PRUNING APPLE TREES.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18416, 24 June 1925, Page 6

PRUNING APPLE TREES.

TO TH3 EDITOR .Oi' "THE PBBSS." Sir,—The "Pruning Not<:s" iu ■'ho '•X.%- Journal of Agriculture" i'or May, written by Mr I>. Paynter, Orchard Instructor, (jhristchurch, arc, in the writer's opinion, the best over published in that journal. But lit- is not allowed sufficient space to do himself justice. However, there is 'a much .simpler moue of pruning being practised in the l/.iS. A. and "Canada, now. Many years ago the late Professor PiCKermg carried out various styles of pruning at tho Woburn experimental station, on the Duko of .Bedford's property, England, and afc the same time the late Professor C. I. Lewis, nationally known horticultural investigator and writer, was also carrying out investigations on tho same linos. These two Professors often compared notes, and it was from this that Professor C. 1. Lewis developed what lie named the mod.lkd leader tree. Tho practice of growing modified leader trees is now universal in tlia above country. Tho writer has photos of thousands of these trees, and there is no doubt about their superiority fcr apple and pear trees. Tho following are extracts l'rom the late Professor C. I. Lewis's writings 011 the subject:—Pruning may well be considered one of the mast important single operations required iiv a fruit orchard. In recent years scientific horticulturists and practical orchardists have come to realise that former recommendations and practices of pruning fruit trees have been entirely too drastic, and resulted in stunting the growth and delaying bearing. Therefore, they now favour extremely light pruning. After forming the head in the first two years, after planting, the less pruning that is done after thei first two years and before the tree starts to bear, the stronger the growth will be and the quicker the trees will bear. "Pruning One-year-old Trees— Tlio apple is usually planted as a. oneyear whip and cut back to about ;}0 inches. This pruning is all thht is necessary until the following spring, when the* scaffold branches are chosen to form the head and the remainder removed. However, during the summer all young shoots should be rub-

lied ofE up to 16 inches from tho ground. This should be iloiio as soon as the growths start. It may also he desirable during tho summer to pinch baek some of the upper shoots which are to bo removed the following spring, as this will throw the tree's growth into tho permanent branches. No mora leaves should ho removed than is necessary, as their presence is essential for tho best growth of the tree, and also as a protection from sun scald. ''Second Season's Pruning.—Three to five scaffold branches which are to form the head aro chosen, well spaced up and down the trunk and on nil sides of the tree, while- all others are pruned off. These scaffold branches aro then cut back about onethird or one-half their length, preferably to strong buds. The topmost branch is allowed to become the leader, but it is left only slightly ill advance of the other branches. The height of the head will depend upon the distance between the ground and the lowest branch, which will be about 20 inches. With reference to the scaffold branches on stockier-growing trees, about one-quarter of tho branch should bo cut off instead of onc-third_or onehalf. The modified lead trees are most economical to spray, prune, and pick the fruit, are less subject to damage by wind, and are less apt to sun scald. The chief feature is to have branches properly spaced, so that there is plenty of distance between them, iii order to form a strong as well as a. low head; Several branches should never be allowed to come out at the same point on the trunk. All subsequent pruning for tho epple tree until it reaches beariug ago should bo what may be called corrective pruning; in other words, just enough cutting to, keep tho new growth balanced and in proper location, Tho modified leader tree thus built up by adding each year a lev.' scaffold limbs and' secondary branches until, at ti height of six or eight feet from the ground, the centra! shoot oi- leader is removed or naturally suppressed. This complete framework is usually accomplished and developed by the end of the third or fourth summer, and usuallv consists of nino or to twelve main scaffold limbs and some secondary branches that may later bo removed. It is rarely ne.'essarv to cut back tho leader, however, because in time, and due to the influence of fruiting, it will naturally lo*o itself by growing off diagonally.— Yours, etc., _ GEORGE LEE.