Grafting is very important as it allows us to clonally propagate woody plants that cannot be rooted. That is not its only benefit though. Grafting also allows us to utilize rootstocks that add desirable traits to the plant. For example, fruit trees are typically grafted on dwarfing rootstocks which make the trees smaller and fruitful at a younger age. Another example of a way that grafting can be valuable is by allowing us to place a soil disease or pest susceptible cultivar on a rootstock that is resistant. This allows us to successfully grow those plants in less than optimum environments.

Now many gardeners think that grafting is a skill that is beyond their ability

However, that is likely not true. Grafting is not difficult, it just requires proper application of technique and a knowledge of exactly what you are trying to accomplish. Additionally, it requires practice to get good at getting things to line up correctly. It’s also worth noting that some species are considerably easier and more forgiving to graft. We suggest you start your grafting journey with one of them. Hibiscus is an excellent first plant to graft. Apples and pears are also remarkably easy to work with.

Now there are many different ways to graft (bud, cleft, whip, whip and tongue etc.). Different grafting techniques are better suited to different situations. Nonetheless, they all rely upon the same principles for success. Regardless of which technique you use, all grafting success is reliant upon creating good contact between the cambium of the scion and the rootstock. The cambium is the green layer between the brown outer bark and the white inner wood.

The reason that it is so important to line up the cambium is that this is the only living, actively growing part of the wood. In order for your scion and rootstock to successfully grow together their two cambium layers must be close together. Ideally you want them touching as much as possible. As the rootstock responds to the injury you created, it produces a mass of scar tissue that grows together with the scion connecting the two together into one plant.

Today we are going to show you how to do a cleft graft.

The reason we have chosen cleft grafts is because we feel that it is one of the easiest and most versatile grafts for a beginner to master. After you have mastered this technique you can move on to some of the more difficult techniques. Cleft grafting is nice because it can be used on branches of various sizes regardless of the size of the scion. It can even be used to ‘topwork’ old trees. This is done by cutting back the tree to a few main branches and grafting new varieties on to them.

A few basic supplies are needed to graft a tree. You need a very sharp knife, and some sort of grafting tape or film. Grafting tape is simply a special stretchy plastic that you use to hold your graft together. The grafting tape also prevents your scion from drying out and dying before it starts to receive nutrients from the rootstock. Having a roll of electrical tape can also be handy to have in your grafting kit. We also recommend cut-proof gloves to protect your fingers.

The first thing you need to do if you want to graft a tree is to acquire your scion wood.

Scions can be purchased from various places or you can collect your own if the plant you wish to graft is available to you. Scions should be collected in the winter from healthy growth which is that year’s wood. If you are not going to use them immediately, they should be stored in the refrigerator. Place them in a plastic bag and keep them moist but not wet until it is time to make your grafts.

The ideal time to graft many plants is in the spring. Trees like apples and pears are ideally grafted around the time they are just starting to leaf out. This is because the tree is actively growing. The graft union will heal quickly and allow the scion to leaf out at a normal time. Some plants such as kiwi benefit from being grafted when the weather is warmer. A quick Google search will tell you the ideal time to perform your grafts if you are unsure.

To make a cleft graft, you will need 1-2 scion pieces each with at least 2 buds on them.

If you are grafting to a rootstock who’s branch is the same diameter as your scion, you only need 1 scion piece. If you are grafting to a branch that is much larger than your scion you will need 2 pieces.

Step 1: Take your scion piece and carefully cut the bottom of it into a V shape. Be careful to leave cambium down the sides of the V and try not to damage the bark as you make your cuts.

Step 2: Next VERY carefully split your rootstock down the middle far enough that you can firmly insert your scion piece into the split. You need to be able to push it in far enough that you can line up the cambium on the scion and rootstock. If your rootstock is large, repeat the process so that you have a scion for both sides of your spilt.

Please be extremely careful when splitting your rootstock, and wear cut-proof gloves. It is extremely easy to cut your self very badly doing this step.

