Graft Union depth ???

[woodduck]

Where should the Graft Union be located when planting trees on B118 or M111 rootstocks ? Below ground ? At ground level ? 3'' Above Ground ? Does it matter since they are Standard or close to Standard anyway ? Thanks

 

[Dan Wombles]

Do not bury the graft union, as the scion will root and you'll end up with a standard tree, losing the dwarfing and disease resistances of your rootstock, and tree may not produce for 10-15 years.

 

[chickenlittle]

As Dan said, if the characteriatics of the rootstock are important to you, keep the graft union above ground. There are times you might want to bury the union but I cannot think of one for a tree on B.118 or MM.111.

 

[woodduck]

Ok,Thanks guys. So in this case it also wouldn't matter how far the graft union was out of the ground, 1"....3"....5".... just as long as the roots are buried properly ?

 

[Peeps]

This sounds different then the planting directions provided by SLN on their planting guide. They state you need to plant the tree with the graft Union an inch or two below ground. So what's the best practice? Above or below? I planted my trees last year per their directions.

 

[2ndHand]

I plant my B.118 grafts around 4 inches above the ground depending on location of the graft. If the graft is located closer to the root base, then you will closer to the ground. Hope this helps!

 

[Maya]

Good rule of thumb for larger semi dwarf trees are that graft union should be 2-4" above ground level. Dan is right about burying the union, conversely, the higher the graft union the more you devigorate the tree. Besides making the tree slightly smaller it may tend to sucker more if the graft union is to high.........2-4"

 

[2ndHand]

Here's the planting instructions that Cumming provides:
http://www.cumminsnursery.com/plantinginstructions.htm

 

[Peeps]

Here is the planting instructions I mentioned above from St Lawrence Nursery. That was how I planted my crabs last year. I hope I didn't screw them up by doing that. Based on the above posts it looks like I should keep it above ground on my trees I plant this year. Thoughts?

 

[chickenlittle]

I believe SLN uses seedling rootstock instead of clones like B118 . That might play a role in their recommendation.

 

[Turkey Creek]

I believe SLN uses seedling rootstock instead of clones like B118 . That might play a role in their recommendation.

That is the exact reason.

 

[Peeps]

Thanks. Reading this got me worried but it looks like I should continue to plant the just like they recommend. We have 20 more coming this spring.