Is it possible to graft an apple tree wild and how to do it correctly?

Advantages of grafting an apple tree to wild

There are several advantages of grafting a wild apple tree. The main thing is that the grafted part (scion) receives very high rates of development and growth and can begin to produce crops much earlier than when grown as a separate seedling.

In fact, the scion receives the stem and root system from a plant specimen that is stronger from a biological point of view. As a rule, the survival rate, adaptability and disease resistance of a “wild” crop are much higher than that of any nursery-bred variety.

Thus, the survival rate of cultivated varieties of apple trees increases significantly. Thanks to this operation, the varietal diversity of apple trees on the site increases significantly. This allows you to save not only acreage, but also money, which, if the cultivation of new varieties fails, will actually be wasted.

An important advantage of this procedure is that several different varieties can be grafted onto the same wildflower tree.

Why graft an apple tree?

Among the main reasons, there are seven that any summer resident will sooner or later encounter.

1. Apple trees are producing a poor harvest, and you would like to regraft them - replacing the crown of old trees with a more valuable variety.
2. You are driven by the desire to experiment and try to grow several varieties of apples on one rootstock.
3. You want to save space on your plot (instead of two apple trees, you can get by with one, on which two different varieties of apples are grafted).
4. You have decided to grow an apple tree seedling yourself, and not buy it from a nursery (“ennoble” the wild one with a cultivated scion).
5. The tree has been severely damaged (for example by rodents) and you want to save it by regrafting.
6. More “delicate” varieties of apple trees must be grafted onto a winter-hardy rootstock to increase their frost resistance.
7. You want to grow a dwarf apple tree.

The procedure for grafting an apple tree is akin to surgery, but even a novice gardener can handle it if the instructions are followed exactly.

How to grow wild apple trees for grafting

The easiest way to get a wild apple tree for subsequent grafting of other plant varieties onto it is to take wild growth from one of your neighbors (or just find it somewhere in a planting or in a vacant lot) and plant it in your home as an ordinary seedling.

However, if this was not possible, you can use the method of growing plants - try growing a wild apple tree from seeds.

For this purpose, you will need the seeds of any frost-resistant apple trees that grow in the nearby area.

Important! Low-growing apple trees are best suited for this purpose; in their “cultivated form” they produce abundant harvests of many small fruits.

It is better to collect seeds from fruits that have a normal appearance and are the largest. Seeds should be carefully examined and dried seeds that have an irregular shape and uncharacteristic color should be discarded.

After which they should be dried at room temperature in a dry room.

In mid-January, selected seeds must undergo a stratification procedure. To do this, they need to be covered with sand about 3 cm thick and placed in a refrigerator with a temperature no higher than + 8 ° C.

In early spring, seeds are planted in the garden in a place corresponding to the conditions in which the apple tree, the graft of which will be grafted, should grow.

An alternative to stratification would be to plant seeds in late autumn to a depth of about 5 cm.

In winter, the seeds, covered with a layer of soil and snow, will undergo a process of natural stratification, and by next autumn healthy and strong material will be obtained for the future rootstock.

Budding or bud grafting

A very simple and convenient way. In this case, the function of the scion is performed not by the cutting, but by one eye or bud. The survival rate is very good, but the fruiting of the tree is delayed for a year. When budding, a flat place is selected on the trunk of the rootstock, and a transverse incision up to 1 cm long is made on it at a distance of 5-10 cm from the root collar. The cut should be immediately strong and precise. Special budding knives are commercially available for this operation. Then a 3 cm longitudinal incision in the shape of the letter T.

Scion preparation

It is optimal to prepare cuttings for the scion in the autumn. Usually, whole shoots of the apple tree variety of interest are used, but this is not mandatory. As a last resort, you can use simple cuttings.

Cutting the shoots should be done after the first frost has occurred (it is better to do this when a stable negative temperature has established). Thanks to this, the shoots will overwinter better. In addition, the trees from which the cuttings were cut will endure this procedure themselves without much harm to themselves, since at this time the sap flow is significantly slowed down.

