in] PINCHING 57 



is intended to form a good and symmetrical 

 tree. ^Yith pyramidal trees, however, a succes- 

 sion of pinching must necessarily take place, so 

 as to keep the tree well balanced in its growth. 

 AVith reference to the bush or half-standard tree, 

 shoots a must not be pinched at all, nor the small 

 shoots in the intervals, as these must be allowed 

 to grow, so as to succeed shoots a in the follow- 

 ing year. None of the small spurs, i.e. the little 

 shoots 2 or 3 ins. long, will require pinching, but 

 the upright shoots will all require pinching, as 

 follows : — 



The following diagram is supposed to be a 

 plan of a shoot 6 ins. long, ready for pinching, and 

 this should be done by just pinching out the point 

 at mark x. 



Some shoots will be much in advance of others, 

 but as each shoot reaches the length of 6 ins. it 

 should be pinched. As the shoots start again 

 after the operation, when they have grown another 

 6 ins. they should be pinched again, and this may 

 go on as often as necessary. The mistake some- 

 times made of allowing the shoots to grow on to 

 the length of 9 or 10 ins. and then cutting them 

 back 4 or 5 ins. should always be avoided, as this 

 will excite the buds into growth, and fill the tree 

 with laterals. If the instructions given be followed, 

 few or no laterals will appear. 



