The Estancia news. [volume] (Estancia, Torrance County, N.M.) 1904-1912, 1909-02-26
Pruning The Apple Tree.

The apple is the most cosmopolitan
of the orchard fruits and the one about
which there seems to be more varied
opinions in regard to the pruning of it.
Every apple grower is confronted every
winter with the question of how best TO
prune his trees While pruning is a
natural process it should be avoided as
much As possible as the tree gets older.
The heaviest pruning, in proportion to
the amount of tree top, is done during
the first two or three years of the trees
growth. During this time the apple tree
should be well pruned so that when it
comes inte bearing it will not be neces
sary to prune it severely
Two forms are generally considered
in starting of the young apple tree IN
the orchard, the low and high headed
trees. The choice of either one of these
forms depends, to great extent on the
cultural methods to be followed by Or
charhst, and upon the climatic condition.
The high headed tree is perhaps better
suited for northern and eastern condi
tions while the low headed tree is bet
ter adapted to our section of country
The first pruning OF the young apple
tree, after it has been transplantsd to
the apple orchard, should be carefully
done as at this time we determine the
height of the trunk. The top should be
cut back to about twenty four inches
from the ground. The following spring
a number of limbs will develop from the
trunk. Three to five limbs should only
be allowed to form the scaffold. At the
1ext pruning, the following spring,
these scaffold limbs are again ut back
somewhat and any interfering limbs are
also removed. At the third and even
tbs # u 'th pruning the limbs should be
cut back and the tree rounded up gener.
ally BY this method of pruning the
tree is shaped up and it may be properly
started.
While there are some fruit growers
who claim that the bearing apple tree
should be cut back every year the nature
of the growth at that time in this eli
mate does not warrant such practice
and on the whole the results are not so
satisfactory. The bearing tree should
be pruned as lightly as possible 1t
does not produce the same rank growth
that the young tree does during the first
few years. A great deal Of vitality of
the bearing tree is used up in the pro-
duction of the fruit, and in fruit spores
for the following crop. While the tree
does not require severe pruning it should
be pruned little every year, All the
dead and broken limbs should be re.
moved as well as those which interfere.
Avoid the cutting Of large branches.
The limbs should be cut as near the
trunk as possible so the wound may
heal over quickly. Never cut limbs so
as to leave stump one or more inches
in length. Such stumps if left never
heal over The healing of the wound de-
pends on the activity of the cambium
layer. Thi. layer is most active in the
spring after the tree starts TO growing.
The longer the wound remains exposed
the more it wIld dry and crack. Wounds
which are made in the fall or mid wir-
ter necessarily remain longer before
the cambium layer begins to grow over
them than those made in the spring
just before the tree starts to growing.
EWhile trees can and may be pruned any
time during their dormant period that
] is during the tall, winter, and spring
/ the preferable time is in the spring,
shortly before growth begins.
Fabian Garcia
February 4th 1909.