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Another take on parafilm, from a peony group I follow.  Note this was a response to a couple of people who either liked parafilm or thought it sounded like they might want to try it.  Helmut's comment at the end is true - people talked about whittling roots to fit stock, and no one had mentioned matching cambium.  Nonetheless, lots of people had reported good success - I had been wondering if there might be a lot of undifferentiated tissue in the crown, making precise placement less important.

Ginda

Begin forwarded message:

> From: "farm_free" 
> Date: April 18, 2004 11:06:12 AM EDT
> To: peony@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [peony] Re: More about Grafting .
> Reply-To: peony@yahoogroups.com
>
> Hello Everyone,
> Yes, parafilm is a "dream" to use.....that turns into a nightmare.
> It is expensive, it does not stick to form a waterproof layer, it 
> tears with root expansion. However, it is better than using nothing, 
> but probably just as effective.
> Using wax to seal the graft union has always been the preferred 
> traditional method to seal graft joints from water and air 
> contamination. It can also be applied to any wounds on the rootstock 
> or scion. It is very beneficial to seal the scion to prevent moisture 
> loss and fungal contamination. Rose growers, since discovering the 
> benefits of waxing use it extensively to wax the stems of new roses 
> each spring.
> Wax is relatively cheap compared to Parafilm. There are grafting 
> waxes available specifically formulated for grafting. These waxes 
> actually will stick unlike Parafilm. They contain a mixture of 
> paraffin wax, resin, bees wax and petroleum jelly. Roses are dipped 
> in melted paraffin wax to form a nice non sticky, clean, moisture 
> proof coating. Paraffin wax is used extensively in home canning to 
> seal jars of preserves. It is cheap and readily available at home 
> canning time in the fall.
> Another worry-some aspect of grafting is cambium constriction
> (girdling). Pulling a plastic tape very tightly over the graft union 
> can cause cambium constriction when left for an extended period of 
> time. Choosing incorrect plastic bands that are wound too tightly 
> will result in constriction with the ulimate loss of grafts. If the 
> cuts that were made to form the graft are clean and smooth, and the 
> match of rootstock to scion is precise, there is no need for tightly 
> wrapping with plastic tape and strong rubber bands. The rubber tapes  
> that are designed for grafting are thin, flat and surprisingly weak. 
> When wax is applied over the rubber band a rigid unmovable union is 
> formed.
> It is interesting that nobody has brought up the topic of matching 
> root stock cambium to scion cambium...the central most important 
> aspect of grafting.
>
> Helmut
>
>
>
> --- In peony@yahoogroups.com, "Robert C. Johnson" wrote....  
> > In fact, I unwrapped one, and within an hour or so there had been some 
> > lateral splitting of the root...... 
> >
> > When I wrapped my grafts, I'll have to admit that I wrapped them as 
> > tightly as I possibly could, and......it didn't seem to hurt anything.  Any 
> > ideas on this ???
> >
> > Plus.....Do you think could you get away with using that Parafilm on its 
> > own ??
> >
> > Does it have enough strength to be wrapped tightly and not break ??
> >
> > And is it sticky enough that it actually sticks to the plant tissue ??  
> > If it did, that would be a plus, I would think.  The green tape certainly 
> > doesn't have any stickiness to it at all.
>
>
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