CHAPTER III. 



PRUNING AND TRAINING. 



Pruning and Training are two important 

 operations in horticulture, and so closely con- 

 nected together, that we shall, to prevent repe- 

 tition, consider them under one head. The 

 principles upon which both are founded vary- 

 according to the object in view. The latter de- 

 pends more or less on these facts — namely, that 

 as the sap in all trees has a natural tendency to 

 flow in an upward direction, it follows that the 

 buds at the highest points above the roots will 

 be the strongest, and more disposed to produce 

 leaves and shoots ; and therefore, when the for- 

 mation of wood is desired, the nearer to the per- 

 pendicular a tree is trained the better; whereas 

 if the formation of blossom-buds be the object 

 in view, the veiy opposite direction should be 

 given them. In fact, training is the power 

 which governs the flow of the sap in trees and 

 plants. Hence our best nurserymen train their 

 weakly-growing young plants nearly in a verti- 

 cal direction, while they place the strong-grow- 

 ing kinds nearly horizontally, and even in some 

 cases nearly pendulous. During the growing 

 season they have an eye to the progress each is 

 making, and elevate or depress the shoot accord- 

 ing to circumstances. The same rule should be 

 attended to by gardeners, even with trees in a 

 bearing state. Pruning, on the other hand, con- 

 sists in regulating the number and bulk of the 

 various parts of a plant by the reduction of its 

 branches, leaves, buds, bark, or roots, so as to 

 produce different effects on the parts which re- 

 main. The principles upon which pruning is 

 mainly founded are thus clearly given in the 

 "Suburban Horticulturist:" "The nutriment 

 of plants is absorbed from the soil by their roots, 

 and formed into leaves, branches, flowers, and 

 fruit by their buds ; by operating on the buds 

 and roots, therefore, we can regulate what is 

 produced by them. If the stem and branches 

 of a plant contain a hundred buds, by removing 

 half of these the shoots or fruit produced by the 

 remainder will be supplied with double their 

 former supply of nourishment ; and if all the 

 buds be removed but one, the whole of the 

 sap sent up by the roots will be modified by 

 that single bud, provided care be taken to re- 

 move other buds as they appear. On the other 

 hand, when the whole of the buds on a tree are 

 so abundantly supplied with sap from the roots 

 as to produce chiefly leaves and shoots without 

 VOL. II. 



blossoms, then, by cutting off a portion of the 

 roots, the supply of sap is lessened, a moderate 

 degree of vigour is produced, and instead of 

 barren shoots blossom-buds appear. By these 

 means the growth of plants is controlled by 

 pruning. Pruning has not the power to increase 

 the vigour of an entire tree, because it cannot 

 increase the quantity of food taken up by the 

 roots, but it can diminish the vigour of the 

 entire tree by cutting off part of the roots, or it 

 can increase the vigour of particular parts of 

 the tree by amputating the branches, or taking 

 off the buds at other parts. Pruning can pre- 

 vent trees from producing flowers, and hence 

 increase their general vigour and longevity. It 

 can modify the general form of trees, as well as 

 increase particular parts of them, and it can add 

 to the vigour of stunted or diseased trees, by 

 concentrating their sap, or directing it to a few 

 buds instead of a great many. One of the most 

 useful effects of pruning is to cause the develop- 

 ment of dormant or adventitious buds, which is 

 effected by amputating the shoot, branch, or 

 stem close above any point where visible buds 

 are usually situated, though they may now be 

 wanting there." 



Volumes have been written on the practice of 

 training and pruning fruit trees, while really 

 little that is useful is to be found relative to the 

 theory of it. Among the former are the writings 

 of Errington, Seymour, George Lindley, Hill, 

 Knight, Forsyth, Fleming, Spencer, Beaton, 

 Harrison, Hayward, &c. ; and the Continental 

 writers have been equally numerous, amongst the 

 most celebrated of whom may be numbered Pro- 

 fessor Thouin, Quinteney, Arand dAndilly, &c. 

 &c, all of whose works may be consulted with 

 great advantage; while, on the latter subject, 

 oY Albert, Cours Theorigue et Pratique de la taille 

 des Arbres Fruitiers, edit. 6, should be studied: 

 a translation of this work would be valuable to 

 the English reader. Of late years, however, the 

 theory of pruning and training has been occupy- 

 ing the attention of some of our most eminent 

 practical horticulturists. 



The principal objects of pruning are the modi- 

 fication of trees to be trained to walls or espaliers, 

 the promoting the formation of blossom-buds, 

 the promoting growth and bulk, the curing dis- 

 ease, tbe enlargement of the fruit, renewal of 

 the head, proportioning the head to the roots, 



