9 
PRUNING FRUIT TREES 
be some distance apart, one at the end and one farther back, and so 
placed that the development of crotches will be impossible. They 
are now cut back from a half to two-thirds of their growth and the 
laterals are shortened to one or two buds so that they may later de¬ 
velop fruit spurs and also shade the branches with their cluster of 
leaves. If too many have formed, some of them should of course be 
removed. On the other hand if we are to develop Mr. Waites’ idea 
of making the tree more resistant to blight these laterals should all 
be removed and so carry the fruit bearing wood farther away from 
the trunk and main branches. 
Some growers object to heading in trees at all, for the reason 
that all of the buds are likely to develop into branches and so the 
formation of fruit spurs is retarded and the surplus branches must 
be cut out. But it is highly desirable that all of the buds should 
develop and then by heading them back to spurs, as just mentioned, 
the formation of fruit spurs is largely under control of the pruner’ 
Any tendency toward one-sidedness may to some extent be 
corrected and open spaces filled in by selecting branches that are al¬ 
ready growing in the general direction of the vacancy. Then by 
cutting to a bud, which is on the side toward the opening, such 
faults may gradually be overcome. 
Third Year:— The frame work of the tree should now be 
well formed so that it will require less attention from this time on. 
Surplus branches and those that rub or are inclined to form crotches 
should be removed. Very vigorous growths should also be 
headed in. 
Thus far out discussion has been confined to the shaping of 
open.or vase formed trees. If a leader is desired, the treatment is 
practically the same, except that the upper shoot is allowed to grow 
with little heading in. Branches are allowed to develop on this 
leader at proper intervals, using the same care as to location, prun¬ 
ing and development as in the former case. 
A discussion of some photographs of actual experience in prun¬ 
ing young trees will help to review and fix the points of the differ¬ 
ent stages of pruning in mind. These were second grade trees and 
were evidently three years old when planted. The lower laterals 
had all been pruned away in the nursery so that the tops were much 
too high for Colorado. There was also difficulty in getting branches 
to form at suitable places from which to make the selections for the 
head. However, the results are much better than as though the 
tops had been left as received from the nursery as is so often done. 
The trees in figures i, 2 and 3 were all headed back to about 
24 inches in April, 1904. This left them mere stubs. Had ther? 
been any laterals below this point they would have been pruned 
back to single buds so that clusters of leaves might have formed 
and thus provided some shade for the trunks. These pictures show 