You can cut the shoots at the end of the winter period, however, it is believed that in this case they will take root worse than those cut at the end of last autumn. This is explained by the fact that after winter the thin branches from which cuttings are made may freeze and not take root at all.

The length of the shoots for the scion is selected within 0.2-0.3 m. They must have at least 5 buds. Larger shoots can also be used as a scion, but the rootstock must be large enough, and the grafting itself must be carried out at a considerable height, so that the fusion of the two organisms occurs normally.

Cuttings or shoots cut at the end of autumn should be stored at near-zero temperatures and always in humid conditions. The best way to do this is to place them in a box with damp sand to a depth of about 5 cm. In this case, the sand in the box must be periodically moistened to prevent the cuttings from drying out.

The basic rule of grafting is to carry it out before the buds bloom on the scion. To avoid this, it is recommended to cover the box with cuttings with polyethylene or a thick layer of paper.

Preparing the rootstock and branches

In order for the graft to take root, it is important to choose a suitable scion and rootstock.

It is low-quality grafting material that causes negative results of the work performed.

Scion

As a scion, select apple trees that have been actively growing and bearing fruit over the past years and have not suffered from viral infections. It is important to ensure that there are no signs of disease or pest damage on the plant.

To choose a suitable branch, you need to pay attention to the following signs:

1. Kidneys. Unripe shoots are not suitable for grafting. The apical bud must be fully formed. Another sign of maturity is an increase in the distance between internodes at the top of the branch.
2. Condition of the cortex. A shallow incision is made on the bark of the selected shoot. They pry it up with a fingernail and try to separate it from the wood. If the bark comes off easily, it means the shoot is ripe.
3. Growth and flower buds. For grafting, select the part on which there are more growth buds - flattened and elongated. Flowering specimens are more round and voluminous.
4. Location of branches. Shoots located inside the crown are not suitable because they are dominated by flower buds and are weak due to shading. The branches located outside the crown are strewn with growth buds and are considered an ideal option for grafting.
5. Appearance. For grafting, shoots that are already lignified but still green from the current year are taken. They should be smooth to the touch, without bends or flaws.
6. Size. The length of the rootstocks is at least 30 cm, and the diameter is 5-6 cm. There must be at least 4 buds on the cuttings.

Green cuttings are cut in the morning from 4 to 10 o'clock on the day of grafting. At this time, the sun is not active, the trees will not get burned and will experience less stress. The day before cutting, the mother plant is watered abundantly.

If the cuttings are grafted within 2-3 hours after cutting, there is no need to put them in water. If preparation takes longer, the grafting material is placed in a bucket of water or wrapped in a damp cloth.

Before use, all leaves are removed from the cuttings, leaving petioles up to 10 mm long. Stipules also need to be removed.

Note! The maturation times of the rootstock and scion must coincide.

How to graft fruit trees / The best ways to graft fruit trees

Rootstock

When choosing a rootstock for an apple tree, it is important to pay attention to crop compatibility. Cultivated varieties of apple trees and wild ones, grown with your own hands from seeds or dug up in the forest, are best suited.

You can graft an apple tree onto other crops. Among them:

1. Rowan. Apple tree branches take root worse on chokeberry than on red rowan. If an apple tree is adjacent to a rowan tree, the fruits will become smaller.
2. Pear. It takes root much better as a scion, but apple tree branches do not always take root on it.
3. Quince. The chances that apple tree branches will take root on quince are low. Often the fruits on such branches become smaller.
4. Viburnum and hawthorn . The apple tree takes root well on such rootstocks, but its fruits become smaller.

It is best to grow an apple tree onto an apple tree. In this case, the variety will gain frost resistance, and the quality of the fruit will not deteriorate. Such vaccinations are the strongest.

The tree that will become the rootstock must be checked for signs of diseases and pests. For these purposes, zoned varieties are chosen.

It is advisable to choose not the oldest trees. For summer grafting, in the spring, all dry and unnecessary branches are cut off so that the plant spends energy not on them, but on the scion.

Apple tree rootstocks. Vigor of apple trees on various rootstocks.

What methods of vaccination exist?

