North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Steve <sdw12986@aol.com>]

Alexander Dragotin wrote:
> I shouldn’t intervene in other’s talk, but I would tell my experience.
>
> I am freesing my budwood since more than 15 years. I wrap the wood in 
> moist paper (usually newspaper), put it in a plastick bag and friese it 
> at ca. 25 Degree F/-4 Degree C.
>
> Up to the late spring meintains the stored wood its excellent condition. 
> I have made it with drupes, pipfruit, persimmon and every other kind of 
> scion wood.
>
> Alex

Alex, someone (possibly you) mentioned in the past about storing scion 
wood at about that temperature. That might actually be an ideal 
temperature for storying scions because it is cold enough to really stop 
fungus growth but not so cold that it damages the scions.

The problem is that, for most of us, if we were to freeze our scions, 
our freezers are set to about 0 degrees F. That might lead to drying out 
or other damage. I would not be able to easily make an area that stays 
only a few degrees below freezing. I could figure out how to do it but 
it's not worth my time since I handle only a small number of scions each 
year.

Here's another thought. When I was a kid, I had a great uncle who owned 
a cabin on Drummond Island (Google it if you are curious). We would go 
out fishing and catch dozens of perch. My uncle had a method of freezing 
them so that they would last for months, even years, without freezer 
burn. We would put a little water in a half gallon milk carton, place as 
many perch fillets as it could hold. Top it off with more water and 
freeze it into a solid block. So, when we say the scions dry out, that 
is basically freezer burn, right? Maybe if there was a reason that 
scions had to be collected at the beginning of the winter and held until 
spring, they would stay completely dormant and completely hydrated if 
frozen in a block of ice. I know it's not necessary for apples (I know 
someone who grafted apples the following year and Lon just mentioned a 
similar story) but I have had trouble with apricot scions popping buds 
in the refrigerator and even pears have pushed out some green tips 
before it was time to graft them. Just some thoughts that I'll probably 
never test myself.

Steve in the Adirondacks