Caring For Fruit Tree Grafts

[buckvelvet]

Heres a good video from Mr. Hayes on unwrapping trees that were successful grafts.

 

[aerospacefarmer]

My grafts all took off this past week with the warmer temps and after spraying for those caterpillars. A few are still in critical condition and may not make it

 

[buckvelvet]

Ok guys so you have a graft that is successful, all 3-4 buds on the scion wood take off and produce a limb. Do you only (say on B118) let the top bud grow into a limb (central leader) and cut all the others off to get as much vertical growth out of the top bud or whats the proper procedure for this?

 

[CrazyEd]

Ok guys so you have a graft that is successful, all 3-4 buds on the scion wood take off and produce a limb. Do you only (say on B118) let the top bud grow into a limb (central leader) and cut all the others off to get as much vertical growth out of the top bud or whats the proper procedure for this?

Yes, that is what I do.

 

[buckvelvet]

once the graft is showing success do you cut of all limbs on the rootstock that budded as well or leave 1 the first year?

 

[Turkey Creek]

once the graft is showing success do you cut of all limbs on the rootstock that budded as well or leave 1 the first year?

Remove.

In terms of limbs on your scion I am going to vary my response slightly from Crazy Eds. I just pinch back the tips of the new limbs other than the central leader at first, more leaves means more energy going into the tree. IMO I have not seen it set back central leader develoment when doing so.

 

[wiscwhip]

I am an apple dummy, so bare with me here. Would it not be advantageous to leave at least one rootstock limb/bud just in case the graft were to fail at some point in the near future? I would think the rootstock would be healthier and have a better chance of staying alive with some green growth of it's own, should the graft fail for some odd reason, or I could be completely full of it? It just makes sense in my mind after all the things I have read.

 

[buckvelvet]

I am an apple dummy, so bare with me here. Would it not be advantageous to leave at least one rootstock limb/bud just in case the graft were to fail at some point in the near future? I would think the rootstock would be healthier and have a better chance of staying alive with some green growth of it's own, should the graft fail for some odd reason, or I could be completely full of it? It just makes sense in my mind after all the things I have read.

Thats my hesitancy but TC isn't the first Apple guy to say other wise so i'm gonna cut all the RS shoots off the grafts that show success.

 

[buckvelvet]

Some good old/new info from the glory years at the 'other forum'. http://www.qdma.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-24588.html

 

[Rally1148]

For rind/bark grafts, when should I cut off the tape? I used plumbers tape with electrical tape on top. I grafted them in the first week of May. I was thinking mid June, is this too early?

 

[buckvelvet]

For rind/bark grafts, when should I cut off the tape? I used plumbers tape with electrical tape on top. I grafted them in the first week of May. I was thinking mid June, is this too early?

CE Just told me he doesn't take his tape off until the following spring. Stephen Hayes videos he doesn't do it until Mid June but I'm not sure if his trees wake up before us in England. I'm going to wait till next year on mine but electrical tape isn't as stretchy as plumbers tape. I'd probably take that off sooner I would suspect?

 

[Rally1148]

CE Just told me he doesn't take his tape off until the following spring. Stephen Hayes videos he doesn't do it until Mid June but I'm not sure if his trees wake up before us in England. I'm going to wait till next year on mine but electrical tape isn't as stretchy as plumbers tape. I'd probably take that off sooner I would suspect?

That's kind of what I was thinking. I used the plumbers tape that CE suggested, but I taped over it on most of my trees with electrical. A few trees I just used electrical because I got frustrated with the plumbers tape.

 

[buckvelvet]

That's kind of what I was thinking. I used the plumbers tape that CE suggested, but I taped over it on most of my trees with electrical. A few trees I just used electrical because I got frustrated with the plumbers tape.

You mean frustrated as in it wouldn't stay wide strips but kept stretching to where it would be pencil lead thin
strips all around the graft? LOL! Thats what I kept doing to myself.

 

[Rally1148]

You mean frustrated as in it wouldn't stay wide strips but kept stretching to where it would be pencil lead thin
strips all around the graft? LOL! Thats what I kept doing to myself.

Something like that! It only made it worse when I was working in tight quarters with another limb. Also it wasn't helpful that it kept unrolling a few feet while it was still on the roll.

 

[buckvelvet]

Something like that! It only made it worse when I was working in tight quarters with another limb. Also it wasn't helpful that it kept unrolling a few feet while it was still on the roll.

Lol, that's so hysterical! I didn't know if somehow my left handed handicapness was causing my issues or if perhaps this was an untold hazard of said plumbers tape for grafting purposes. I can't tell you how many times I dropped the stupid roll while trying to wrap a tree and then tried to roll it back on itself. Or else tried wrapping the tree the wrong way so like you say it unrolls to fast before you get it tight around the graft, HAHA!

Crazy Ed never mentioned any of these things! :)

 

[Rally1148]

Lol, that's so hysterical! I didn't know if somehow my left handed handicapness was causing my issues or if perhaps this was an untold hazard of said plumbers tape for grafting purposes. I can't tell you how many times I dropped the stupid roll while trying to wrap a tree and then tried to roll it back on itself. Or else tried wrapping the tree the wrong way so like you say it unrolls to fast before you get it tight around the graft, HAHA!

Crazy Ed never mentioned any of these things! :)

I just figured it was my amateurity. On most of them, I just wrapped a few times, and then wrapped a few times with electrical tape to give some more pressure.

 

[aerospacefarmer]

I use para film and grafting wax and never need to take off anything and never lost a graft to a bad tape Job don't believe. I think you are safe to remove the tape by June unless you are going to have condors landing on your grafts. I think you can cut the other buds or not depending on your preference. I left 2 scion buds go on 2 grafts last year and they are doing fine and I already have a great lateral branch. A lot of my grafts are already branching with 3 and 4 laterals already. I will take some pics tomorrow

 

[greyphase]

Those are some healthy looking grafts NH.

 

[buckvelvet]

I use para film and grafting wax and never need to take off anything and never lost a graft to a bad tape Job don't believe. I think you are safe to remove the tape by June unless you are going to have condors landing on your grafts. I think you can cut the other buds or not depending on your preference. I left 2 scion buds go on 2 grafts last year and they are doing fine and I already have a great lateral branch. A lot of my grafts are already branching with 3 and 4 laterals already. I will take some pics tomorrow

 

[aerospacefarmer]

You are a funny guy buck haha. I will post some pics tomorrow. Only had red tailed hawk land on them though. No condors