2017 Grafting thread: Open to all

[b54red]

Originally Posted by Hellmanns

The humidifier is a must have for me. I can look at my grafts without fear of losing the humidity.

I grafted over several weeks back in the spring, and noticed warmer temps actually helped me.

Too cold is not good because it slows the healing process to the point where the grafts have to stay in the healing chamber too long. However grafting in the heat of summer is even more difficult.

Bill

[My Foot Smells]

Originally Posted by b54red

Too cold is not good because it slows the healing process to the point where the grafts have to stay in the healing chamber too long. However grafting in the heat of summer is even more difficult.

Bill

being a complete novice here, I was wondering why the preferred grafting technique is a simple slice. Makes it seem like a teeter toter doing the chop suey method.

Could you not slice the stem in 1/2 lengthwise on both specimens about 1/2" or more and THEN weld THAT together?

& does this "healing chamber" apparatus seem kinda gimmicky? or is it really useful? seems like you could create an applicable atmosphere that would be similar.

w/o applied experience here, it seems like there might be a better mouse trap on the horizon. IDK

...but in response to the spring weather, it seems like you could just "wrap" two plants together with some sort of dissolving tape and it would take. seems like it would be better than balancing a leafy top on a pencil tip.


Graft during early morning or just after sunset. At these times, the plant will be moving water from its roots to its leaves (transpiring) at a slower rate, which makes it less vulnerable to stress from grafting and the accompanying water loss. Ideally, you should carry out the grafting indoors and in a shaded location.[8]

• If you can only graft the plants at another time, move them to a shady spot in the early morning of the day you plan to graft.

[Cole_Robbie]

I hope to try a lot of experiments this winter. The link about using super glue, which ultimately concluded against it, made me wonder about trying rubber cement, or even just masking tape. I have also wondered about some sort of gel that would promote healing of the graft.

[My Foot Smells]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I hope to try a lot of experiments this winter. The link about using super glue, which ultimately concluded against it, made me wonder about trying rubber cement, or even just masking tape. I have also wondered about some sort of gel that would promote healing of the graft.

Perforated budding tape is used to graft a lot of different things, but primarily hard wood stuff (fruit, etc...) Although the tape dissolves in sunlight it does good job to keep things in place and would def. be more supportive. Seems like you might be able just to "skin" the plants and tape together???

Seems like most glues would be toxic, but IDK.

[BigVanVader]

What kind do you use Hellmanns?

[Father'sDaughter]

After having been through my first round of grafting, I'd say you need something that can easily expand as the joined stems begin growing thicker. That's the beauty of the silicone clips -- they easily expand so they can be left on until the graft is 100% healed and able to sustain "weight" without a brace, which seemed to be about the time the clip would be completely pushed off.

As for the humidity chamber, it can be as simple or as complex as you like. Mine was a 1020 tray and a humidity dome with adjustable vents. These helped slowly reduce the humidity over several days until I could completely remove the dome. I know others simply use plastic tubs with lids and just slowly crack them open over time. Online I've seen bigger set ups used by more commercial scale growers using frames, plastic sheeting, and humidifiers.

[Hellmanns]

Originally Posted by BigVanVader

What kind do you use Hellmanns?

I used the silicone grafting clips. I had a "few" maybe 1 or 2 out of a batch of 40 grafts that would push apart. My last round of grafts I actually used a silicone clip, then used a spring clip to keep it snug. I removed the spring clips when the grafts were removed from the healing chamber.

[Hellmanns]

Originally Posted by My Foot Smells

being a complete novice here, I was wondering why the preferred grafting technique is a simple slice. Makes it seem like a teeter toter doing the chop suey method.

Could you not slice the stem in 1/2 lengthwise on both specimens about 1/2" or more and THEN weld THAT together?

& does this "healing chamber" apparatus seem kinda gimmicky? or is it really useful? seems like you could create an applicable atmosphere that would be similar.

w/o applied experience here, it seems like there might be a better mouse trap on the horizon. IDK

...but in response to the spring weather, it seems like you could just "wrap" two plants together with some sort of dissolving tape and it would take. seems like it would be better than balancing a leafy top on a pencil tip.


