174 
JOURNAL  OR  HORTICULTURE  AN. 3  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
March  4,  1897. 
experienced  hands.  The  bark  and  younger  wood  are  crushed  or 
bruised  in  a  manner  that  greatly  delays,  if  it  does  not  effectually 
prevent  the  healing  process,  without  which  pruning  is  the  source 
of  many  tree  diseases  or  troubles.  I  therefore  rely  upon  the  knives 
for  all  hardwood  pruning,  and  two  essential  points  with  regard 
to  them  is  that  a  really  good  steel  instrument  be  chosen  to  start 
with,  and  then  that  this  be  kept  properly  sharpened.  It  is  a 
common  mistake  to  put  too  short  an  edge  on  pruning  knives  when 
sharpening  them,  with  the  result  that  it  is  quickly  worn  off,  very 
frequent  sharpening  being  needed,  or  damage  is  soon  done.  The 
knife  blade  is  held  at  too  great  an  angle  with  the  stone  ;  it  should 
be  nearly  level  with  its  surface,  as  a  longer,  smoother  edge  is  thus 
obtained,  and  the  knife  wears  better  and  more  evenly.  An  example 
of  what  is  meant  is  afforded  by  scythe  sharpening,  though  this 
is  an  operation  that  few  young  gardeners  have  to  perform  now¬ 
adays,  but  at  one  time  no  man  had  completed  his  initiatory  ex¬ 
perience  until  he  could  sharpen  and  use  a  scythe  in  a  masterly 
fashion.  A  short  edge  on  the  blade  is  useless,  and  every  good 
workman  speedily  learned  the  necessity  of  holding  the  stone  at  a 
very  slight  angle  to  the  blade,  so  as  to  secure  ai  long  an  edge 
as  possible. 
A  good  and  sharp  knife  being  therefore  indispensable  in 
pruning,  the  next  matter  is  to  use  it  in  such  a  manner  that  a 
short  clean  cut  may  be  produced,  and  not  a  long  jagged  wound.  I 
have  found  it  needful  to  repeatedly  impress  upon  the  minds  of 
learners  that  the  shorter  and  cleaner  the  cut  the  quicker  and  more 
certain  is  the  healing,  but  there  seems  to  be  a  natural  tendency  to 
make  a  long  upward  cut,  and  finish  off  with  a  ragged  piece  of  wood 
or  bark  at  the  top.  The  due  control  of  the  knife  in  the  hand  is  a 
lesson  that  must  be  learned  by  observation  and  experience  ;  but 
with  all  smaller  wood  if  the  thumb  of  the  right  hand  is  placed 
immediately  below  the  point  where  the  shoot  is  to  be  severed,  the 
knife  can  be  drawn  upwards  without  damage  to  the  tree  or  the 
operator.  Even  in  the  case  of  larger  branches  it  is  preferable, 
wherever  it  is  possible,  to  cut  towards  oneself  rather  than  away,  as 
there  is  less  danger  of  the  knife  'slipping  into  other  branches,  a 
prolific  source  of  injury  in  the  hands  of  the  inexperienced  and 
careless. 
Where  a  branch  or  shoot  is  to  be  removed,  it  should  be  cut  just 
above  and  towards  a  bud,  but  if  the  cut  is  started  low  too  much 
wood  is  removed  from  the  back  of  the  bud,  with  the  result  that  it 
often  fails  to  start  into  growth,  or  does  so  in  a  very  weakly  manner, 
a  lower  bud  probably  taking  the  lead,  which  may  be  the  means  of 
throwing  the  tree  out  of  shape.  On  the  other  hand,  when  the  cut 
is  made  above  the  bud,  and  much  wood  is  left,  thfs  frequently  dies 
and  leaves  a  “snag”  that  has  to  be  ultimately  cut  away,  and 
provides  in  the  meantime  a  nidus  for  the  eggs  of  insects.  What 
is  required  is  a  short  sloping  cut  from  behind  the  bud  forwards, 
leaving  just  sufficient  wood  to  protect  the  bud  from  injury,  an 
eighth  of  an  inch  being  sufficient,  and  if  closer  cutting  is  attempted 
it  is  not  uncommon  to  see  the  top  of  the  bud  sliced  off. 
In  starting  to  prune  a  bush,  pyramid,,  or  standard  fruit  tree, 
whether  young  or  old,  it  is  most  convenient  to  first  determine  what 
growth  is  useless  or  antagonistic  to  the  future  well-being  of  the 
tree.  Branches  that  cross  each  other  or  crowded  in  the  centre  of 
the  tree,  and  not  needed  for  the  due  furnishing  or  shape,  should  be 
cut  clean  out  close  to  the  main  branch  or  stem,  not  leaving  a  pro¬ 
jecting  piece  or  “  snag  ”  that  may  lead  to  a  cankerous  wound 
affecting  the  whole  tree.  The  next  point  is  to  consider  the  shape 
of  the  tree,  and  for  either  pyramid  or  standard  trees  of  any  of  our 
hardy  fruits  the  determination  of  the  “leader”  is  an  important 
but  not  always  an  easy  matter.  With  young  trees  several  shoots 
often  start  from  near  the  apex  of  the  tree,  nnd  sometimas  a  lower 
branch  is  stronger  and  better  placed  for  the  leader  than  the  upper 
and  natural  one.  Occasionally  it  may  in  such  cases  be  advisable  to 
sacrifice  the  original  branch,  but  it  is  a  matter  that  must  be  regulated 
by  the  judgment  of  the  pruner.  The  position  of  the  bud  to  which 
the  main  shoot  is  shortened  must  be  carefully  selected,  for  this 
determines  to  a  great  extent  the  direction  taken  by  the  following 
season’s  growth.  If  it  is  growing  out  the  upright  a  bud  must 
be  chosen  on  the  opposite  side  from  that  which  was  left  in  the 
preceding  season  ;  in  fact  it  is  well  to  make  it  a  rule  to  cut  to 
opposite  buds  each  year.  In  all  strong  growing  varieties  this  is 
eisential  to  keep  the  stem  central,  as  the  growths  will  often  start 
at  a  considerable  angle  with  what  may  be  termed  the  axis  of  the 
tree. 
