6 STATE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE 
difficulty in working around the trees in this orchard, whereas the 
branches on high headed trees commonly droop after they have 
borne a full crop of fruit and so interfere with all orchard manage¬ 
ment. 
The following extract is taken from Prof. Bailey’s Pruning 
Book: 
“The relative merits of high or low heads for fruit trees are always 
in dispute. This controversy is partly the result of confusion of ideas, 
and partly of differing mental ideals and of varying climates. Two fac¬ 
tors are chiefly concerned in these disputes—the question of ease of culti¬ 
vation, and the question of injury to the trunk by sun-scald. It is the 
commonest notion that short trunks necessarily make low heads, and yet 
any one who can see a tree should know better. The number of trunks 
which a tree has does not determine the direction of the leaf-bearing limbs. 
This tree (referring to illustration) can be worked around as easily as it 
could be if it only had one long trunk. In fact, branches which start high 
from a trunk are very apt to become horizontal and to droop. There must be 
a certain number of scaffold limbs to form the head. If these limbs 
are taken out comparatively low, they may be trained in an upright direc¬ 
tion and hold their weight and position. If they are started out very high 
they will not take such an upright direction, because the tree will not 
grow beyond its normal stature. High trained trees are often practically 
lowest headed.” 
Form of Tree. —The business of orcharding is not old 
enough to have developed systems of pruning which may be said 
to be characteristic of the state. The conditions existing in the 
fruit districts have been so favorable for the production of fine fruit 
that the growers have not felt the need of the finest development 
of the art. We have grown fine fruit whether we would or no. 
But now that competition is more severe and insects and diseases 
are multiplying more attention must be given to methods and sys¬ 
tems of culture. 
In pruning trees one of two ideals must be adopted, which are 
known as the pyramidal and vase forms. The former preserves the 
leader, which is made to form a central shaft to the tree. This 
style has the advantage of more bearing surface, as the leader grows 
and in time forms a “two-storied” tree. The objections to tall trees 
are apparent and need not be discussed here. The leader is done 
away with in the vase form and a few limbs, usually not more than 
five, are selected to form the top. A more or less open centered 
tree is thus formed, but by skillful pruning this space is occupied 
by branches of bearing wood. Very tall trees are thus avoided, but 
what is more important, such trees are not so apt to be destroyed by 
blight, as recently pointed out by Mr. Waite. Death to trees re¬ 
sult when the blight germs gain entrance to the trunks and larger 
limbs. Such attacks are usually brought about by the presence of 
small limbs, water spouts or fruit spurs, which become diseased and 
which the germs follow till the main trunk or branch is reached. 
Should the leader of a pyramidal tree be attacked seriously enough 
to necessitate its removal the tree would be ruined, but by having 
