CHE REFERENCE LIBRARY - Pole Shift Survival Information

152 THE NURSER Y-MAN I/AL
tree is the shaping of the t.op. The old top is to be removed
in three or four or five JXWS, and a new one is to be grown in
its place. If the tree is old, the original plan or shape of the
top will have to be followed in its general outlines. The
branches should be grafted, as a rule, where they do not ex-
FIG. 170. Top-grafted oId tree,
teed an inch and a half in tlisrnett~r, as Ans do better in such
branches, the wounds heal quickl,v, and the injury to the tree
is less than when ver!r large stubs are used. The operator
should endeavor to cut all the leading stubs at approximately
equal distances from : he center of the tree ; and then, to prevent
long and pole-like branches, various minor side-branches
should be grafted. These will serve to fill out the new top and
to afford footholds for pruners and pickers. Fig. 176 is a good