The  position  of  the  buds  must  also  be  considered  in  dealing 
with  all  the  branches,  as  the  shape  of  the  tree  is  influenced  most 
beneficially  by  a  due  attention  to  this,  though  it  is  a  matter  that  is 
too  frequently  overlooked,  and  a  branch  is  shortened  without  the 
slightest  regard  to  the  probable  direction  the  bud  left  will  take* 
To  keep  a  tree  of  any  kind  open  in  the  centre  and  well  propor¬ 
tioned,  outer  buds  should  be  always  selected,  those  in  a  line  with 
the  direction  of  development  for  the  main  branches  being  selected. 
For  others  buds  should  be  chosen  on  the  side  where  there  is  the 
most  space  to  be  filled,  and  the  only  case  where  an  upper  or  inside 
bud  may  be  desirable  is  where  a  lower  branch  has  extended  beyond 
the  radius  of  the  tree  and  is  too  near  the  ground. 
As  to  the  length  of  wood  to  be  cut  away  from  any  particular 
shoot  or  branch  considerable  judgment  is  required,  but  as  a  general 
direction  it  may  be  taken  that  the  stronger  branches  need  the  least 
shortening,  and  the  weaker  branches  the  most,  keeping  in  view  the 
shape  of  the  tree.  Then  as  regards  young  Apple  and  Pear  trees, 
to  which  these  remarks  chiefly  refer,  it  will  be  found  that  for  the 
first  year  or  two  from  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  length  of  the 
shoots  will  have  to  be  removed,  or  even  in  some  cases  three-fourths 
may  be  cut  away  with  advantage,  though  it  seems  like  a  sacrifice. 
These  simplicities  will  be  found  in  experience  to  include  the 
principal  part  of  the  art  of  pruning,  and  the  essential  qualities 
required  for  its  successful  prosecution — i.e  ,  close  observation  and 
careful  work  are  those  which  a  gardener  needs  in  every  department 
of  his  calling. — Practitioner. 
CUCUMBER  AND  TOMATO  TROUBLES. 
(Continued  from  page  130.) 
More  confusion  exists  as  to  the  causes  of  so  many  failures  with 
Tomatoes  than  is  the  case  with  Cucumbers.  Experts  have  had  a 
fine  innings.  How  they  have  revelled  in  their  discoveries,  and 
wallowed  in  their  scientific  phrases  !  What  long  chapters  they 
have  written  in  describing  the  symptoms  and  working  out  the 
progress  of  the  diseases  and  insects  they  have  found  with  the  aid 
of  a  powerful  microscope  !  They  “  hit  it  off  ”  so  minutely  that 
the  worried  growers  of  the  plants  that  have  been  submitted  to 
examination  think  the  remedy  is  at  hand,  and  their  worries  are 
over.  No  such  luck. 
What  does  it  all  amount  to  ?  Pages  of  descriptive  matter,  and 
only  a  few  lines  of  probabilities  in  the  way  of  remedial  measures.  . 
It  is  doubtless  satisfactory  to  know  that  the  “  black  stripe  ”  haa  , 
been  scientifically  dubbed  Macroaporium  tomati,  also  that  the 
“  sleeping  disease  ”  is  known  aa  Fusarium  Lycopersici,  and  has  its 
Diplocadinm  stage.  But  this  is  not  enough  ;  various  other 
technical  phrases,  including  conidia,  saphophytes,  hyphae,  chlamy- 
dospores,  zooglasa,  and  the  like  occur  too  frequently.  No  doubt 
they  are  scientifically  correct,  and  if  they  were  not  employed  we 
“  laymen  ”  would  not  be  sufficiently  impressed  with  the  ability  of 
the  writers.  As  it  happens,  most  gardeners  are  plain  men,  and  , 
appreciate  plain  words.  Above  all  things,  we  like  to  have  some-, 
thing  tangible,  solid,  and  useful — not  so  much  and  so  many'; 
learned  and  laboured  intricacies,  which  aggravate  our  already 
disturbed  equilibrium. 
I  propose  to  give  my  own  views  and  experiences  on  the  subject 
of  Ton  ato  troubles  in  a  plain  way.  Private  gardeners  as  a  rule 
have  lit  :le  or  no  conception  of  the  serious  consequences  attached 
to  a  bad  attack  of  the  drooping  disease.  They  scarcely  know  wr>at 
it  means.  If  one-third  of  their  plants  collapse  they  need  not  ^ 
worry  ;  but,  as  it  happens,  their  losses  are  infinitesimal,  for  reasons 
which  will  presently  transpire.  The  case  is  very  different  with 
men  who  depend  principally  upon  their  Tomato  crops  to  provide 
the  wherewithal  to  support  them  and  their  household.  When 
strong  fruiting  plants  by  the  score  or  hundred  droop  suddenly 
never  to  recover,  a  scare  naturally  set3  in,  and  if  no  remedy  is  found 
serious  loss  is  entailed.  It  is  the  same  with  the  “  black  stripe,” 
■rs  ^0  fcj  •+“< 
