72 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



September, 1909 



How to Prune Fruit Trees 



FRUIT trees may judiciously be pruned the 

 whole year around, but the time when the 

 work can be most easily done commences with the 

 dropping of the leaves in the fall and ends with the 

 appearance of the new growth in spring. Tools 

 for pruning — pruning scissors, pruning saw, knife, 

 and, for tall trees, the long-handled pruning hook — 

 must be kept sharp, and the scissors and hook also 

 lubricated. Besides these tools it is desirable to 

 have a three-legged stepladder, which is especially 

 constructed for orchard use. 



Before starting to prune, consider what you are 

 going to do. Take a good look at the tree about 

 to be pruned and make your plans. The actual 

 work commences on the ground. Water shoots 

 springing from the ground should not be cut off 

 merely on the level with the ground's surface — 

 dig down to the origin of them and cut close to the 

 root or stem, or wherever they may spring from. 

 This done, remove or mend all broken branches. 

 Always aim to close up empty spaces caused by 

 broken limbs. You may do this by bending and 

 tying certain limbs, or by encouraging the growth 

 of neighboring branches. 



Walk around the tree, and shorten last year's 

 growth on the lower branches about one third, 

 always aiming toward giving a circular shape to 

 the whole tree. Take the step ladder and again 

 go around the tree, trimming last year's growth 

 higher up but somewhat shorter than on the lower 

 branches. So continue to the top of the tree, going 

 around it several times until, when finished, the 

 tree presents an almost 

 globular shape, the top 

 branchlets being short- 

 ened to less than a 

 quarter of their previous 

 year's growth. Never 

 attempt to save time by 

 pruning the entire height 

 of the tree on one side; 

 if you do this you will 

 certainly give the tree 

 an ugly shape. The 

 higher up you go, the 

 oftener will it be neces- 

 sary to cut out, of two 

 or three branchlets, one 

 or even two. In this 

 case cut out the weaker 

 ones or those growing 

 to the inside of the tree, 

 provided they are not 

 necessary to fill empty 

 spaces. 



This is the pruning of 

 an orchard tree, which 

 has been attended to 

 regularly every year. It 

 is more difficult to prune 

 a tree which has been 

 neglected for two or 

 more years, and it is very 

 difficult to bring an un- 

 shapely tree to a pre- 

 sentable appearance. 

 Trees allowed to grow 

 ad libitum for two or 

 more years will some- 

 times need heavy cut- 

 ting back. The more 

 straggling and irregular 



the growth and the more slender and numerous the 

 branches, the more heavily the tree has to be pruned. 



On stone fruit trees it is not advisable to cut 

 back to the old wood, and this should never be done 

 except in the case of a broken limb. If such is the 

 case, be sure the wound is closed with paint, wax, 

 or tar. On apples or pears you may, without 

 injury to the tree (provided it is attended to regularly 

 afterward), cut off the growth of several seasons, 

 but always see that you cut above dormant buds. 

 Dormant buds, situated at the base of each year's 

 growth, are often hardly noticeable. Above them 

 fruit buds may have formed very conspicuously. 

 It seems a pity to cut them away, but what good 

 would they do? They will only produce small 

 fruit, or, by the amount of the fruit produced, will 

 break the branches which are too weak to support 

 the weight. 



Confronted with a tree out of shape or of too 

 thick a growth, remove first the branches growing 

 to the inside and even to the opposite side of the 

 tree, unless by removing them you cause an 

 open space. But such a branch, having been 

 allowed to grow from one side of a tree to the other, 

 and which could not be dispensed with this year, 

 ought to be treated in a way to allow its removal in 

 a succeeding year; that is, the branches must be 

 trimmed in order to allow the growth of the neigh- 

 boring branches to close in and gradually fill the 

 space now taken up by this perverse one. 



Then the tree may still have too many branches. 

 In removing them, avoid cutting entire branches 

 originating directly from the trunk, which would 

 make large wounds. By not healing over quickly 

 these wounds would eventually make holes in the 

 trunk. Of course, such branches ought to have 

 come off while the tree was young, but now it is too 

 late. Be satisfied, therefore, with thinning out the 

 smaller branches, taking care that air and light can 

 sufficiently penetrate to all parts of the tree and 

 that fruit bud development is encouraged on parts 

 which, in the coming summer and fall, will be able 

 to support the weight of the fruit. 



