Potato grafting

StrongPlant · July 24, 2016

I grow potatoes each year but every time the poato beetles destroy most of them,and they are difficult to control.Last year I saw on the internet a so-called "pomato" -a tomato grafted onto potato rootstock,which got me intrigued.Since potato beetles don't really prefer tomato plants I thought this might be a solution.I grafted a dwarf tomato on potato last winter just to make sure it's even possible,because I don't always trust online information,and when I can test a claim easily,I always do it.This is the plant,and the very first graft I made:

The plant grew incredibly fast because it was grafted on a very large potato,and was leeching carbohydrates from it.Within a couple of months,the plant eventually died and a small,new tuber was developed.This confirmed to me that it's possible.
Next,I grafted another tomato scion,this time an indeterminate F1 I crossed myself.I let the 2 main stems grow.It was planted in february,and dug out in may.
The entire plant:

The place of graft thickened and hardened,looking like a base of a small tree:

The plant developed 3 tubers,one very large and 2 small ones:

The tomato scion was prunned of all flower buds as soon as they emerged,to focus all the energy to tubers.The experiment was a success,however the grafted plants can not outperform non-grafted potatoes.The goal here is to a) Improve potato resistance to pests/diseases and b) to improve yields
Another scion was used instead tomato,Solanum nigrum,but even though the graft fused and plant grew,it was way more susceptible to disease and aphids for unkown reason,and showed poor tuber formation.I'm planning to try various other scions next season,but this time focus on the ones that already do store energy in their roots,just like potato,since they are more likely to perform better.
I already got Solanum dulcamara,and am looking at other possible Solanum species to use as scions.

If anyone is interested you can join me in this ongoing experiment,try different scions and report on your success/fail,maybe together we will revolutionize the way potatoes are grown.

July 24, 2016	#1
StrongPlant Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2016 Location: Europe/Serbia-Belgrade Posts: 151	Potato grafting I grow potatoes each year but every time the poato beetles destroy most of them,and they are difficult to control.Last year I saw on the internet a so-called "pomato" -a tomato grafted onto potato rootstock,which got me intrigued.Since potato beetles don't really prefer tomato plants I thought this might be a solution.I grafted a dwarf tomato on potato last winter just to make sure it's even possible,because I don't always trust online information,and when I can test a claim easily,I always do it.This is the plant,and the very first graft I made: The plant grew incredibly fast because it was grafted on a very large potato,and was leeching carbohydrates from it.Within a couple of months,the plant eventually died and a small,new tuber was developed.This confirmed to me that it's possible. Next,I grafted another tomato scion,this time an indeterminate F1 I crossed myself.I let the 2 main stems grow.It was planted in february,and dug out in may. The entire plant: The place of graft thickened and hardened,looking like a base of a small tree: The plant developed 3 tubers,one very large and 2 small ones: The tomato scion was prunned of all flower buds as soon as they emerged,to focus all the energy to tubers.The experiment was a success,however the grafted plants can not outperform non-grafted potatoes.The goal here is to a) Improve potato resistance to pests/diseases and b) to improve yields Another scion was used instead tomato,Solanum nigrum,but even though the graft fused and plant grew,it was way more susceptible to disease and aphids for unkown reason,and showed poor tuber formation.I'm planning to try various other scions next season,but this time focus on the ones that already do store energy in their roots,just like potato,since they are more likely to perform better. I already got Solanum dulcamara,and am looking at other possible Solanum species to use as scions. If anyone is interested you can join me in this ongoing experiment,try different scions and report on your success/fail,maybe together we will revolutionize the way potatoes are grown.