Step 3: Once you have carefully lined up your cambiums as closely as possible, take your grafting tape and tightly wrap your graft. Be very careful not to knock your scions out of place as you are wrapping. You will want to continue wrapping the grafting tape up your scions. Completely covered the scions in a single layer of tape to prevent them from drying out. If you are grafting onto a large branch you may wish to use grafting wax to seal the large wound. We often like to follow up wrapping our graft union with a layer of electrical tape to help hold everything together securely. Don’t wrap the entire scion with electrical tape, just the graft union.

That’s it. Then you wait.

If your graft is successful, you should see your scion start to leaf out in a few weeks or months. How long it takes depends on species and when you grafted it. If your scion has leafed out and is struggling to burst through the grafting film, it is ok to carefully help it. Be extremely gentle, so that you don’t break your fragile new graft. Also, do not unwrap your actual graft union. We usually remove the electrical tape after our graft has taken and the scion is actively growing. Do not remove the grafting tape until the following spring.

We hope this inspires you to give grafting a try. Having this skill opens up the opportunity for home gardeners to grow heirloom fruit varieties that are not commercially available. This not only gives you access to unique flavors but also to varieties better suited to local environments and low input conditions. Plus, by growing almost extinct heirloom varieties, you have the opportunity to help preserve a piece of history and genetic diversity we might need some day.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Propagate Plants Part 3: Grafting first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Propagating plants using this method can be very advantageous for several reasons, however, probably the most important reason is that the new plants will all be identical clones of their parent. There are many valuable traits in ornamental plants that cannot be reliably passed down by seed, and depending on the species, seedlings can be wildly variable and unpredictable. Thus, a clonal propagation method is often the preferred way to produce ornamental plants. The second most important reason perhaps is that many ornamental plants are hybrids that don’t produce viable seeds or have been intentionally bred to be sterile so that they are not invasive. In these cases, clonal propagation is essential.

There are 3 basic kinds of cuttings you might use to propagate plants. Softwood cuttings, hardwood cuttings, and root cuttings. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. Additionally, not all plants can be propagated by all 3 types of cuttings. Therefore, it is important for you to do research or experimentation to determine which method works best for any given species. It is also worth mentioning that not all plants can be propagated via cuttings. Some plants propagate extremely easily this way, others will not root under any circumstances.

Softwood cuttings

Softwood cuttings are fresh young growth. They are what you would get when you are propagating an annual or perennial, and they are also what you get if you take cuttings of new growth off of a woody species in the spring. Softwood cuttings are typically the quickest and easiest to get to root. For many herbaceous plants, cuttings can be taken at any time and rooted easily. However, it is worth noting that for many plants there is an optimum time of year for taking cuttings. Cuttings taken outside of this window may root at a much lower rate or not at all. For this reason, many woody plants are propagated seasonally in the spring using softwood cuttings.

While softwood cuttings typically root more quickly and easily than hardwood cuttings. The downside to softwood cuttings is that ideal conditions need to be met for you to succeed. It can be tricky to keep the cutting from drying out without keeping it so wet that it rots while it roots. Intermittent mist or fog systems are ideal if you’re interested in rooting large quantities of softwood cuttings. However, in many cases home growers can get cuttings to root using a clear plastic bag to retain moisture around their cuttings.

Making and sticking softwood cuttings is easy to do once you understand a few basics.

Cuttings will ideally have at least two nodes. Nodes are the places where the leaves are attached. At the base of each leaf is a bud capable of creating new shoots. Also, you want to make sure you take your cuttings from healthy growth or you will likely fail to succeed. The length/size of your cutting will vary depending on the species, however, the goal is to create a cutting large enough to root but not so large that it cannot support itself. A lot of times this translates to a piece of growth that is 3-4” long.

Once you have cut your branch piece with at least 2 nodes, you want to carefully remove all of the leaves except one at the top. If this leaf is large it should be cut in half or less to reduce the amount of surface area it can lose moisture from. Make sure you keep track of the branch’s orientation. Cuttings that are stuck upside down from how they were growing on the plant typically fail to root.

Dip the bottom of the cutting in rooting hormone and carefully stick it into a moist, airy, sterile potting mix. Then place the cuttings into a humid environment and wait. In a few days or weeks the cutting should have created a ‘callous’ which is a mass of white growth at the bottom of the cutting. This is basically pre-roots and means that your cutting is likely to be a success. You will typically know that your cutting has successfully rooted when it starts to actively grow new shoots from the top node. You can also test for roots by very gently tugging on the cutting.

