Show i Around un rJ I Io o I Y PRUNE APPLE TREES IN WINTER MONTHS The old bearing apple trees can bo be I pruned most any time during the winter winter winter win win- I ter ter months when then the weather Is not too too cold Some folks prefer to wait till March but most farmers will wUl be bethinking bethinking thinking of or other farm activities acU at that time Most of the essential tools toots for tor pruning pruning prun prun- ing ng are to be found In the chest or workroom of ot most farmers A good pair of heavy shears or loppers Toppers Is de de- With these limbs an Inch and a half In diameter may be cut off more quickly than with a saw A good saw with a n swivel blade or a along along along long narrow blade something like ilke Q a q keyhole saw should be provided This will enable the pruner to cut limbs that cannot be removed with the hand shears or loppers hoppers The fruit that Is formed on the old trees Is nearly always on the outside or on the top This This- Is particularly true when the trees have been allowed to to form a dense growth On the In- In of ot such trees a large amount of dead twigs tn and branches will be found The first thing for tor the pruner to do Is Isto Isto isto to remove all nil dead or diseased branches r Even ren en then It will bo be found that too many live branches remain The tree should be opened by cutting out the smaller branches that grow close to each other Avoid as far tar as possible cutting of oft off large limbs Twenty five per cent of ot the small branches can be cut without materially material material- I ly Iy changing the tho shape of ot the tree However It rarely Is desirable to remove remove remove re re- move moro more than this nt at ono one time UnlesS Unless Unless Un Un- less there Is some ver very good reason for so doing large Jarge limbs near the bottom of ot a tree should not be re re- moved mO Those that rest on the ground when the tree carries a full load can caD be relieved of ot a n part of ot this difficulty dIfficult by thinning out the small branches When large limbs have to be removed removed re re- moved mo for tor any purpose make the cuts as ns close to the point of ot union with the trunk as possible When stubs are left they soon decay and the decay decay decay de de- de- de cay spreads to the center of the tree Wounds made by cutting off oft the larger branches should be he covered with paint made from white lead and raw lin lin- linseed linseed seed oil It would be better still sun if It a small amount of mercury were added to the paint If It the old trees to be pruned have not been making sufficient growth of wood to six sl J inches It lt would bewell be bewell bewell well to to p place nc a a l o dressing of ot barnyard manure about them If It the manure Is not to be had hind then four tour to six pounds of ot nitrate of or soda spread evenly about the tree will accomplish the same re re- Sl How far tar one should go in the expenditure expenditure ex ex- of ot time and nd money for tor fertilizers fer ter fertilizers depends on the variety and the Interest the owner has In the trees There are a lot Jot of old trees that can easily be made highly productive by pruning fertilizing and antI spraying The entire cost of ot pruning spraying and fertilizing would r range from a dollar to a dollar and a h half l at most per tree |