The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1879-08-20

| operation tne Iuttlre Vlg0r OF the scion
is retarded more than thousand per
cent. as, for instance, by avoiding
cutting off the extremities beyond
the bud or scion, 1 would obtain
more than ten times the growth that
| would have got if it had been left
on.
contend. that limb or top cannot
be cut from tree without the per-
son cutting it also involun:arily cut
ting at the same time corresponding
root; and if he plucks leaf, he as
surely plucks corresponding rootlet
or tibrous root. If the top of tree
is cut, just SO much of its tap root is
involuntarily sacrificed, and the vigor
OF the tree suffers in proportion.
This theory would seem to be good
illustration of Swedenbourg's CORE
spondencies-that all nature has its
correspondence; and so it undoubt-
edly has when we find it out, al
though l am not a disciple of the
| great seer.
Tree pruning has become a ma
tional calamity, if not a crime, in our
country F.; and man has but to stop and
think TO realize that the great Author
of all OF our most grand and majestic
forests never sends men into them
with saw and Ratchet to trim ard
prune them to their own fancy; and
although they have become tall and
grand and symmetrical without the
aid Of man, yet they originally all
had limbs and branches, yet may now
sometimes be seen hundreds OF feet
high, without limb or Knot. Nature
is competent TO trim its own forests
and nurseries and groves and orch
ards, as a general rule, better than
man can do it; yet in artificial gar
dens there may be circumstances,
though after all comparatively rare,
when the intelligent husbandman
may direct the form of his tree as
the father OF surgeon would the i'm
paired limb of child.
When nature becomes ready to
cast OF the limb of a tree it begins to
show signs OF death and decay, re-
minding the intelligent husbandman
that it has ceased to require It's fu.
ture use to carry forward and elilni-
nate the healthtul action and future
growth of the tree. Then if the gar
dener deems it unsightly he may re-
move it, but if left in the forest it
would in time remove itself
Again, the principle of tree growth
is this That when the tree COM
mences to make new growth the sap
commences to rise from the roots,
where it began to gather its latent
forces, and ascends through the heart
and body of the tree until it has ex-
tended to the very extremity OF every
limb upon it; from thence it returns
betW cen the bark of the tree and the
wood, and thus Celebrates leaves,
limbs, etc. Now, if you cut a limb
or top off the effect is the same as If
you cut leg, an arm or finger off;
the circulation is impeded, the future
vigor Of the man or the tree is i'm
paired TO that extent and instead Of
the blood or sap performing its reg
ular function, it has to return through
the same Schannel it came. Now l
will try to explain to you the opera
ton and advantage OF this theory
upon propagating the orange by bud
ding instead Of grating, or any other
process. except possibly by cuttings.
To illustrate, we will suppose you
are budding young two, three OF
tour-year-old tree, which should al
ways be budded as near the ground
as possible. Our method is this:
After the bud is set III the upright
tree, and in a few days, ii you find
the bud has taken, then the top OF
the tree should be carefully bent over
to The ground, as close as you can
get it, and couple of small stakes
set crosswise over it to tasten it
there, thus checking the growth Of
the top, yet permitting the circula.
ton to flow in its natural channel to
the extremity, and returning between
the bark and the tree directly to the
bud set between the bark and the
tree, and thus directly feeding the
bud when a growth ascends; that
would not be less than ten times
as great as if the old method had been
pursued of cutting the top off after
the bud had taken, as in the case Of
the last tree l sent you by mail. The
tops We're cut off from them for con-
venience of mailing, whereas if they
could have been lett on, the ratio Of
orc with Of the bud M0lIld dOnhtleSS