8 LEAFLET 218, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



mum bearing capacity. A safe rule in pruning trees, particularly 

 young trees up to bearing age, is to prune them as little as will accom- 

 plish this specific purpose. Cross branches and suckers should be 

 removed and broken or dying limbs cut out. Young trees of most 

 fruits require little pruning before they come into bearing. Pruning 

 of fruit trees in general should be done during the dormant season, 

 preferably in the spring after danger of severe freezing is past but 

 before growth has started. 



If the growth of grapevines is rather weak during the first season, it 

 is advisable to cut the vine back to one or two buds at the end of the 

 first growing season and to train up a strong trunk during the second 

 growing season. If the vdne is to be trained to a fence or a two-wire 

 system, it should be tied to a stake and carried upright until it reaches 

 the top wire. At that point it should be pinched off and two laterals 

 led out, one in either direction, along the wire. During the following 

 season, lateral canes will grow from all the buds along the trunk. Two 

 of these at the height of the first wire above the ground should be 

 selected and tied to that wire to develop fruiting wood. The other 

 branches along the trunk should be rubbed off or pinched back during 

 the growing season. 



In most cases, if properly cared for, the vines will begin to bear 

 fruit the third year after planting and should continue to produce a 

 satisfactory crop for many years thereafter. 



Pruning should be done while the vines are in a dormant condition. 

 It is important to note that the fruit is borne on shoots from the canes 

 of the previous season's growth. In priming, therefore, enough new 

 wood should be saved to provide for the next summer's crop and the 

 rest removed. With healthy, vigorous vines, 50 to 60 buds will 

 produce as much fruit as the vine can mature properly. More wood 

 may be left on vines for home production, provided sufficient space is 

 available for the vine to develop. With vigorous vines, the leaving of 

 more wood may result in a greater total quantity of fruit, but the 

 individual bunches may be inferior in size and the fruit of poorer 

 quality. 



The pruning of raspberries and blackberries consists in cutting off 

 the old canes close to the ground after the fruit has been picked; the 

 new canes will then develop strong growth to produce fruit for the 

 following season. In summer the tips of new shoots of black rasp- 

 berries are pinched off at a height of 12 to 18 inches. Red raspberries 

 are not cut back, but weak canes should be removed. In winter 

 pruning, blackberry laterals are cut back to about 12 inches and those 

 of black raspberries to about 8 inches. Canes 2 and 3 years old pro- 

 duce the most satisfactory gooseberries and currants. In general, the 

 pruning of these fruits should be limited during the first 2 years to 

 thinning out the bushes during the dormant season if more than 8 or 

 10 shoots have developed. After the planting is 3 or 4 years old a 

 systematic cutting out of the oldest wood each season is desirable, 

 leaving young shoots to replace this old wood. 



Spraying. — For those who find it possible to spray in order to pro- 

 duce the best quality of tree fruits and grapes, the State agricultural 

 college can furnish a spray program giving details of sprays and times 

 of application. 



U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1945 



For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office 

 Washington 25, D. C. - Price 5 cents 



