THE FRUIT GARDEN

Evening Star, Issue 22026, 11 May 1935, Page 3

THE FRUIT GARDEN

Pruning time is with us, and many who have fruit trees of various binds are wondering what wood must be taken out and what left. Although notes on pruning will appear from weea to week through the season, there may lie some readers of these notes who would be pleased to ndtness a demonstration on pruning. The writer would be pleased to give a demonstration on practical lines in this work if there is sufficient demand for it and suitable gardens are made available. Any communications on this matter may be made to the editor. , The first fruits that will need attention are the currants and gooseberries. As the black currant fruits only on the new wood made on the previous season all the old wood that can be spared from the bush should be taken out. Leave in as many long new shoots as possible. All the old wood should be taken off near the base or to the lowest strong new growth on the branch. When there is a choice between leaving one strong young growth or two or three small side shoots, cut out the small side shoots and leave the one strong growth. Good berries will never he gathered from bushes, that contain old wood with shoots no longer than four or five inches in length. 3f tho bushes are healthy and well pruned the young shoots should be anything from three to four feet in length and should grow right away from the base. To those who are planting new bashes purchased from the nurseryman, which arc generally from two to three years old, 1 woulfl advise that all the shoots be cut back to two or three buds near the base two or three weeks after planting. This will encourage the formation of a strong root stock which will produce vigorous shoots in the coming, season and it will also mean full size berries. Boskoop Giant and Daniel’s September are the two best black currants to grow and are a great improvement on the old varieties in size and crop. lied and white currants should* he pruned on different lines altogether from tho black. The reds'and whites hear their bunches of fruit on short spurs on the main branches. Spurs arc formed from ho clusters of fruit buds that: develop at the base of the young shoots. The aim of the pruner of black currants is to keep plenty of young wood in these bushes, but with red and white currants one should aim to produce short fruiting along the whole length of sturdy branches. This can be obtained by cutting back all young side shoots that are made. A good shaped bush should be formed like a cup with its branches evenly snftced, radiating from the top of the short main stem or leg for at least six inches. , The centre of tho bush should be open and free from crowding growths, and there should be no misplaced branches crossing one over the other or too close togeher. I am afraid that one of the most useful of fruits, the gooseberry, is sadly neglected. The bushes often become mere thickets of growths bearing poor crops of small berries. Sometimes it is nearly impossible to gather them and sometimes we find that nearly all the new wood is cut. back and tho bushes then produce a crop of rank growth every season. The right way to prune gooseberry bushes is to follow the happy medium between the two. Only m this way can regular crops of the best berries he obtained. In forming bushes very much the same methods must ho followed as advised for red currants. Five or six strong young shoots should bo selected and trained in to form the framework. These should he shortened by half or more, and all unwanted growths cut

back close. Tbo centre of the bush must be kept open and free from crossing wood or shoots, and the branches evenly spaced round the top of the short main stem. This method will allow the sun ■to penetrate into the centre of the hush and also make it an easy task to gather the fruit. The pruning that established gooseberry bushes require should be as follows: First cut out all unhealthy branches. Then cut back to two bottom buds all shoots that crowd the centre of the bush or cross one another, and also the weakly shoots. Where there is room leave the sturdy and medium-sized shoots almost full length. Take off only the unripened tips of these. Leave in a strong-young shoot here and there as needed to fill a gap and to replace an,old branch, but cut all other side shoots back to two bottom buds, and finally shorten the leading young shoot of each branch by about one-third. When the pruning of the bush is completed it should bo possible to pass the hand in and out between the branches’* quite comfortably. It is possible,' if this method of pruning is carried out, to maintain bushes in a fruitful and youthful state for many years. The best varieties are London (red), Dowfiing (green), Whinham’s Industry (red), Broom Girl (yellow), Jubilee (green), and Fanny (yellow).