Grafting follow up. Cleft, Whip and Tongue, Bud Grafting. 8.31.14

Sweet Cherry Bud Graft.  Grafted mid-July 2014.  9.1.14

Lilac Bud Grafts.  Grafted June 2014.  8.31.14

Hollywood Plum Bud Graft.  Grafted late May 2014.   8.31.14 

Cerasifolia Plum graft.  Grafted late May 2014.  8.31.14

 This is a follow up on a few of the grafts I've done.  The lilac bud grafts all appear to have taken.  The buds are plump and green and look similar to the "native" buds on the stock.  They have a good start for winter.

Most of the earlier bud grafts, from late May, healed and merged with the stock, and did not grow.  That is pretty much as I expected.  They look ready for winter.  For late winter pruning, the plan is to cut the stock above the buds, so that there is no auxin - inhibition and they take off and grow next Spring.

Two of the May plum bud grafts took off and grew like crazy.  The cerasifolia graft shows up nicely against the green foliage of the stock tree.  Hollywood would do the same.  i wonder if these rapidly grown grafts will bloom next year.  If they do, that will be awesome.

Cerasifolia Plum Bud Graft.  Grafted late May 2014.  8.31.14

Sour Cherry Bud Graft.  Grafted July 2014.  8.31.14

Sweet Cherry Bud Grafts.  Grafted July 2014.  8.31.14

 The sour cherry and sweet cherry bud grafts mostly appear to have taken.  Possibly, all of them.  Most look about the same as the native buds on the stock trees.  The sides of the T-slice tend to curl back as the bud and tree callous and merge.  The top of the T seems to callous and merge without peeling back.

Last year's cleft graft on the Asian Pears, have almost completely healed over.  I was interested to see if the expose wood, would be a problem.  It looks like there is not problem.  At this rate, next year they will be completely filled in, leaving a visible graft but no open wood.

This year's Whip/Tongue grafts on the Asian pears, both the Asian pears I grafted and the European pears, have all healed over completely.  Growth surprised me - most had 2 to 3 feet of growth.  That is faster than the cleft grafts, in general.  Not a good test, but with no exposed wood, and instant, full cambium connection, whip/tongue in theory could give a faster start.

This is only a few of the many grafts I did this year.  All plum grafts took, all pear and apple grafts took.  Only one of the whip/tongue grafts on lilacs took.  It looks like all of the bud grafts on lilac took, so maybe that's the best method for them.

Grafting is amazing.  I can't believe it works.  It should - it's been done for thousands of years.  But it's still amazing.

Asian Pear Cleft Graft. Grafted March 2013.  8.31.14

Pear Whip and Tongue Graft.  Grafted March 2014.  8.31.14



Another Lilac bud graft, about 3 weeks.  9.1.14

Four O'clocks, Morning Glories. 9.1.14

Four O'clock "Marvel of Peru" 8.31.14

Four O'Clock "Marvel of Peru".  8.31.14

The container Four O'Clocks have finished blooming.  They started early, and finished early.  The in-ground Four O'Clocks started later, and are continuing to bloom profusely.  They don't dry out as fast as the ones in containers.  I can see a role for both methods.

I transplanted some Four O'Clocks out of their deck box, into to soil in a secluded spot under the eves and now a bit cut-off by the sunroom.  They will be nice there.  The location is sheltered.  They should have a good chance to survive the winter.  I expect they will also drop seeds and may re-seed there too.

In the front bed, the 4 O'Clocks are among the brightest and most colorful plants in bloom now.  Daylilies are good, but need protection from deer.  Deer have not eaten any of the 4 O'Clocks.  Neither have rabbits.

Four O'clocks and other flowers.  8.31.14

It turned out that a June start for Morning Glories worked just fine.  I gave the plants to Ning and he planted them in his potager.  They are a nice mix of dark blue, light blue, pink and very light pink.

I was surprised that the foraging animals did not eat morning glories. 

This is a good learning for next year.  I like both of these plants.  I have not grown them before.  They are an excellent example of what can be grown from seeds, and much better than plants that are available in the nurseries and grocery stores.

Ning embraced pee-cycling with a vengeance.  His Four O'Clocks and Morning glories, and everything else, were fertilized with generous amounts.  They grew rapidly, to large size, and are blooming profusely.

Ning's Potager.  8.31.14

Apple Whip and Tongue Graft at 6 Months. 8.24.14

Almost 6 months.  I grafted these about March 1.  The graft is nearly invisible now.  Vigorous, 5 foot tall tree.  Another I did at the same time is about 2 feet tall.  I think the difference is, the taller one was grafted onto a more vigorous shoot.

Apple Whip and Tongue at 6 months

Apple Whip and Tongue Graft at 6 months.

Old Charlie. 8.23.14

Charlie.  8.13.14

He's 13 years old now.  The best friend I ever had.  His eyes are rheumy, and his joints are stiff in the am.  Once in a while he'll fall down for no apparent reason.  He can't handle the heat.  Neither can I.  He breathes heavily with minimal effort.  Even so, he runs up the stairs to greet me, barks at the cat, wags his tale all of the time, rests his chin on the computer keyboard, and stays not more than 5 feet away from me whenever I'm home.  He's comfortable and happy.  I wash his rheumy eyes every day.  His aging breaks my heart.

Garden Harvest. Bud Grafts. 8.23.14

Garden Harvest 8.23.14

Not much chance to garden this weekend.  All work via internet.

But here are the items Ning picked in the kitchen garden, raised beds.

Really nice.  We have a bunch of zucchini already.  I like the yellow supper squash better.

I did remove polyethylene tape from a few of the 3 weeks old bud grafts.  They look pretty good in general.  On some, the buds are hard to see, on others the buds are large and plump.  A couple might not have taken, but most are promising.  Also on the lilac that I budded.