Tie  RURAL  NEW-YORJCER 
137 
Pruning,  to  Build  the  Apple  Tree 
HE  EIGHT  TOOLS.— The  orchard  is  des¬ 
tined  to  failure  if  pruning,  one  of  the  most, 
important  of  the  agricultural  arts,  is  neg¬ 
lected.  The  fundamental  principles  of 
pruning  have  developed  slowly  as  the  sci¬ 
ence  of  fruit  growing  has  advanced.  It  is 
Thrdly  necessary  to  argue  the  need  for  pruning  in 
these  days  of  practical  fruit  growing,  hut  it  is  quite 
necessary  to  know  just  how  to  do  the  work,  in  order 
not  only  to  shape  up  the  tree,  but  to  encourage  the 
development  of  fruit  buds.  Proper  pruning  tools  are 
most  essential.  A  good  saw  is  about  24  in.  long  and 
about  4  in.  wide  at  the  butt,  with  5%  teeth  to  the 
inch.  Do  not  invest  in  the  two-edged  saw,  for  it  is 
an  abomination  in  the  sight  of  a  man  who  truly 
loves  his  trees,  for,  while  you  are  cutting  off  one 
limb,  you  are  bruising  the  limb  close  by.  Young 
trees  up  to  the  age  of  six  years  may  be  pruned  with 
shears.  Buy  a  good  pair  of  shears  at  the  start,  and 
keep  them  sharp  and  clean,  and  keep  them  for  prun¬ 
ing  only.  A  hooked-blade  pruning  knife  with  a 
strong  handle  that  fits  into  the  hand  is  also  most 
desirable. 
EARLY  PRUNING. — Pruning  begins  when  the 
young  tree  is  shifted  from  the  nursery.  At  the  time 
it  is  lifted,  much  of  the  root  system  is  cut  away,  and 
when  the  tree  is  planted  in  the  orchard  the  top  is 
cut  back  in  order  to  have  a  balance  between  the  top 
and  roots.  In  planting  a  one-year-old  whip  (Fig.  56, 
left),  cut  back  to  from  18  or  20  in.  from  the  surface 
soil  if  a  low-headed  tree  is  desired.  If  a  liigh-lieaded 
tree  is  desired,  the  branches  are  often  started  from 
.10  to  36  in.  from  the  ground. 
LEADER  LIMBS. — From  this  whip  will  come  the 
scaffold  limbs  that  will  form  the  head  or  body  of  the 
tree.  Select  from  four  to  five  alternate  buds  to  form 
the  leader  limbs.  This  will  he  the  first  year’s  growth 
in  the  orchard.  The  second  year,  prune  back  these 
leaders  a  little,  and  particularly  the  upper  branches. 
(Fig.  56,  right.)  Cut  the  branches  off  so  that  the 
terminal  bud  will  be  in  a  position  to  lead  outward. 
If  a  two-year-old  tree  is  planted  and  the  head 
formed  in  the  nursery,  select  four  or  five  limbs  as 
leaders  and  cut  them  back  to  from  four  or  five  buds 
from  the  main  stem  or  trunk.  Each  succeeding  year 
the  orchardist  should  prune  the  top  leaders  back  a 
few  inches  and  cause  the  branches  to  spread  out  in 
order  to  form  a  symmetrically  shaped  head,  cover¬ 
ing  as  wide  an  area  as  possible,  because  the  greater 
the  leaf  surface  the  better  chance  there  is  of  a  large 
crop.  No  two  trees  are  pruned  alike,  hut  the  under- 
Bing  principles  of  pruning  are  practically  the  same. 
SUNSHINE  AND  AIR. — It  may  he  noticed  that 
the  buds  at  the  tips  of  the  branches  are  larger  and 
stronger  than  those  near  the  crotch,  because  they 
come  in  contact  with  more  sunlight.  There  is  then  a 
struggle  for  existence  between  the  buds  and  twigs, 
and  man  cannot  depend  on  this,  nature’s  method  of 
pruning,  hut  must  open  the  head  a  little  to  admit 
sunshine  and  air.  This  does  not  mean  that  the  cen¬ 
ter  is  gutted  out  and  exposed,  hut  it.  does  mean  that 
all  limbs  are  kept  from  crossing  or  matting.  Prun¬ 
ing  does  not  devitalize  the  tree  nor  cause  a  loss  of 
fruit.  Pruning,  on  the  other  hand,  increases  energy, 
especially  in  the  young  tree,  directs  strength  and 
vitality  into  the  weaker  limbs,  and  induces  an  even 
distribution  of  strong  fruit  spurs. 
