Low Growth On Fruit Trees

Categories: Fruit Growing

Should the little twigs an the lower parts of young fruit trees be

removed or shortened?



An important function which these small shoots and the foliage which

they will carry perform is in the thickening of the larger branches to

which they are attached and overcoming the tendency of the tree to

become too tall and spindling. This can be done at any time, even to the

pinching of young, soft shoots as they ppear. It must be said, however,

that in ordinary commercial fruit growing little attention is paid to

these fine points, which are the great enjoyment of the European

fruit-gardeners and are of questionable value in our standard

orcharding. It is, however, a great mistake to clear away all low twigs,

for such twigs bring the first fruit on young trees.







Are Tap-Roots Essential?







Is it better to plant a nut or seed or to plant a grafted root; also is

it better to allow the tap-root to remain or not in event of planting a

grafted root?



It does not matter at all whether the tree has its original tap-root or

not. All tap-roots are more or less destroyed in transplanting and the

fact that not one per cent of the walnut trees now bearing crops in

California consist of trees grown from the nut itself planted in place,

is sufficient demonstration to us that it is perfectly practicable to

proceed with transplanting the trees. It is more important that the tree

should have the right sort of soil and the right degree of moisture to

grow in than that it should retain the root from which the seedling

started. The removal of the tap-root does not prevent the tree from

sending out one or several deep running roots which will penetrate as

deeply as the soil and moisture conditions favor. This is true not only

of the walnut but of other fruit trees.