Hey folks!
Apologies River - I just realised that I didn’t acknowledge you last post on this.
Ok, so I did my decandling at the end of June / beginning of July and I’ve got lots of buds appeared. Some of these are still a bit on the short side, but others are growing nicely. Should I do anything with the shoots where new buds are appearing? As in thinning them out? I was wondering if I should reduce my planned scion stock to just one bud? Or doesn’t it matter?
Thanks again,
Andy
In the fall i thin the buds and shoots to two, typically the medium strength and side to side where possible! The exception is when i wish to grow out a sacrifice branch or leader. In this case i keep the strong central bud and one side bud, removing the others.
For grafting scion bud selection i prefer to choose medium strength buds, one or two. ( your choice) i prefer two opposite buds on a shorter scion as this gives me options in styling and development after grafting. This is a little trickier in cutting the scion for proper orientation of buds and you do have the option of side to side or up down in placing the graft.
I have had the best results with scions that are approximately this size. Buds approx 3/8 to 1/2 inch in length. Scion overall length 1 1/2 inch to 2 inch after cutting. Scion diameter 1/4 to 3/16 inch in width.
The method of attachment of the scion i prefer is with grafting pins, grafting tape, and sealed with caulking to prevent desiccation. I use the bag cover with dampened sphagnum moss over top and masking tape to provide a bit of sun shield.
Biggest problem is impatience and removing or cutting the bag too soon!
For example i am jus