COFFEE PLANTERS’ MANUAL. 31 
leaves and fewer berries, but at the ends shew vitali- 
ty and fruit. To those who are fond of horizontal 
lateral branches and whose eyes turn away from 4 
hanging-down bough, doubtless those whips are an 
eyesore: and it is a common remark among such 
persons, ‘‘What’s the use of all these whips, with only 
a few yellow leaves at the end? Cut them off, why 
cumber they the tree?” Not so fast, my friend. It 
is wonderful what these ends of branches sometimes 
bear. Although immediately after crop they look seedy 
and withering, just watch them after the pruning has 
divested the tree of its useless encumbrances, watch 
them on the first shower thereafter, and you will find 
that the leaves get gradually green,—then more nu- 
merous,—then blossom shews,—and by crop-time you 
see dangling towards the ground a series of fine healthy 
bearing boughs, loaded with considerable clusters of 
ripening cherry. Just the other day i walked over 
an estate of this sort at an altitude of from three 
to four thousand feet above the sea level ; and a prettier 
show I have seldom seen. Out of a crop ranging from 
8 to 12 cwts. an acreon the parts in bearing, I should 
think quite half was produced by those whip ends. 
And would any proprietor, who sees what these can 
do, be insane enough to cut them off? On this point 
therefore I agree with Mr. Taylor. Another dogma 
that obtains favor among many planters requires to 
be received cum grano. It is, ‘‘Never cut a primary” — 
on this head I would add with ‘‘W.”’, ‘‘till 1¢ requires 
it.” A primary may be dead at the end, or it may 
be broken. In either case it will never rally, then 
why retain a useless encumbrance? Relieve the tree 
at once by cutting off such. In the same way should 
be served any other part of the tree that has been 
injured, wounded, or has died from disease, attacks 
of insects, or exhaustion: with ‘‘ Laborie,” I would 
say:—‘‘If a head be spoiled it must be sawed, If 
“‘any of the superabundant branches have been left 
“through neglect, these must be cut off. Ifa bough 
“‘has been broken by accident, and if any branches 
“‘have become spent and withered from too great a load 
“‘of fruit, these must be pruned. In short everything 
“‘that is defective must be completely taken away, 
“but without retrenching anything else.” Thus much 
as regards the general outline of pruning. But the 
learner will want something more. He will want me 
to come to particulars. This I shall presently do. 
But I must premise my remarks by saying that where 
such a wide field is open for discussion, and where 
varying systems differ as do men’s minds, it would 
never do to occupy space in a small handbook like 
this, discussing the conflicting theories that prevail 
