Grafting persimmons?

[Catscratch]

I've had seedlings in the ground for several yrs. I think I'm ready to try grafting for the first time. I've threatened to many times but always chicken out. I research it but it's like information overload. I have no clue which video or method to choose. I kind of want someone to say "buy this tool, this tape, and watch this video". I've got trees that produce perfectly, but haven't collected any scion from them. Is it to late? Should I just buy scion? What week's can I do this stuff? I know I've asked (and read up on this) before, just not sure how to get it done.

 

[TreeDaddy]

Native hunter has some great instructional threads /posts with pictures on bark grafting

head to Home Depot and buy a box cutter, electrical tape , and toilet wax rings

I collect scions when I prune in January

Graft in April when I see green leaves on the tree to be grafted . Make sure you stake the grafts( learned this the hard way)

Jump in

Its great fun

bill

 

[Native Hunter]

Hey Cat, I can answer a few of your questions:
* Bark Grafting is the best method. There are lots of videos on Youtube and we have some good threads on the forums.
* You can watch a video on bark grafting apples and use the same technique on persimmons.
* You will do this next spring as the tree is coming out of dormancy. I would recommend when the new leaves are about 2/3 out.
* If you have persimmon trees that you like, use those scions. There is no need to buy any unless there is some specific cultivar you want to grow.
* Don't cut your scions until early next spring - a few weeks before buds start greening up.
* Store scions in the fridge in a plastic bag with damp paper towel until time to topwork.
* No special equipment is needed - a small handsaw to cut the tree top out - electrical tape - Toilet bowl wax - a pocket knife.
* After the scions take, add bracing to keep the wind from breaking them off. This is extremely important.

Edit - I looked for my thread here and couldn't find it but did find it on the other forum. The link is shown below:

How to Topwork with Bark Grafting

Someone on the forum recently asked me to post some instructions and pictures on how to bark graft persimmons. I topworked an apple tree the other day and took the following pictures. The method is the same when doing a persimmon, so the following works with them too. However, you need to...

deerhunterforum.com

 

[Catscratch]

Outstanding! Thanks for the replies. Once I get a minute I'll do some forum searches.

Quick question; how do I choose what to cut for scions? Seems I remember that I want 1yr old wood, but have no clue what that looks like if true.

 

[Native Hunter]

Outstanding! Thanks for the replies. Once I get a minute I'll do some forum searches.

Quick question; how do I choose what to cut for scions? Seems I remember that I want 1yr old wood, but have no clue what that looks like if true.

Start looking at the tips of the limbs and as you go back toward the trunk you will find a ring where the wood started growing last season. Anything from that ring out to the tip of the limb is good to graft with.

 

[Native Hunter]

Look below at how the wood changes at the center of my thumb tip. The older wood from the year before even has a slightly different color along with the ring I mentioned.

 

[Catscratch]

Look below at how the wood changes at the center of my thumb tip. The older wood from the year before even has a slightly different color along with the ring I mentioned.
View attachment 72563

Do you cut into the older wood while collecting, then trim it back right before you graft it? To help keep it from drying out in storage?

 

[Native Hunter]

Do you cut into the older wood while collecting, then trim it back right before you graft it? To help keep it from drying out in storage?

That's a good thing to do. Some people also dip the end in hot wax and then snip that off at the time of grafting. I usually wait late enough to cut my scions that they stay fresh without doing anything special.
Keep in mind that if the new growth is long enough you can make more than one scion out of one limb, You don't have to have a tip on the end of the scion - it can be cut on both ends. Just be sure not to turn it backwards, and to leave enough buds on the piece of wood. I prefer to have at least three buds, but that may not be absolutely necessary.

 

[gjs4]

I a, super new to grafting but had a OH buddy say he cuts/drops male trees, then top grafts the resprouts with better scions. Not sure if this helps.

 

[Gravel Road]

You will have a blast grafting, and it is so satisfying to see the results. Plus, you can make more Chee trees out of hedge Here's a cheap seedling dolgo apple tree with 8 or 10 different varieties on it that I made this spring. If there was only one of that variety in the orchard, I wanted a backup scion supply. Worked great and got about 3-4 ft of growth on most grafts. All it takes is a knife and electrical tape. As stated above-brace them so birds and wind storms don't break the graft.
Also, you can put free pear trees all over the place by grafting onto the invasive callery pear trees that are everywhere. Someone in the future is going to wonder why in the hell there is a moonglow pear in the middle of a pasture
If you are ever up north I'd be happy to show you how.

 

[Catscratch]

You will have a blast grafting, and it is so satisfying to see the results. Plus, you can make more Chee trees out of hedge Here's a cheap seedling dolgo apple tree with 8 or 10 different varieties on it that I made this spring. If there was only one of that variety in the orchard, I wanted a backup scion supply. Worked great and got about 3-4 ft of growth on most grafts. All it takes is a knife and electrical tape. As stated above-brace them so birds and wind storms don't break the graft.
Also, you can put free pear trees all over the place by grafting onto the invasive callery pear trees that are everywhere. Someone in the future is going to wonder why in the hell there is a moonglow pear in the middle of a pasture
If you are ever up north I'd be happy to show you how.

View attachment 72568View attachment 72569

That Frankentree is damn cool Gravel! And yes, I want Chee all over my place!!!

 

[Catscratch]

Think I found a couple of "rings". Two on the same branch. I'm assuming it's 2yrs of growth, and I only want last yrs grow?

 

[Catscratch]

This is what I'll be grafting to.

Does it matter how high up I cut the rootstock? Does it need to be cut close to the ground or can it be a couple of feet up?

 

[Native Hunter]

This is what I'll be grafting to.

Does it matter how high up I cut the rootstock? Does it need to be cut close to the ground or can it be a couple of feet up?
View attachment 72594

Lots of times I will graft chest high. The height of the graft isn’t a critical factor, but I like higher better than lower. That makes it easier to brace the graft later on with cane sticks and duct tape. See the picture below. Note the long cane sticks below and above the graft. Before the summer was over these grafts grew higher than the top of the sticks. Without good bracing you will likely have your grafts broken off by the wind at some point during the first year.

 

[Native Hunter]

Think I found a couple of "rings". Two on the same branch. I'm assuming it's 2yrs of growth, and I only want last yrs grow?
View attachment 72591
View attachment 72592View attachment 72593

Yes, you only want last years growth.

 

[bwoods11]

I ordered some persimmons from MDC, excited to see the possibilities!

 

[Gravel Road]

The persimmons I got from MDC in 2016 weren't very good for me. Very poor roots. Planted in 2016 and the tallest one is about head high. Could be that they don't like my soil, but the swamp white oaks ordered from MDC the same year way outperformed them. The biggest SWO had it's first acorn this year.
Hopefully it was just a bad year and you get some good ones!

 

[TreeDaddy]

Lots of times I will graft chest high. The height of the graft isn’t a critical factor, but I like higher better than lower. That makes it easier to brace the graft later on with cane sticks and duct tape. See the picture below. Note the long cane sticks below and above the graft. Before the summer was over these grafts grew higher than the top of the sticks. Without good bracing you will likely have your grafts broken off by the wind at some point during the first year.

View attachment 72603

........I have verified the last sentence in clinical trials in the field

bill