FAVORABLE  PRUNING. — The  apple  tree  may  he 
pruned  any  time  from  November  to  April,  hut  it  has 
been  found  that  limbs  pruned  just  before  the  buds 
start  in  the  Spring  heal  over  faster  than  wounds 
made  in  the  Fall  or  Winter.  Often  young  trees  are 
neglected  for  five  or  six  years,  and  frequently  strong 
shoots  appear  from  the  base  of  the  tree.  This  growth 
is  usually  from  the  wild  stock  on  which  the  domestic 
variety  has  been  budded  or  grafted,  and  outgrows 
the  young  tree  (Fig.  54).  In  pruning  such  a  tree, 
cut  off  the  sucker  and  then  shape  up  the  head,  as 
shown  in  Fig.  55.  A  little  pruning  each  year  will 
mean  more  and  better  fruit.  Tt  will  facilitate  spray¬ 
ing  and  harvesting.  With  a  well-pruned,  healthy 
tree,  there  is  less  chance  for  disease  or  insects  to  do 
damage.  The  tree  will  live  longer  and  produce  more 
uniformly,  and  if  the  crotches  are  well  formed  there 
is  seldom  any  breakage.  A  well-pruned  orchard 
means  that  somebody  is  interested  in  producing  good 
fruit,  which  means  in  turn  a  profit  to  the  grower  and 
a  blessing  to  the  consumer.  HUGH  findlay. 
A  Combination  Duster  and  Sprayer 
My  old  spray  outfit  has  played  out.  With  16  acres  of 
fruit,  I  naturally  need  a  sprayer.  It  also  comes  in  very 
handy  in  whitewashing  and  disinfecting  the  barns  and 
poultry-houses.  I  also  do  some  outside  spraying,  not  for 
the  money  in  it  so  much  as  to  help  control  insects  and 
diseases  in  the  neighboring  orchards,  which  helps  to  con¬ 
trol  the  same  troubles  in  my  own.  On  the  other  hand. 
1  am  convinced  that  dusting  will  very  soon  be  the  stand¬ 
ard  control,  instead  of  the  liquid  spray,  for  fruit.  With 
a  new  henhouse,  so  that  by  next  Fall  I  can  accommodate 
about  800  hens  and  pullets,  l  believe  it  will  pay  me  to 
install  an  electric  lighting  outfit,  not  to  mention  the 
added  comfort  of  such  lights  in  the  house  and  barns. 
Now  comes  the  question.  Is  I  here  an.\  manufacturer 
who  makes  a  combined  outfit,  where  the  same  engine 
can  be  used  to  run  a  spray  pump,  a  duster,  and  a 
dynamo?  1  do  not  see  why  I  should  have  to  buy  three 
engines.  I  can  get  an  engine  separate,  a  duster  sepa¬ 
rate,  and  I  suppose  a  dynamo  separate,  but  cannot  find 
a  good  sprayer  as  yet  without  an  engine.  1  already 
have  a  flivver,  a  tractor,  and  a  tvvo-li.p.  engine,  but  I 
grant  that  this  small  engine  is  too  small  for  the  good 
work  for  what  I  need.  pf  \yi  wakdi.f 
New  York. 
MANY  of  us  face  this  same  problem,  in  our  own 
case  we  have  a  car  and  a  truck,  a  duster  and 
a  sprayer,  each  with  a  separate  engine.  We  have 
tried  taking  the  engine  off  the  sprayer  for  other 
work,  hut  it  never  seemed  to  pay.  We  do  not  believe 
it  is  a  wise  thing  to  do.  It  is  very  evident  that  dust¬ 
ing  is  to  grow  in  popularity.  It.  means  much  faster 
work,  and  with  most  insects  and  diseases  is  just  as 
effective  as  the  liquid  spray.  At  the  same  time,  we 
feel  that  a  liquid  sprayer  is  needed.  We  cannot  tight 
the  scale  effectively  without  it.  and,  as  Mi-.  Wardle 
says,  it  is  very  useful  for  whitewashing  or  spraying 
the  outside  of  houses.  \\  hat  we  need  is  a  combina¬ 
tion  duster  and  sprayer,  with  one  fixed  engine,  and 
a  dusting  machine  which  can  lx*  mounted  on  the  top 
of  the  sprayer  tank  when  needed.  Both  duster  and 
spray  pump  should  he  arranged  so  that  they  can  he 
connected  with  the  engine.  Such  a  combination  ma¬ 
chine  is  tin?  great  present  need  in  fruit  growing. 
Last  year  we  gave  a  picture  of  such  a  machine,  hut 
we  are  not  sure  that  it  has  ever  been  developed. 
Usually  some  of  our  readers  are  ahead  of  the  manu¬ 
facturers  in  adopting  things  of  this  sort.  Quite 
likely  someone  has  worked  out  the  plan.  If  that  is 
so  we  would  like  to  hear  about  it. 
Several  cases  where  valuable  watches  or  jewelry 
have  been  stolen  are  reported  to  us.  The  owners  kept 
these  valuables  concealed  at  home,  and  spoke  of  the  hid¬ 
ing  places  lo  friends.  It  is  a  mistake  to  keep  money  or 
valuables  tucked  away.  Far  better  put  them  in  a  bank. 
4  doling,  A eglecied  Tree.  Note  the  Height  of  the  Sucker  Growing  from  the  Tree, 
as  Compared  with  the  Tree  Itself.  Fig.  51/. 
The  Same  Tree,  with  the  Sucker  Cut  Out,  and  hut  a  Few  of  the  Interlacing  Branches 
Removed.  Fig.  no. 