Hardwood cuttings

Hardwood cuttings are cuttings made from older growth. Hardwood cuttings are often taken in the fall and rooted over the winter. The process is essentially identical to the softwood cutting method discussed above except hardwood cuttings typically do not have leaves on them.

Hardwood cuttings come with the disadvantage that they often take much longer to root, and your success rate might be lower. Less species can be rooted this way and they also typically need higher concentrations of rooting hormones for success. However, they come with one major advantage in that they are much more forgiving of conditions. Because they are dormant, they do not require the elaborate humidity setup softwood cuttings require.

Hardwood cuttings typically benefit from bottom heat (like sitting on a heat mat) which helps them to root. Because hardwood cuttings root very slowly, to succeed with hardwood cuttings your goal is to provide enough warmth to the bottom of the cutting to allow root growth, but to keep the top of the cutting cool enough that it does not break dormancy. Thus you want to keep them in a cool/cold area with gentle bottom heat. If the cuttings break dormancy and grow before they establish roots, they are likely to ultimately fail.

Root cuttings

Lastly, we are going to discuss root cuttings. Root cuttings are probably the least common cutting method, however they are also probably the easiest to execute. Plus, some plant will only propagate via root cuttings so they are worth understanding. Root cuttings are simply chopped up pieces of roots that will grow new plants.

Root cuttings are great in the sense that you chop the roots up, plant them, water them, walk away, and then wait. They require no special care or treatment to be successful. The major disadvantage, as you can probably imagine, is that you have to get roots somehow. This requires you to dig up your parent plant potentially harming it. It can also be difficult to get large quantities of roots to use for cuttings.

That is why hardwood and softwood cuttings are typically preferred methods.

To take root cuttings you dig up your plant, look for large healthy roots (for many plants pencil size is a good size to aim for). Cut them up into pieces a couple inches long and then replant them. Please keep in mind before trying root cuttings, many plants will not grow from root cuttings. Because you risk harming your parent plant we would highly recommend verifying if root cuttings are an option for that species before trying this method.

If you have never tried growing new plants from cuttings, we would encourage you to give it a try. Coleus and Impatiens are great first plants to try with, but once you get the hang of it, it can be addictive. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!

Next time we will be talking about the third commonly used method of propagation, grafting. If you don’t want to miss out on that article, don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter!

Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Propagate Plants Part 2: Cuttings first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Because seeds are often the easiest and cheapest way to get new plants we are going to start our series with seed propagation. As you probably know, most flowering plants produce seeds. The purpose of the flower is reproduction. As a general rule, seeds need warm moist conditions to germinate.

Not all seeds germinate equally well or under the same conditions.

The seeds of annual plants typically germinate very easily. These are most of the seeds you can buy at stores in the spring. There entire existence relies upon seeds germinating, so that makes sense. Seeds of perennials and woody plants often are much more difficult to get to germinate. However, if you know the tricks of the trade you can successfully germinate these seeds also.

If you are interested in germinating some of these more difficult seeds you may need to utilize various techniques to mimic the natural conditions they would typically germinate under. Many plants have some sort of germination inhibitor that must be overcome to allow the seeds to germinate. The reason they have this is to ensure their survival.

Luckily, we humans have determined the optimum germination conditions for almost any seeds you’d want to germinate. We also have access to the internet allowing us to quickly determine what sort of environment different seeds might need to successfully germinate. If you would like to germinate some more difficult seeds, or have had trouble getting seeds to germinate, read on to learn more about various techniques used to encourage seed germination.

Stratification

Some plants require what is called cold stratification, while others require warm stratification.

Warm stratification mimics the heat of summer, and it requires a period of keeping the seeds moist at elevated temperatures. It is less commonly needed than cold stratification, but when needed can be accomplished by keeping the planted seeds on a heat mat.

