Grafting Fruit Trees – Fresh New Fruits

Grafting Fruit Trees: Why and How?
"There's often talk about grafting fruit trees, but why are fruit trees grafted at all, and what does this process involve? These are questions many a hobby gardener has surely pondered.

Your own apple tree in the garden looks fantastic and bears numerous apples. As soon as they're ripe, you pick the first one with great anticipation. But then the apple tastes bitter or sour and seems inedible. That's when it's time for grafting."

Fruit trees are grafted when the fruit no longer tastes good, when there are too few fruits on the tree, or when new varieties are desired. The simplest method, which even inexperienced gardeners can try, is copulation (whip-and-tongue grafting).

In this type of grafting, two parts of the fruit trees are joined together. The first part in copulation is the rootstock, which is the fruit tree that is to be grafted and has very good growth qualities. The second part is a cut shoot from the variety that is desired to grow after grafting. This part is called the scion and is cut towards the end of the year and stored in moist sand until grafting in March or April. After grafting, the new crown will grow from the scion, and the new fruits will grow on it.

Besides copulation, there are of course other ways to graft fruit trees: budding (oculation), which is often used for roses, as well as cleft grafting and bark grafting. However, these grafting methods require much more specialized knowledge and experience.

Among the various methods, copulation (whip-and-tongue grafting) is the simplest way to graft fruit trees, with the cutting technique being paramount.

First, a scion (Edelreis) is cut in winter. For this, simply cut a young shoot directly above an eye. The shoot itself should have at least three eyes. Use either a special grafting knife or a sharp utility knife. Once cut, the scion is stored until the proper grafting time in April. This is best done in a bucket of sand kept consistently moist, which will keep the scion fresh for several months.

In April, it's time for grafting. A shoot is trimmed from the fruit tree just above an eye; this cut shoot serves as the rootstock (Unterlage). The scion is then placed onto this rootstock. The cut surfaces of both shoots must lie directly on top of each other. This is best achieved with an angled cut. It's crucial not to touch the cut surfaces with your fingers to prevent bacteria or germs from entering the tree, which could weaken it through the grafting process.

To complete the grafting, the rootstock and scion are wrapped together at the joint with bast or crepe tape and sealed with tree wax. The tips of the scion are also sealed with tree wax to protect them from drying out from above.

Whether the graft was successful or not will become apparent next spring when the scion sprouts again. However, grafting requires some patience, as it's possible that the first attempt won't succeed. Failures are quite normal when grafting fruit trees, and hobby gardeners shouldn't be discouraged by them. If the grafting works, the gardener's heart will pound with joy, and the results will be impressive.

It's important to note that only fruit trees of the same species can be grafted together. So, you won't see pears growing on a cherry tree after grafting. But you might see pears on an apple tree!