Graft during early morning or just after sunset. At these times, the plant will be moving water from its roots to its leaves (transpiring) at a slower rate, which makes it less vulnerable to stress from grafting and the accompanying water loss. Ideally, you should carry out the grafting indoors and in a shaded location.[8]

• If you can only graft the plants at another time, move them to a shady spot in the early morning of the day you plan to graft.

You have to have a healing chamber of some sort to keep the humidity near 100% for at least a couple of days. I also learned that the cut doesn't have to be perfect either with a healing chamber and ultrasonic humidifier.

[Flattop]

When you are hardening off grafts and dropping humidity, your goal should be to drop the humidity 15-20% per day.

I used an ultrasonic humidifier I got from Walgreens inside a 5'x5'x7' tall grow chamber for 4 years. The humidifier was on a timer and the outlet for the fog perfectly fit a 1.5" or 2" PVC fitting which pipes the fog into the chamber. The tank is 1.5-2 gallons and that tank didn't need to be filled for 10 day or more depending on the stage of graft healing.

I have since bought a Green Air RHC-R Relative Humidity Controller and love it. It's $300 retail, but I have found it highly accurate and it's very easy to lose $300 in grafts at $10-$12 retail. I also tried using those $10-$20 little grey and orange humidistats you can find on Amazon and had some disastrous results with the sensors frying out on several. If you have a large indoor growing area like a greenhouse or high tunnel or are grafting using a larger healing chamber, you should invest in something that can double check your humidity like a sling psychrometer. It will help you forecast cultural-related conditions and allow you to learn the conditions that help/hurt your plants.

[Hellmanns]

After growing umpteen thousands of Big Beef over the years, I'm TOTALLY impressed with Big Beef grafted to the Maxifort rootstock!

The plants are pruned to 2 leaders and are setting fruit in the 4th set of blooms up the plants, 7 trusses at this point. Not only are they setting fruit, the fruit is still exploding from the flower, and the size of a marble with the petals still fresh and yellow! The thing I'm liking is the plants have had half the fertilizer I would normally have used by this point, and 1/3 of the water to keep standard Big Beef plants fruitful!

[bitterwort]

Hellmanns, in my experience, Maxifort seems to keep the vines going and producing later in the season as well. I'll be interested if that's your experience too.

[b54red]

Originally Posted by bitterwort

Hellmanns, in my experience, Maxifort seems to keep the vines going and producing later in the season as well. I'll be interested if that's your experience too.

I don't know about all the root stocks but from what I have seen the one thing they have in common is a very developed root system. When I pull plants up at the end of the season or is some mishap befalls them I am constantly surprised at the large root system.

Bill

[Hellmanns]

The grafted Big Beef plants have grown a foot taller this past week. The new growth is full and thick, even though the plants are LOADED with fruit from bottom to top!

Originally Posted by Father'sDaughter

My plants are still doing great. Because my graft point is so low, whenever I go through and pinch suckers and tie to stakes, I also check to make sure the scion isn't producing roots.

As I posted in the rootstock thread, I have three varieties grafted onto two different rootstock -- RST-104-106-T and DRO141TX. Last week they seemed to be neck and neck. Today the plants on DRO141TX are now about 6-8 inches taller and have twice as many flower trusses as those on RST-204-106-T.

My other plants are all on DRO141TX and all have many more flower trusses than I've ever seen. The seed stock description lists it as balanced between generative and vegetive and what I'm seeing so far seems to agree with that.

Thanks for the info about DRO141TX.

(I'm catching up on this thread now as my southern hemisphere season is just about to start, seedlings in trays, grafting soon!)

[gdaddybill]

Has anyone tried parafilm or Buddy Tape to wrap tomato grafts. These are stretch and wrap materials. A bit wide perhaps but it should be easy to cut while the paper is still attached. Too many wraps might be a problem--it adheres to itself. Great for grafting fruit trees!