To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] persimmon grafting
Date: Mon, 21 Nov 2005 12:45:52 -0600
At 12:04 PM 11/21/2005, Doc L wrote:
How
about explaining your method of preventing "blow out"?
Your method worked for me after you advised how to prevent it. It
could be a problem for some persimmon grafter
wannabes.
Thanks,Doc,
You're right - some of these grafts will put on some very vigorous
growth, and while a bark graft gives a lot of cambium contact on multiple
surfaces, it's not very strong for the first year or two, so is subject
to 'blowing out' when a stiff catches the leaves or when a bird
lights(perches) on it.
Probably the simplest thing is to take a nice little bamboo stake and
shove it down into the soil next to the rootstock stem - on the
'backside' of the stem, away from your graft, take a couple of wraps
around stake & rootstock with masking tape just to secure the two
together, then, as the scion pushes out growth, train it in an upright
fashion by taping it to the bamboo stake - this will help promote upright
growth - some of mine, that I didn't stake , have a pretty noticeable
'dog-leg' in them, as a result - as well as protecting against
'blow-out'.
Ideally, your stake should extend at least a couple of feet above the
level of the graft - with a well-established rootstock plant, your
graft may grow that much or more in the first year - but sometimes
less.
I don't always get around to staking in a timely manner, and I've been
pretty dismayed to walk out and find a nice vigorously-growing graft
lying shriveled or crispy & blackened on the ground.