How to Graft Plants
July 26, 2008
Grafting is the most interesting way of propagating plants and is widely used in horticulture, whereby two different plants are fused and encouraged to grow as one. Extremely advantageous, the grafting process allows one to combine two different plant attributes in one single plant. For instance, the best part of two plants can be used to create a stronger or else a different shaped plant variety. Also called hybrid breeding, it works well for fruit trees helping to combine the desired attributes of two trees and come up with a tree that has flavourful fruit element, is small or dwarfish in height, with disease resistant roots. An example of a hybrid fruit tree
Similarly, the grafting process has been successfully used for ornamental flowering plants, hybrid tea roses – rose royalty and a prime example of successful grafting are a cross between hybrid perpetuals and old fashioned tea roses, with all the virtues one looks for in a flower i.e. beauty, fragrance and easy to care for.
In most cases, one plant is selected for its roots called the stock or rootstock. The other plant is selected for its stems, leaves, flowers, or fruits and is called the scion. It is the scion that contains the desired genes to be duplicated in future production by the stock / scion plant. There are various grafting methods used, such as, stem grafting, budding etc. whereby a shoot of a selected, desired plant cultivar is grafted onto the stock of another type, or a dormant side bud is grafted on the stem of another stock plant. When fusion takes place successfully, it is encouraged to grow by cutting out the stem above the new bud.
If, you want to know how to graft fruit trees or how to graft roses, here’s how:
You Will Need:
Binding material, two plants, flat-bladed knife, grafting sealant.
Step One
Cut a small growth off the plant you wish to transplant near the central trunk. Ensure the piece that is cut is roughly equivalent in size to the plant or tree it is to be grafted on to i.e. the twig you cut, should be of similar size to the twigs of the trunk of the tree it is to be grafted on.
Step Two
Since, grafting is done in early spring or winter; you will need to store the cutting in the fridge. Remove it in winter when the plants are dormant, busy storing their growing energy for spring. By keeping the cutting in the fridge, one is tricks it into thinking winter is still around.
Step Three
Choose a spot on the host plant where you wish to apply the graft, making a cut in the plant. Cut deep to get through the outer layers of bark to the nutrient rich inner area of the tree responsible for the growth of the plant.
Step Four
Notch host plant so that the cutting that is to be grafted, interlocks or at least one side aligns with the host plant or tree.
Step Five
Bind both plants with string or a cut rubber band to hold the cut sides of the pieces together, so that they are encouraged to fuse together.
Step Six
Apply a light coat of sealant, which can be found at plant nurseries and are especially designed for grafting purposes, and stake if necessary. Two years later and you will know how successfully your grafting experiment has been.
Why Is Grafting Essential
One can introduce dwarfing, cold tolerance or any other characteristic in the scion. Grafting allows easy plant propagation, since it is difficult to propagate the scion vegetatively by other means, such as cuttings. It is also commercially the most cost-effective way of raising a particular type of plant. It helps hybrids to mature faster in fruit tree breeding programmes. Hybrid seedlings take ten or more years to flower and fruit on their own roots. Grafting helps reduce the time to flower and shortens the breeding programme. As well, it helps make a plant hardy, as the weak roots of the scion are replaced with stock plant roots that are more tolerant of difficult conditions.
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