There are several main methods of vaccination. All others are based on them. Let's consider these methods, indicating their advantages and disadvantages.

Grafting into cleft

The rootstock is cut parallel to the ground level, after which a split is made in the center. One or more scion cuttings are inserted into this split to a depth of about 3 cm.

Advantages:

• high survival rate;
• excellent contact density and fusion;

Flaws:

• high labor intensity, not applicable with a large number of vaccinations.

Copulation

The rootstock and scion are cut at the same angle, after which they are applied to each other and tightly connected (using rope, fabric, electrical tape, etc.).

Advantages:

• allows you to connect cuttings and rootstock of small diameter, which is impossible with other methods;
• ease of adjustment of the connection area.

Flaws:

• insufficient reliability;
• fragility and fragility of the grafting site in the first years.

Vaccination for bark

A cut and a longitudinal incision are made on the bark of the rootstock. An oblique cut is made on the scion. The corners of the rootstock bark are folded back and a graft cutting is inserted through a cut in its bark.

Advantages:

• simplicity;
• high survival rate.

Flaws:

• temporary restrictions - allowed only in spring, when the bark can be easily separated.

Budding with a shield by the bark

A cut is made in the rootstock in the shape of the letter “T”. Its upper corners are folded back, where a scion shield with a leaf, petiole and bud is inserted.

Advantages:

• the highest survival rate;
• significant savings in scion material (one bud is enough).

Flaws:

• difficulty in implementation;
• high level of difficulty for beginner gardeners.

Care after vaccination

It is important to look after the tree after grafting.

Below are the basic rules of care:

1. All young growth that forms on the scion and next to the graft is removed. It draws most of the nutrients, reducing the chances of survival.
2. It is important to keep birds away from the graft, as they can break it.
3. 3-4 weeks after the procedure, the winding is removed.
4. 3 weeks after grafting, the tree is fed.
5. The grafted apple tree is watered as the soil dries.

How to plant a wild apple tree in spring

Let's look at how to graft an apple tree into a wildflower in the spring step by step:

1. Preparation of cuttings. The cuttings are taken out from the wintering place and left for several hours in the open air. After that, 2 cuts are made on them - 2 cm above the upper bud and 5 cm below the lower bud. After this, the cutting is placed with its lower end in water.
2. Preparation of wildflower rootstock. On the rootstock, healthy branches are chosen, directed upward, the thickness of which does not differ much from the thickness of the cuttings. It is recommended to make cuts to form a split on branches 50 cm from the main trunk.
3. The branch of the wildflower rootstock is carefully split to a depth of about 3-4 cm using a knife.
4. The cutting is taken out of the water and carefully secured in the cut.
5. As soon as the young shoots are grafted, it is necessary to quickly, before the juice has time to set, isolate the grafting site. This can be done using any winding material, for example, polyethylene film.
6. The areas of the shoots near the grafting site are treated with oil paint. In this case, you should not get paint on the junction of the scion and rootstock.

How to graft an apple tree onto young wildflower seedlings

As such, there are no recommendations at what age certain seedlings can be grafted onto young game. It all depends largely on the size of the scion and rootstock. The main requirement, for example, when grafting onto wild game into a split: the diameter of the rootstock must be greater than the diameter of the scion.

You can plant in the spring in any way that is more convenient for the gardener. In summer, only vaccinations under the bark are allowed.

How to graft an apple tree onto an adult tree

There are no particular differences when implementing this method of vaccination. Moreover, an adult tree allows you to use almost any grafting method, since you can always select a site suitable for a particular type of scion.

Important! It is to mature trees used as a rootstock that it is possible to graft several different varieties of other apple trees at once.

Grafting a columnar apple tree onto wild animals

The main feature of this grafting is that when grafting onto wild game, the rootstock material can only be a one-year-old seedling. The grafting itself is done as close to the root collar as possible.

In addition, in the future it is necessary to constantly form the crown of this grafted seedling, according to the rules for the formation of a columnar apple tree.

Why are cultivated apple trees not propagated by sowing seeds?

