Great progress Scott. I need to do the exact same thing to a tree I have so would love a little more info/tips with your process of grafting?...
Here's a great link.
http://bonsaitonight.com/?s=grafting+black+pine
Jonas does a great job walking you through the process.
And be sure to watch the master at work.
You'll need some tools:
A grafting knife, some cellophane bags, and some grafting tape. Put some sphagnum moss inside of the bags to keep the humidity in there high.
The keys to success are lining up the cambium, cutting healthy scions, keeping the moss wet (I use a little syringe), and doing it at the right time of year.
...how old are the scions your using? also looks like you have used forked branches as scions?....
The scions are all 1-2 years old. They were all decandled the previous season. It's ok to use a scion with two shoots from last summers decandling. Just make sure they are healthy and not too strong or not too weak.
...what time of year did you graft these?...
Ideally, you should graft when the understock is growing, but the scions are dormant. Some people will cut their scions in winter and keep them in the refrigerator until spring, but then you're not using fresh scions. Second best is to graft when both the scions and understock are dormant. Here in Houston, that's a 2 week period at the end of January. That's when I do it.
...How long till they take?...
You'll generally know in a month or so if they're going to take. If they're still green at the end of summer they're going to make it.
...when did you take the bag off?...
Take it off in stages. First cut a hole into the bag, then rip the end of the bag off. I cut it off completely when I've got some good growth. That might be the end of the first season, or it might be the following spring. Key is to make sure the graft union is secure before you remove its support. Stressing the union will kill the graft.
...What'd you use to cut into the branch?...
Grafting knife above.
Good luck - once you get the hang of it it's really fun.
Scott