All this having been done, it will nevertheless 

 be important to pick over the fruit after it is fairly 

 well formed, say in June. Break out all the small 

 and unsightly fruit; it is certainly more profitable, 

 be it from the commercial standpoint or simply 

 for home use. to have one big, juicy, well-formed, 

 well-colored and well-ripened apple than four or 

 five small, unsightly and unsavory ones. 



Washington. Gerhard Kolligs. 



Before commencing to prune fruit trees plan what you are going to do. Always aim to close up empty 

 spaces caused by broken limbs and endeavor to give a more or less circular shape to the whole tree 



Fruit Trees in Odd Corners 



IF YOU are fall planting in the fruit garden you 

 must remember that although it is a good time 

 to set out the pome fruits, on no account must stone 

 fruits be planted at any other time than in the 

 spring. But in any work that is being done now 

 consider the spring planting, and leave spaces for 

 the trees. 



If there is space for many fruit trees, plant them 

 all together; if there is only a garden with little 

 room to spare, plant a few peaches, plums and 

 apples along and near the paths. If there is no 

 other place available for the trees, plant them in the 

 corners of the back yard. Plant the larger fruit trees 

 along the fence, and in front of them put currant 

 and gooseberry bushes, the board fence being 

 covered with blackberry and raspberry vines. 



Peach trees succeed admirably when planted on 

 a wall or fence with a southern exposure. When they 

 are to be planted close to a wall, a good plan is to 

 construct a trellis for them by means of screw eyes 

 and wire. This can be done now and will be ready 

 for the tree in spring. If the screw eyes for any 

 reason cannot be attached to the wall or fence, put 

 pieces of wood two inches thick by four wide and of 

 the necessary height (allowing for two feet in the 

 ground) hard against the wall or fence twelve feet 

 apart. To these uprights attach the screw eyes 

 about one foot apart — that is, for a wall or fence 

 which is twelve feet high use twelve screw eyes. 



When all the uprights are provided with screw 

 eyes, draw fence wire through them from one end 

 of the wall to the other until there are twelve lines 

 of wires forming a trellis standing out six inches or 

 more (depending on the length of the screw eyes) 

 from the building. Iron would be better than wood 

 for the supports but is more expensive. 



In the spring procure two-year-old peach trees 

 from a reliable nurseryman and plant them in holes 

 dug close to the trellis at least ten feet apart; if the 

 trees have not been pruned to at least one-half of 

 last year's growth, tie the remaining wood to the 

 wires and, as growth proceeds, keep tying the wood, 

 taking care to keep each shoot a few inches away 

 from the others in order that light and air will reach 

 them all. Apples, pears and plums can be grown 

 on a trellis, also, but not so successfully as peaches. 

 For gardens or places of small area, plant dwarf 

 trees of apples and pears because they do not, when 

 at full bearing stage, take up as much space as other 

 kinds. Plant at least ten feet apart every way in 

 fairly rich, well-drained 

 soil. Plums and peaches 

 grown in the orchard 

 should be planted fifteen 

 feet apart ; plums succeed 

 best when planted in 

 fairly heavy clay loam. 



Excellent varieties of 

 early peaches are Early 

 Crawford, Mountain 

 Rose, Alexander, Hale; 

 late, Late Crawford, 

 Salway, Elberta, Stump, 

 and Oldmixon. 



Early summer apples 

 are Early Harvest, Red 

 Astrachan, Oldenburg, 

 Williams and Bough; 

 autumn apples, Fall 

 Pippin, Wealthy, Fam- 

 euse, Maiden Blush; 

 winter varieties, Bald- 

 win, Tompkins Ring, 

 Rhode Island, Jonathan, 

 Northern Spy, Roxbury. 

 Summer pears: Clapp, 

 Summer Doyenne, and 

 Bartlett; autumn, 

 Flemish, Angouleme, 

 Louise, Seckel and 

 Anjou: winter, Law- 

 rence,Vicar, and Kieffer. 

 Early plums: Lom- 

 bard, Reine Claude, 

 Imperial Gage, Yellow 

 Gage; late, Japanese, 

 Abundance, Burbank, 

 Wickson, and Red June. 

 David McIntosh. 

 New York. 



