Grafting, a vegetative method of propagating plants when parts of two or more of them are combined, has been used by gardeners since time immemorial. It is especially widely used for propagating trees and shrubs. Many methods have been developed for combining plants, including using tools. This allows you to vaccinate them efficiently and without a lot of time and physical effort.
Will need
It is best to graft plants of the same species: apple tree with apple tree, pear tree with pear tree, etc. We will use early and late cherries as a rootstock and scion, respectively.
To carry out the work from start to finish, we need to prepare the following tools and materials:
- drill with twist drill;
- garden pruner;
- knife;
- garden var.
Grafting process
We will graft cuttings from late cherries onto early cherries. The trunk must be of sufficient size, healthy and without any damage. Using garden pruning shears, cut a cutting from a late cherry tree with a diameter approximately matching the size of the drill. Moreover, there should be three or four buds on the cuttings.
On an early cherry tree, we select an area free of branches and, using a drill with a twist drill at an angle at which the branches are mainly located, make a hole to a certain depth.
At the thick end of the cutting, stepping back from the end at a distance approximately equal to the depth of the drilled hole in the trunk of the rootstock, use a knife to make a circular cut and remove the bark from the intended area.
We try on the cutting prepared for installation to the hole in the rootstock and, if necessary, additionally plan it. If the length of the bare part of the handle turns out to be slightly greater than the depth of the hole, then shorten it with a knife. In this case, after installation is completed, the bark of the rootstock and scion should come into contact along the entire circumference.
For reliability, according to the described method, we graft a couple more cuttings of late cherries onto the trunk of early cherries. If the handle fits into the hole too tightly, then you can lightly tap on its free end with some object, for example, the same pruning shears.
Now it is imperative to cover the junction of the rootstock and scion, as well as the end of the cutting, with garden varnish to prevent dirt, dust, pathogens and insects from getting there.
After about one week you can see results. If the work was carried out in late spring, the buds on the cuttings will swell, and some will even bloom. This means that the described vaccination method works and has a right to exist.
