practice grafts

[tinytim]

So, this will be my first time having a go at grafting apples. I have 100 Bud 118 rootstocks ordered, i have collected a bunch of scions and ordered a few varieties i liked. I have been practicing on twigs from the yard and i think i'm getting the hang of it. I have watched the you tube vids and read all sorts of things on the internet, and gained tonnes of knowledge on this site! so here are a couple pics of mine so far, alder and poplar so i can clearly see the difference and how they line up. For you guys who really seem to have this nailed, do you have any close ups of your grafts before you wrap them? Or of the other kinds of grafts? I hope to do w&t on as many as possible but won't know what they size like until they arrive, so may have to explore other options.

 

[Turkey Creek]

The top two look good, the bottom one not so much. Depends on what you bind them with you can pull those gaps tight if you have something fairly strong for binding. Just make sure the edges match up on one side if the scion and root stock are not exactly the same diameter, and you can still use the W/T graft. I am sure you will have some good success.

 

[aerospacefarmer]

Always look at the graft from the side and hold it to the light. If you can't see any light that's awesome but I have given up on w&t because cleft grafting is much easier and only need one side to take. I think success will be better with cleft because it's more forgiving and you don't have to worry about 2 sides lining up and then maybe get neither side to line up cambium to cambium

 

[CrazyEd]

I do whip and tongue and if my scions and roots are different sizes I make do, if I o ly get one side matching up that is how it goes. I wrap with 1" plumber tape to pull it together nice and tight.

 

[jwill1776]

Good start for a first try. I wrap with yellow Teflon tap, it's much thicker than the white stuff and stretches quite well.

 

[Bnhpr]

Is your knife sharpened on both sides? It should only be one. It is sharp enough to shave with? The cuts look wavy.

 

[tinytim]

Thanks for the input guys, i'll keep practicing. The top couple were about the best I could do so far, I was hopeful that you guys would say the bottom one was alright if wrapped up tight, because I have a lot that look like that. I have a roll of parafilm, and I will pick up some of the thick plumbers tape, that sounds like a great idea.
I will start practicing my cleft grafts too, Aero I know you have great success, what's the secret? CrazyEd, I will always make sure I get great contact on one side of my w&t grafts. Ben, I have been using a utility knife, the thought being very sharp, and thin. What I cannot seem to figure out is how to keep the sloping cut straight. As you point out, the cut is wavy, and clearly twists to the right, almost like a golf slice, and I seem unable to correct it no matter how many times I do it, and then I have to whittle a bit off here and there to get it flat. Does a flat grind knife help with that? Anyone else find they are twisting on the cuts?
I am also wondering if I should just go ahead and slice my thumb now, or is it better to wait until I am actually doing the grafts so I get the full experience?:) Do you guys wear a glove or thumb guard, or anything.

 

[aerospacefarmer]

My secret is .....I have no idea, slash cut and shove the cleft into the root slit. But honestly I think the key is a smooth cut and be careful to align the cambium a that there is good contact. Hold it up and if you can see light through it then might want to reshape but pulling the scion out and reinserting can also do damage I do all cleft grafts and make sure one side is aligned. I don't worry about the strength of the graft like a W&T will give you but you just have to be careful not to sneak the top of a grafted scion or you can bend it and break the cambium connection. I use the parafilm and I believe that if you have a tight cleft graft you don't need a lot of tape to hold it together but the tape is a good sealer and helps with the bonding and when you wax it at the union you should have a successful graft if you got cambium to cambium contact

 

[Bnhpr]

The knife is the key to a flat cut. I sharpen my grafting knives with a lansky knife sharpening tool. The lansky can turn an ordinary kitchen paring knife into a very good grafting tool. Sharpen the side of the knife that does not touch the scion. Leave the side that touches the scion flat. Choose the 17 degree slot or the most acute angle you can put on the knife. When you can cleanly shave the hair on your arm with it, you have it sharp enough. Resharpen ever 100 or so grafts.

 

[tinytim]

thanks for the replies, i'm picking up a grafting knife this week, and getting a tutorial from an guy who has an orchard and has been grafting for years. He also assured me the knife is key, and when I get a true grafting knife my grafts will improve. I'm very excited to learn.