Grafting

[Dave Leppo]

single-point graft may be the answer, IF you can bend the branch w/o breaking it.

 

[Poink88]

single-point graft may be the answer, IF you can bend the branch w/o breaking it.

Please explain.

If I understand you right, I may have done that using an "L" shaped branch (a branch with another branch coming out at 90 degrees)...producing a graft that looks like coming out of the main tree at a "believable" angle. Is this the same? Thank you.

 

[amkhalid]

Please explain.

If I understand you right, I may have done that using an "L" shaped branch (a branch with another branch coming out at 90 degrees)...producing a graft that looks like coming out of the main tree at a "believable" angle. Is this the same? Thank you.

One point or single point grafts are an amazing tool. They are best done in the summer with conifers that produce delicate new growth.

You drill a hole in the tree where you want a new branch - not all the way through, but just about 0.5 inches in. Then you take a young shoot, preferably this years growth, still green, and fold it back on itself. Then you jam it the "elbow" into the hole you drilled. It is like a thread graft. Works best for conifers because they can handle the folding part. Some will die after folding... then you justr try it again. If the "scion" survives the fold, it has a great chance of taking. I've done it successfully with hemlock. Nick Lenz describes it in his book.

Here is a pic of my hemlock right after the operation.

Here is the grafted branch a couple years later.

I may have also successfully grafted hinoki onto thuja using this technique, but too early to tell.

 

[coh]

Very interesting technique. I've read about it but never really understood what they were talking about.

Do you scrape the cutting to expose cambium before inserting it?

Chris

 

[Dav4]

Great post, awesome results, too. I've seen this done with Zushio JWP but have never tried it...I may give this a shot with some of my yews.

 

[Redwood Ryan]

One point or single point grafts are an amazing tool. They are best done in the summer with conifers that produce delicate new growth.

You drill a hole in the tree where you want a new branch - not all the way through, but just about 0.5 inches in. Then you take a young shoot, preferably this years growth, still green, and fold it back on itself. Then you jam it the "elbow" into the hole you drilled. It is like a thread graft. Works best for conifers because they can handle the folding part. Some will die after folding... then you justr try it again. If the "scion" survives the fold, it has a great chance of taking. I've done it successfully with hemlock. Nick Lenz describes it in his book.

Here is a pic of my hemlock right after the operation.

Here is the grafted branch a couple years later.

I may have also successfully grafted hinoki onto thuja using this technique, but too early to tell.

Excellent technique! I wonder how it would work on Ficus

 

[amkhalid]

Very interesting technique. I've read about it but never really understood what they were talking about.

Do you scrape the cutting to expose cambium before inserting it?

Chris

No... like a thread graft the union forms as a result of the constriction between the mated parts.

Scraping might help, but more likely it will just reduce the success that your folded-over scion will survive, since you already essentially tore it in half.

I've seen it done with pines but the thick nature of pine branches means bigger holes and scars.

As for ficus, I would opt for a thread graft. There is no point doing a one-point graft on a species that is conducive to thread grafting.

 

[amkhalid]

Great post, awesome results, too. I've seen this done with Zushio JWP but have never tried it...I may give this a shot with some of my yews.

I think yew would be an ideal candidate for this type of graft.

 

[Poink88]

One point or single point grafts are an amazing tool. They are best done in the summer with conifers that produce delicate new growth.

You drill a hole in the tree where you want a new branch - not all the way through, but just about 0.5 inches in. Then you take a young shoot, preferably this years growth, still green, and fold it back on itself. Then you jam it the "elbow" into the hole you drilled. It is like a thread graft. Works best for conifers because they can handle the folding part. Some will die after folding... then you justr try it again. If the "scion" survives the fold, it has a great chance of taking. I've done it successfully with hemlock. Nick Lenz describes it in his book.

....

I may have also successfully grafted hinoki onto thuja using this technique, but too early to tell.

THANKS!!!! First time I've seen this technique!

I can see lots of mutilated whips in my future... LOL

 

[Redwood Ryan]

As for ficus, I would opt for a thread graft. There is no point doing a one-point graft on a species that is conducive to thread grafting.

Thanks, I know that . I'm just wondering how this kind of technique would work on them. Sounds pretty easy..

 

[Poink88]

I think yew would be an ideal candidate for this type of graft.

...as well as boxwood (since it cannot be defoliated---at least here). I am excited!!! (can you tell?)

 

[Dave Leppo]

the key is if the branch can be bent back on itself and survive, and you can find this out pretty easily by trying to bend any unneeded branch on the same or similar tree.

 

[fore]

Ok, Smoke is going to hate me for this, but though I never have tried grafting yet, I've seen trees with both approach and threaded grafts yrs. after being done. The threaded ones seemed to have more of a bulge at the point of the junction. The approach ones were quite smooth transition. Anyone else notice this?

 

[coh]

I have seen photos of thread grafted branches that have the bulge you're talking about. Maybe the bulge kind of fades with time as the branch grows? Not sure, haven't had the opportunity to evaluate results long term.

Chris

 

[ABCarve]

This is a trident over rock. The whips were not scraped and held in place with a staple gun (2nd growing season). They continue up the trunk and become thread grafts. Two for one, courtesy of Bill V. idea.

 

[jeremy_norbury]

Did anyone ever prove this worked for them?

 

[ABCarve]

Did anyone ever prove this worked for them?

It worked partially. They took at the base but not as the thread graft above. I would try it again but have the donors in their own nursery pot. These were bare rooted seedling with very few of their own roots.