Roses 
Flowering Shrubs 
FRUIT Trees 
3 
General Cultural Directions for Trees and Shrubs 
AriAx xOi'i X'Ox\. x-'XjxXx^ X xisvj. xne 
broken or mutilated portion of the roots 
must be cut off so as to leave the ends 
smooth and sound, and the ends of all 
other roots should be pi uned — for from 
these ends the new hbrous roots usually 
start. Huddling the roots of trees and 
plants in liquia mud before planting is 
very beneficial. 
Caution should be taken to see that no 
fertilizer comes m direct contact with the 
roots and under no circumstances should it 
be placed under the plant at the time of 
planting. 
PLANTING. The hole for planting must 
be large enough to receive the roots freely, 
without ciamping or bending them from 
their natural position — the larger the hole 
the better. Plant the tree the same depth 
as it stood in the nursery I'ow, using plenty 
of good top-soil well worked about the 
roots by hand so that no air pockets are 
left. Set the tree in firmly as a post. When 
the hole is about one-half or two-thirds 
full of dirt, pour in a bucket of water and 
allow it to seep away, after which the hole 
may be hlled with dirt. 
STAKING. If the newly planted trees 
are in an exposed situation where hard 
winds prevail they should be supported by 
stakes to prevent winds from whipping and 
swaying them. Staking is done best by 
driving two strong stakes firmly into the 
ground, one on either side of the tree and 
about a foot from it. The tree is then tied 
to these stakes by strips of cloth, a band 
of straw or other soft material which will 
not chafe. The tree should remain staked 
until its roots have obtained a firm hold 
in the soil. Staking in this manner also 
offers some protection against mechanical 
injury. In addition to staking it is highly 
advisable to wrap the trunks of newly set 
trees with heavy brown paper, cornstalks 
or thin wood veneer to protect against rab¬ 
bits and mice, or sunscald. 
PRUNING. The pruning of trees should 
begin when they are planted. The trans¬ 
planting of a tree marks a very critical 
point in its life history and to neglect 
careful and proper methods of planting 
and pruning at this time is to invite dis¬ 
aster or, at least, unsatisfactory results. 
When trees are dug in the nursery row 
many of the feeding roots are left in the 
ground: hence it is necessary to prune the 
top of the trees, when transplanting, in an 
effort to balance for loss of roots. 
APPLE AND PEAR TREES. When you 
have planted these as previously directed, 
select from three to five of the branches 
to form the permanent head of the tree. 
'xiiese uxanciies snuuid ue wen uisci.iijui.ea 
around the trunk, and at some distance 
apart up and down, if two branches come 
out exactly opposite each other, thus form¬ 
ing a crotch, a split may occur at this 
weak point in later life when the tree is 
full of fruit. Shorten these selected branch¬ 
es back to about five buds, cutting the 
branches just above a bud that points out¬ 
ward. Remove all the other branches close 
to the trunk, leaving no stub longer than 
one-eighth to one-quarter of an inch. Also 
shorten back two-thirds (or better still, 
cut out entirely) the central leader of the 
tree, if one exists, otherwise, the tree may 
assume a too upright growth for best re¬ 
sults in later life. Pruning, for the next 
two or three years, should be directed 
toward the forming of an ideal framework 
for the bearing of fruit. Growth from each 
of the three or five original branches 
should be pruned in such a manner that 
the tree will become symmetrical and well 
balanced, with a low wide-headed top. 
PEACH AND APRICOT. Plant as pre¬ 
viously directed. As soon as planted, cut 
the top out of the tree at any point from 
18 inches to three feet from the ground 
and at the same time cut back all side 
branches to within two or three inches 
from the main trunk. Eliminate altogether 
the branches that will not be required to 
form the permanent framework of the tree. 
Some planters may consider these recom¬ 
mendations radical and ill advised, but ev¬ 
ery planter should make them his invari¬ 
able practice and not deviate from them. 
In pruning these trees, it should be the 
effort of the planter to get the main limbs 
as close to the ground as possible, encour¬ 
aging a low, wide head. Such pruning will 
promote more vigorous and rapid growth 
and will insure success with these trees, 
when to act otherwise may mean failure. 
CHERRY TREES. Plant as previously 
directed. The cherry does not require the 
.same vigorous pruning as is recommended 
for some other trees. Broken or injured 
limbs should be removed close to the trunk 
so that the wounds will grow over proper¬ 
ly. Five to six good limbs, well distributed 
around the trunk, will be sufficient to 
form a well balanced top. The limbs which 
are left after pruning should not be cut 
back as recommended for certain other 
classes of trees. 
PLUM TREES. Plant as previously di¬ 
rected. After planting, cut out the main 
or central leader of the tree at a distance 
of about three feet from the ground. Cut 
back all remaining branches to about 2 or 
3 inch stubs. After the tree has grown for 
a year, remove all but four or five branch- 
(Continued on Page 31) 
