10 



THE APvT 0? 



easier to work the saw, and the bark of the trunk will not be 

 so likely to be injured. Moreover, the operator slackens the 

 movement of his arm when the branch is nearly sawn through ; 

 it is often even prudent to cease sawing altogether then, and 

 finish the amputation with the pruning-knife, holding with 

 the other hand the part which is being cut off. Cutlers 

 manufacture saws with a single or a double row of teeth, and 

 with the back of the blade (A) thinner than the toothed part 

 (B). Grafters use excellent saws made of scythe blades, with 

 one row of teeth, and set in the handle at an angle. The saw 

 should never be used on a living tree without dressing and 

 smoothing its marks with the pruning-knife, otherwise the 

 furrows left by the saw will retain moisture on the surface of 

 the wound and retard its healing. 



The Pruning -Knife. 

 The pruning-knife consists of a handle of wood or horn. 



French Pruning-Knife {Serpette)* 



either straight or slightly curved, and a blade curved at the 

 end. The point of the blade is more or less prominent. The 

 workman becomes so accustomed to a particular shape that he 

 often prefers an old, almost worn-out, knife to a new one of 

 more even form. The pruning-knife is necessary for dressing 

 the wounds caused by the saw or the secateur, for trimming 

 bruised or torn tissues, and for smoothing down a cut, so that 

 it may present a level surface, without inequalities, bruises, or 

 splinters. In order to smooth properly, the hand which holds 

 the handle of the tool should have the thumb supported 



