Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-08-10
er.CrOpping.

NEAR akin to tie negligence by which
trees are suffered To smother and deform
| themselves with supcrfluous wood, is the
Custom-almost universal in this country
OF allowing them to carry an unreasona-
bic quantity Of fruit This over cropping,
indeed, is one Of the greatest, as it is one
Of the most obstinate evils that horticul-
tural science is struggling to eradicate.
Under the various artificial influences to
which fruit trees in gardens and orchards
are subjected, they often overbear. The
best cultivators, however, make IL an in.
flexible rule not to allow any tree TO carry
so much fruit as to necessitate a propping
up of the branches. But the number of
this class Of thorough practitioners is cx-
ceedingly small. All over the country, in
fact, propping is the rule, and thinning of
the fruit is the rare exception.
The operation seems, 1t is true, to de-
mand a certain sort of courage that only
veteran cultlvators can command.
To cut off the outermost of the two or
three clusters on every shoot of a grape
vine, 10 pull half, or more, OF the speci-
mems from fine Bartlett or Seckel pear
tree, oppressed by the weight Of its own
generosi y, requires nerve, such as can
hardly be expected from raw recruits in
the business. Still, 80 extremely satisfac-
tory are the results of this operation, that,
wherever it has been Tesolutely begun, 1t
never fails to be followed up in future
years.
In the performance of this, as of other
work among trees, little experience
proves more serviceable than great deal
Of teaching. As general rule, supported
by the practice, as stated above, of the
best cultivatOrs, no tree should be per-
mitted to retain any more of its fruit tina
it can carry TO maturity without being
tied up, or supported in any way. This,
where trees are overloaded, necessitates a
removal Of from one fourth TO three.
fourths, as the case may require, Of the
young specimens left growing after the
fall of the blossoms. The superfluous
fruit ought to be picked off in June or
July. At the time Of this first thinning,
however, il is advisable TO leave about
double the quantity on the tree that it is
intended shall ripen there. Going over
the trees second time, In August, the
number Of specimens should be finally re-
duced 80 as to complete the operation,
taking care TO select for removal all fruits
that are wormy, deformed, badly situated,
and unpromising.
On dwarfs, and smallish standards, such
a thinning out-with the fingers and
thumb nail as the most convenient nipple
ments-may be rapidly performed; but to
90 over full grown apple or pear tree In
this way lisa slow and rather tedious labor;
still, where the cultivation has not been
neglected in other respects, such thinning,
in most cases, will pay, inasmuch as,
properly done, 1t never fails to secure a
fair crop of first quality, instead of a little
larger quantity Of very inferior fruit. But
the effect of the operation on the future
health and vigor Of trees is of much more
importance than any such improvement of
their products; for tree that has once
borne itself to death "-as the phrase
forcibly expresses livery rarely, and
covers from the consequences Of its ex.
hausted vitality.-Cor. Journal Of Horti.
culture.