Grafting and why

[danielnc84]

Why are people grafting tomato plants? is it really reliable and can your avg joe graft tomato plants?

[b54red]

I am trying grafting this year for the first time. I am doing it because I have a terrible fusarium problem in my soil which has made growing any tomatoes very difficult. Most of the heirlooms I have tried don't have a chance and the ones that do usually do not last very long. Fusarium resistant hybrids that have a much better chance of succeeding are for the most part not the tastiest tomatoes. By grafting heirlooms onto a resistant rootstock I am hoping to keep them alive long enough to produce a decent crop of tomatoes that I love.

Anyone can attempt grafting; but it may take some practice for most to get good at it. I have had many failures but have still produced plenty of grafted plants to put in the garden. I'm hoping that with more experience I will figure out how to be more successful with my grafting.

If you have fusarium, nematodes or any other soil diseases that are limiting your tomato growing you might want to try it. There is a long thread here on Tomatoville where some of us talk of our experiences grafting and there are some good tips there also. If you decide to try it good luck and have fun with it.

Bill

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by danielnc84

Why are people grafting tomato plants? is it really reliable and can your avg joe graft tomato plants?

Daniel, have you read the current grafting thread here in General Discussion, and if you haven't I think it would help you a lot to help answer the question you posed.

It's a few threads down from yours and is long, but for anyone interested in grafting, and WHY, I think it's THE best thread around, as you'll see.

Hope that helps,

Carolyn