Fruits for Long Island 
A IE/W HINTS 
PLANTING.— Cut off broken roots and cut the ends of large roots smooth. Dig a wide hole, deep 
enough to let the tree stand the same depth as in the nursery. Spread the roots out and pack the soil 
firmly around them. 
PRUNING— Blackberries and Blackcaps. Cut back to near the ground when planted. Cut off the 
tops of the young shoots in summer when 2 feet high. This will make them branch, produce more 
fruit, and stand up better. Do not neglect this pruning until the canes are 6 feet high. Allow but 
4 to 6 canes per hill. Remove the old canes after fruiting, and the following spring shorten-in the 
side branches. In a small garden tie to a wire, trellis or stakes. 
Red Raspberries. Prune same as above excepting the summer pruning. 
Currants and Gooseberries need but little pruning ; merely remove the branches over two or three 
years old. 
Apple, Pear, Cherry, Peach, Plum and Quince. When planting, prune to reduce the top by one-half or 
three-quarters. Cut just above a strong bud. Do not leave opposite branches, that form crotches to 
be easily broken. 
Later Pruning. Thin out the inside of the tree by removing weak branches, water sprouts or 
suckers, and branches that cross and rub. Some cut back one-half of each year's growth of the 
peach, on rich soil. If the flower-buds are partly winter-killed, omit this cutting back, as it reduces 
the flowers and fruit. 
Cut all branches close, even if the wound is larger, and paint all wounds over two inches in diam- 
eter with coal tar or thick paint. Old decayed cavities should be cleaned out to sound wood, painted 
and filled with cement. Split crotches should be bolted together at or above the break. We furnish 
experts for this work. 
Grapes. Cut grape-vines back to two buds when planting. Train the two shoots from these buds 
to a trellis or building, and the shoots from them will bear the following year. The next winter 
these shoots may be cut back to spurs of one or two buds, or the whole arm cut off to the trunk of 
the vine, and the new canes tied to the wire as before. During the summer, bearing shoots may be 
allowed to hang down, or tied to upper wires. 
Time to Prune. Most severe pruning should be done between October and April, when the plant 
is dormant. 
78 
