444 MANUAL OF GARDENING 
side shoots, upon which fruit will be borne the following year. As soon 
as severe freezing weather is over in the spring, these side shoots should 
be cut back 9 to 12 inches, according to the strength of the canes and 
the number of side branches upon them. 
The same method of pruning is advisable with red varieties like 
Cuthbert, which naturally branch freely. Other sorts, like King, 
Hansell, Marlboro, Turner, and Thwack, that seldom branch, should 
not be pinched back in summer, as, even though this might induce 
them to send out shoots, the branches will be weak, and if they survive 
the winter, will produce less fruit than would the strong buds upon the 
main canes had they not been forced into growth. 
As soon as the crop has been gathered, and the old canes are dead, 
they should be removed, and at the same time all of the surplus new 
shoots should be cut away. From four to five good canes will be suffi- 
cient for each hill, while in rows the number may be from two to three 
in each foot. 
Pruned in this way, nearly all varieties will have stems sufficiently 
large to support themselves, but as there will be more or less breaking 
down and injury to the fruit from the bending over of the canes, many 
growers prefer to support them by means of stakes or trellises. Stakes 
may be set in each hill, or for matted rows stout stakes 3 feet high 
are driven at intervals of 40 feet and a No. 10 galvanized wire is 
stretched along the row, to which the canes are tied. It would be a 
saving of labor if a wire is stretched either side of the row, as then no 
tying will be required. 
