PRINCIPLES OF PRUNING 



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sons for pruning trees, the removal of dead, dying 

 or broken branches, the reduction of the annual 

 growth for the purpose of correcting the habit of 

 the plant, the removal of branches m order to pre- 

 vent the breaking or disfigurement of the tree in 

 later years, the removal of branches and f ruit spurs 

 for protection against infectious diseases, and the 

 reduction of the annual growth in order to reduce 

 the crop in proportion to the capacity of the tree." 

 (U. S. Bull. 181.) 



The cardinal object of pruning fig trees is to en- 

 courage as great a growth of fruit bearing wood as 

 is possible up to the middle of July, each season. 

 Fruit set upon such wood has time to ripen before 

 frost. The usual habit is to set fruit not upon 

 year old spurs, as the peach and plum set 

 fruit, but upon new wood like most grapevines. 

 This object can best be obtained with the Magnolia 

 fig by severely pruning the top each winter. If 

 pruning is done for the greatest benefit to the tree 

 it should begin about the twentieth of February, 

 and be completed by the fourth of March. If pri- 

 marily to obtain good cuttings, it should be in the 

 fall, to give time for the " callous" of latteral fiber 

 at the butt of each. Great deterioration of trees 

 usually results from early pruning, wounds being 

 seldom protected, the wood dries very rapidly from 

 each cut, often losing life twelve to eighteen inches 

 down the branches. Sometimes whole orchards 

 have been pronounced fatally frosted by mistaking 