Cold stratification mimics the cold of winter, and the warming of spring. It is an important survival technique that prevents seeds from germinating in the late summer or fall and then dying over the winter before they have opportunity to get established enough to survive the winter. Cold stratification is planting the seed in moist conditions and then chilling them for the required amount of time. Once the seeds have been chilled, they are moved to warm conditions to germinate.

You can accomplish cold stratification by planting your seeds in a pot and then placing the pot in your refrigerator. Another way to accomplish stratification is through fall or winter sowing seeds. For difficult to germinate seeds (like passion flower seeds), winter sowing may be one of the best ways to get them to germinate. The reason for this is that because of the freezing and thawing winter sowing combines both stratification and scarification which we will discuss next.

Some examples of seeds that benefit from cold stratification include columbine, balloon flower, black eyed susan, lavender, catmint and cone flowers.

Scarification

Scarification is the act of damaging the seed coat which will allow the seed to absorb moisture and germinate. There are various ways to do so, and which method works best depends on the species you are working with.

There are a couple different scarification methods commonly used. The first of which is through mechanical damage. This might be accomplished by clipping off a portion of the seed coat, or rubbing the seeds with sandpaper. In nature this sort of scarification would occur via the soil rubbing the seeds over time, and through the freeze thaw cycles in winter.

Another method commonly used is treating the seeds with an acid like sulfuric acid, or boiling water. The acid/boiling water as you might imagine damages the seed coat allowing the seed to germinate. As you might imagine this is often a preferred method to mechanical damage as it is much more easily and consistently accomplished in an artificial environment.

Examples of seeds that benefit from scarification include lupine, milkweed, morning glory, and many woody plants/trees.

Some seeds require stratification, some require scarification. Some require scarification followed by stratification. Other seeds have different environmental requirements that must be met.

Light Condition Requirements for Seed Propagation

If you aren’t interested in growing perennials or woody plants from seed, you might never have to worry about stratification or scarification as annual seeds do not typically require either. However, there are many annual seeds commonly grown that have specific light requirements. If you’ve wondered why your seed packets or hand gathered seeds didn’t germinate well, its possible that their light requirements were not met during germination.

Some seeds require light to germinate and some require total darkness. Applying the correct light conditions helps to ensure that the seeds are germinating under conditions suitable for them to have a chance to survive. For example, many plants with very tiny seeds require light to germinate. They do not have the strength or nutrition stores to grow a long way to reach the soil surface. Requiring light for germination ensures that the seeds are near the surface of the soil before they germinate ensuring a chance at survival.

Conversely, requiring darkness ensures that the seeds are buried where they will have consistent moisture to allow them to germinate. Most seeds would prefer a dark moist environment to grow, however if your seed packet says to surface sow or to only lightly cover the seeds, you can bet they require light to germinate.

Examples of seeds that have light requirements include poppies, purslane, and lettuce.

Temperature requirements

In addition to light conditions many seeds, particularly annuals have specific temperature requirements. These can be minimum or maximum temperatures at which the seeds will or will not germinate. Most seeds have an optimum germination temperature, often around 70-75 degrees. Some seeds have very broad temperature ranges in which they germinate. For some the range is very narrow. Some seeds need cool soil. Some need soil temperatures of 80 degrees or more.

Similar to how stratification and scarification prevent germination at the wrong time of year, so does required germination temperatures.

Obviously, all those annuals that you’ve had in your garden all summer set seed in the fall before they died. However, the plants do not want those seeds to germinate until spring. Requiring warmer temperatures prevents the seeds from germinating in the fall when they would quickly die in the cold temperatures. Of course, some plants are cool season plants and are very cold hardy. In those cases, it is important for germination to be inhibited under lethal hot conditions. These plants will drop seeds in the spring before they die. Those seeds won’t start germinating until the fall when the soil temperatures cool.

Some examples of seeds that have specific temperature requirements include spinach and pansies (need cool temperatures), and begonias and impatiens (require warm temperatures).

We hope that this helps you to up your seed germinating game. Now that you know how complex germinating seeds can be, if you are having trouble germinating seeds don’t hesitate to check online for what conditions must be met. In the next article of this series we are going to take a look at how to grow plants from cuttings.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Propagate Plants Part 1: Seeds first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.