This method seems to be the simplest - sow apple tree seeds and wait for fruiting. But you will have to wait a long time for it - such apple trees give the first harvest in the 5th year if the tree has been replanted at least 3 times, and in the 15th year if it grows in one place without replanting. It would seem, what’s so special here? We replanted the apple tree 3 times and have been collecting fruits for the 5th year. But seed fruit crops do not inherit parental characteristics. This also applies to apple trees. Therefore, we will raise a “pig in a poke.” You can spend a long time and get a harvest of almost inedible apples, although very beautiful ones. There are exceptions. It was they who gave birth to that group of old and very good folk varieties of apple trees, which are now being planted less and less, yielding to the pressure of breeding innovations. The advantages of such apple trees include durability and excellent adaptability to growing conditions, and the disadvantages are their large height, which is inconvenient for care and harvesting, and the late date of fruiting. Therefore, grafting an apple tree is the shortest path to the goal with a guaranteed result.

How to graft an apple tree into a wild one? Over time, this question arises in every gardener.

Further care for grafted apple trees

With any of the grafting methods used, the wrapping material should be removed after 15-20 days. Inspection of the grafting site will immediately make it clear whether the grafting of new material onto the game has been carried out or not.

The criterion for assessing the success of the operation is the appearance of the cutting. If it has dried out and is about to fall off, then the procedure was unsuccessful. It will be possible to repeat it only in a year. If the rootstock and its buds feel great, then everything is in order, the grafting was successful.

If there are areas with damaged bark near the grafting site, they should be treated with garden varnish. There is no need to carry out any special methods of caring for a grafted tree.

When is the best time to graft an apple tree?

Theoretically, depending on the climate zone and the grafting method, an apple tree can be grafted all year round.

Apple tree grafting in spring

Spring is the most favorable time for grafting plants, because... with the start of sap flow, the scions take root well. You can start grafting with cuttings in early spring, in March-April, when the frosts have already subsided.

Budding (bud or “eye” grafting) is carried out in April – early May.

Spring vaccination has another significant advantage. If for some reason the scions do not take root, you can try to graft the apple tree in the summer without losing a whole year.

Apple tree grafting in summer

At the end of July - beginning of August, the second sap flow of fruit trees begins, so at this time it is ideal to carry out budding with a “sleeping” eye. In southern climates, apple trees are grafted using this method from late August to early September.

Apple tree grafting in autumn

In general, autumn is not the best time of year for vaccination. However, in warm weather in early September, budding the apple tree with the eye is allowed.

In September-October, you can also try grafting in other ways (in the split, in the butt, behind the bark). It is worth considering that at this time scions take root best on young rootstocks. Autumn regrafting can harm an adult plant.

Ideally, grafting by budding or bark method should be completed 2-3 weeks before the average daily air temperature drops to 15°C. However, if you live in southern latitudes, where the first frosts do not occur until late October - early November, you can try to plant an apple tree in mid-autumn.

Grafting an apple tree in winter

Vaccination in winter is possible only indoors, which is why it is often called tabletop grafting. This method is relevant for grafting seedlings that you plan to plant in the spring.

As a rule, seedlings are grafted from January to March, but no later than 15-20 days before planting in open ground.

It is worth considering that rootstock seedlings should be harvested in the fall before the onset of frost, when the soil has not yet frozen. Scion cuttings are cut without waiting for the onset of severe frosts, but when the air temperature begins to drop to –8°C.

The success of winter grafting largely depends on the correct storage of rootstocks and scions. Seedlings and cuttings are kept in the basement at a temperature of about 0°C. 1-2 weeks before grafting, the rootstocks are transferred from the basement to a room with a temperature of 15-18°C. The cuttings are transferred indoors 2-3 days before the start of the procedure.

Preparing seeds for germination

In order for the seeds to sprout in the spring, they need to be stratified. But first, the collected seeds should be thoroughly washed, dried, then placed in warm water, changing it every day. For better effect, add a growth stimulator.

After swelling, place the seed material in a container with a mixture of wet sawdust and moss or wet sand and sawdust. To prevent mold, it is advisable to add active carbon. Then the container should be sent to the cellar or refrigerator for two to three months.

