The little pruning book; an intimate guide to the surer growing of better fruits and flowers . han mere guess work; but ruleswhich are understood, so that they will not be followedblindly in spite of conditions that should alter or suspendthem, are much better. Therefore, before attempting to formulate any ruleson pruning, let us stop a moment to look into the wayDame Nature does the job; and examine how plantsdevelop, and why they need pruning, before we attemptto interfere. Plants developthrough buds. Thebud is formed, usuallyrests for a while, andthen resumes growthand develops into anew tw
The little pruning book; an intimate guide to the surer growing of better fruits and flowers . han mere guess work; but ruleswhich are understood, so that they will not be followedblindly in spite of conditions that should alter or suspendthem, are much better. Therefore, before attempting to formulate any ruleson pruning, let us stop a moment to look into the wayDame Nature does the job; and examine how plantsdevelop, and why they need pruning, before we attemptto interfere. Plants developthrough buds. Thebud is formed, usuallyrests for a while, andthen resumes growthand develops into anew twig, or branch,which becomes partof the permanentstructure of the plant;or produces flowers,followed by seeds orfruits. What is a bud? Look at the draw-ing FIG. 1, or betterstill go out and cut abranch or a sprouting twig from an apple tree, a shrub, a currant bush, orany plant that is convenient. You will notice along thesides, and at the tip, little swellings or pointed capswhich are decidedly different from the wood to whichthey are attached. • They will break or rub off 11 AxirnayBuds. DormantBudfl FIG. branch or shoot from a tree,showingthe different kinds of buds. The strongestbuds are at and near the tip. readily, leaving only a slight mark to show where theywere attached. If you open one and look at it under amagnifying glass, you may find, according to its stage ofdevelopment and variety, miniature leaves, or eventhe parts of a flower, neatly packed away. Even on the smallest twig, you will notice a decideddifference in the appearance of the several buds. Theone at the very end of the growth, which is usually thestrongest, is called the terminal bud; those below it,situated in pairs or alternately, are called axillary buds,because they are formed in the axils of the leaves. Youwill notice, if you examine the buds on a number ofdifferent shoots, that the buds nearer the top on thosegrowing vertically, and the buds on the upper surfaceof those growing horizontal
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidlittle, booksubjectpruning
