fol- 

 lowing table : 



A. Pruning proper 

 1. Principles which deal with the 



removal of injured or unnec- 

 essary parts. 

 3. Principles which affect vegeta- 

 tive vigor. 



3. Principles which affect flower 

 and fruit production. 



4. Principles which change the 

 wood-bearing habit into the 

 fruit-bearing habit, or vice versa. 



B. Training 



1. Principles which limit the size 

 or the form of plants. 



2. Principles whicli affect planta- 

 tion management, as in the 



facilitatinn of tillage, spraying, harvesting, etc. 



3. I^rinciples wdiich underly training to special forms. 



The most important ])rinciples which come under the 

 former of these heads (78 to 112) are deduced from the 

 laws of i)lant physiology (Chapter If). The others are 

 mainlv based upon convenience, economy or experience. 

 I'amiliaritv with these ])rinciplcs will enable the operator 



FIG. 60— "DER END OF DE.R 

 LIMIT" IN PRUNING 

 This weeping willow wept sev- 

 eral of its upper branches, so a 

 tree butcher slashed out a lot of 

 the top. When his ghastly work 

 was done it was decided to "go 

 him one better," so the main trunk 

 was cut as shown, leaving the 

 secondary trunk to its fate — for 

 already the stump shows decay. 



