Fruit tree grafting methods and time (describe the functions and benefits of fruit tree grafting)

Grafting is a vegetative propagation. It uses the healing properties of plants after injury. It has the advantages of maintaining the excellent traits of the variety, early fruiting, enhanced stress resistance, and dwarfing the tree body. The principle of grafting is to select the scion and rootstock with good affinity and combine them closely to ensure the survival of the scion. The grafted branch or bud is called the scion; the plant body to be grafted is called the rootstock.

Below, we will share with you common methods of grafting fruit trees, grafting techniques such as improving grafting survival rate, for reference by fruit farmers.

Grafting method

1. T-shaped bud grafting. Use a knife to make a "T" shaped notch on the rootstock. Gently peel off the skin with the tip of the knife. Make a crosswise cut above the bud point on the scion. The width of the knife edge is about half the circumference of the scion branch. Then use the knife to cut from below the bud point. Cut diagonally downward, and finally meet the horizontal knife edge to peel off the buds. The peeled bud eye and part of the skin form a triangle. Put the tip of the triangle downward and the bud point upward. Insert it into the "T" shaped gap on the stock and press it tightly. Leave a little white space above the bud point. Finally, tie it tightly with grafting tape and remove the bud eye. It should be exposed and leave no gaps in other places. Peach trees, apricot trees, plum trees, and walnut trees are mostly grafted using the T-shaped bud grafting method, and the grafting time is generally at the end of May or early June.

2. Woody budding. Cut a notch from the rootstock along with the xylem from bottom to top. The buds on the scion are also cut off along with the xylem. Then fit the cut buds with xylem into the notch on the rootstock and align it with the cambium layer. , and finally tie it tightly with grafting tape and expose the bud eyes. Cherries are commonly grafted with woody buds, which takes place in early March.

3. Tongue joint. First cut the rootstock transversely, and cut a "V"-shaped notch downwards on the cross section of the stock. Then, cut one side of the stock diagonally upward parallel to the notch, and then peel off the outer skin of the scion. Align the side of the rootstock that has not been peeled off and tie it tightly with grafting tape. Tongue grafting is the first choice for pear, apple, chestnut and other fruit trees, usually at the end of February or early March.

Measures to improve grafting survival rate

Even if two plants can be grafted together, they may not survive without good grafting technology. To improve the survival rate of grafted seedlings, fruit growers need to master the following four measures.

1. Grafting materials must be suitable. The affinity between the scion and the rootstock is the main factor affecting the survival of grafting. Affinity refers to the ability of the scion and rootstock to combine with each other. The higher the affinity, the higher the grafting survival rate. For example, cucumbers can be grafted onto black seed pumpkins; peaches, plums, apples, and kiwis can be grafted onto each other; different varieties of tomatoes can be grafted onto each other, etc. Generally speaking, the basis for judging the strength of affinity is that the two plants should be of the same family and genus, and the thickness should be basically the same, which can improve the survival rate.

2. The grafting time must be appropriate. Although plants can be grafted all year round, and fruit trees are commonly grafted in early spring, summer, and autumn, the appropriate grafting time must be chosen for different crops. Generally speaking, early spring grafting is carried out before the fruit tree buds, summer grafting is carried out after the scion buds have matured, and autumn grafting is carried out in late summer and early autumn. Spring grafting is the best time for most trees, because the temperature, humidity, and light in spring are the best seasons for the growth of healing tissue; summer temperatures are high and water evaporates greatly, making it difficult to manage after grafting and the scions are easy to die; autumn grafting is not easy to lignify . To improve fruit tree varieties, grafting can be carried out in early spring. For example, persimmon trees can be grafted in mid-March or early April, except for grapes, which need to be grafted in summer.

3. The grafting method must be reasonable. The appropriate grafting method should be selected according to the variety of fruit trees. For example, for peach, pear, apricot, citrus and other tree species that are easy to survive after grafting, the T-shaped bud grafting method can be used; for apple trees, the woody bud grafting method can be used, and the contact surface between the buds and the rootstock is smaller. The larger, the higher the survival rate.

4. The selection of growing points must be appropriate. During the growth process of fruit trees, each growth node will have a large amount of auxin to promote plant growth and development. Therefore, when grafting, you must choose branches that are sprouting because there is a large amount of auxin in the places where new sprouts grow on these branches. Grafting is done here. Wounds heal easily and fuse together quickly.

It should be noted that two bud eyes should be set up during grafting to ensure sufficient auxin and improve the grafting survival rate.

Notes

Tools such as blades and scissors used for grafting, as well as rootstocks and buds to be grafted, must be disinfected first. The disinfected rootstocks and buds can be soaked in naphthalene acetic acid to improve the survival rate. For grafted branches that grow too vigorously, the tops must be removed to ensure balanced growth.