The pruning of the fig varies according to the age of the trees and the
purpose for which pruning is done. While other fruit trees require
yearly, and generally heavy, pruning to insure fruit of good quality,
the object in pruning the fig is simply, or at least principally, to
keep the tree healthy and give air and light to the fruit. The most
important rule to be observed in pruning the fig is that no branch shall
be cut off squarely or be cut back so as to leave a stump. This is
almost surely fatal to the future welfare of the tree and to the quality
and quantity of its fruit. When it becomes necessary to remove a
1-year-old limb the cut should be made at least as far down as the next
fork below, and it should be close to a joint in the fork. There should
be nothing left but a scar to show that a limb has been cut away. There
must be no stump left. The fig tree may require to have its branches
thinned out, but it must not be headed back except to correct
unsymmetrical growth. In dense trees branches which cross should be
removed entirely and in such a way as to give the tree a rounded,
dome-like outline, with the lower branches nearly touching the ground.
In pruning recently planted trees the object in view is, of course,
entirely different, as fruit can not be expected for several years to
come. The object of this early pruning is to shape the tree. When two
cuttings are set together little pruning is required, as they will
generally shape themselves and form two main trunks diverging from each
other, but when a single tree is planted it is best to cut back the stem
to within a foot of the soil and let it branch from that point. The only
case in which it is proper to have a tall standard is when it is
desirable to grow trees for shade and pleasure and where the quality of
the fruit and its quantity are of but secondary importance. If recently
planted fig trees show any tendency toward drying out, the main limbs or
the whole trunk should at once be cut back to live green wood.