Shaping A Young Tree
Categories: Fruit GrowingIn shortening back long, slim limbs the side shoots come out, and one
soon has a lot of ugly, crooked limbs to look at. There are a number of
orchards here being spoiled in that way. How is this avoided?
You cannot secure a low-heading, well-shaped tree without cutting back
the branches. Afterward you can improve the form by selecting shoots
which are going in directions which you prefer, or you can cut back the
shoots afterward to a bud which will start in the direction which you
desire. In this way the progressive shaping of the tree must be pursued.
If you only have a few trees and can afford the time, you can, of
course, bend and tie the branches as they grow, so that they will take
directions which seem to you better, but this is not practicable in
orcharding on a commercial scale. There is no disadvantage in crooked
branches in a fruit tree, but they should crook in desirable directions,
and that is where the art in pruning comes in.
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