When it is not possible to create the necessary conditions for growing seeds, you can plant them directly in the ground. In this case, all necessary planting rules must be observed. For wintering, young seedlings are transferred in the fall in appropriate containers to a greenhouse. With the onset of warm spring days, this tiny wild apple tree moves to its permanent place of growth. To ensure a high chance of germination, it is recommended to place several seeds in one planting nest.

Protecting apple trees from pests

It is necessary to protect trees from pests in a timely manner, and if the garden is located in the private sector, try to use pesticides only in emergency cases. Herbal preparations are effective against sucking pests. For example, decoctions of the leaves and flowers of grassy or black elderberry, Caucasian, medicinal or Dalmatian chamomile are used against aphids.

One of the prerequisites for normal plant development is increasing resistance to such unfavorable environmental factors as climatic conditions and pests. To achieve this, you need to apply fertilizers on time, carry out annual pruning of the crown, and destroy weeds. Such a complex of agrotechnical measures will increase the circulation of juice through the conductive system. It will completely fill the passages made by stem pests. In this regard, the death of the larvae will occur.

If you have to treat trees with chemicals, it is very important to take all precautions, carefully following the instructions for using the poison. It is imperative to maintain the deadline after which the fruits can be eaten, which will help maintain human health. The first treatment of the garden with pesticides should be carried out before the sap begins to flow.

Unfortunately, spraying with poisons will not save the garden from pest invasion. The fight against them begins already during the acquisition of a seedling, and ends with proper cleaning of the site at the end of autumn. You need to try to choose healthy planting material so as not to introduce pests and diseases into the garden, which are better prevented. But when they appear, you should act decisively and very quickly. Only then will a wild apple tree planted on the street or in the garden make the air much cleaner and cooler. People nearby will feel much healthier.

Comments (6)

• Katerina

  01/12/2017 at 00:17 |
  Since I just bought a summer house and I’m just a beginner gardener, I need to know many nuances that can help plant an apple tree. This is very useful, because you want to do everything correctly and without mistakes, so the article is good for a novice gardener.

  Answer

  Yulia Expert Plodogorod

  08/01/2020 at 22:27 |

  Hello, Katerina! If you are just mastering the features of grafting an apple tree for wild use, it is worth learning a few more nuances. So, before starting work, you need to make sure that the rootstock is completely healthy. But the stem should not have spots, growths, dried or rotten areas.

  The part of the apple tree that will be grafted should also be taken from a healthy mother plant. If the mother culture had signs of disease and the grafting is carried out in order to preserve a certain variety, you need to make sure that the selected area is not affected by infection. All infected areas must be cut back to healthy tissue.

  All tools that will be used to damage the integrity of the shoots must be disinfected. Parts of the tree injured by grafting are vulnerable to disease. If an infection gets into the wound from the vaccination, the graft may not take root or there will be a large growth at the attachment site, and the bark will crack.

  Because of this, the nutrition of the grafted shoot will deteriorate and the resulting tree will not be able to develop and bear fruit normally. Secateurs and other tools can be wiped with a strong solution of manganese, bleach, or alcohol before starting work. We do not recommend using thermal disinfection methods.

  Answer

Where the wild apple tree grows

This plant is one of the lucky few of the plant world to which man has turned his attention. The wild apple tree can often be found in our broad-leaved, mixed and coniferous forests. It takes root especially well in northern places. The wild apple tree develops best and produces a bountiful harvest, growing in illuminated areas. The plant “settles” mostly alone in the field or along roads, sometimes in small groups at the edge of forests.

In the forest itself, under the canopy of other trees, where there is continuous shade, the tree feels uncomfortable, which affects growth and productivity. Wild apple trees are used for planting in shelterbelts and in landscaping areas of populated areas as a living defense against the harmful “odors” of highways. It can be found in fruit nurseries.

A wide distribution of wild game is observed in the European part of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. In summer cottages and near individual houses, it is planted in rather rare cases, since the plots are small and the owners are in no hurry to waste precious space on such a tree.