Buried In-arch Technique for Rooted Cuttings

General Fruit Growing
#1

I ran across this old article. Though the focus was for chestnuts the author mentioned this method having been used for apples and other woody cuttings. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any updates.

If you search for “Buried In-arch Technique for Rooting Chestnut Cuttings” you’ll find the page to download a PDF of the article. (I don’t know how to copy the link to that).
or
Here’s a link to the book with the description: https://books.google.com/books?id=n_FJAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA3-PA24&lpg=RA3-PA24&dq=buried+in-arch+technique&source=bl&ots=TYRkthzSAz&sig=ACfU3U1Ubf0h4SAAmZh4eMC4sps2vJnDDw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjkh5b8y4DnAhUJCc0KHTGOAqoQ6AEwAnoECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=buried%20in-arch%20technique&f=false

Has anyone ever tried this? It sounds like a good option for getting an apple or pear tree on its own roots, something that interests me. I’ve a number growing that were root or very low grafted and buried but it seems I won’t know down the line if the scion itself ever rooted or if it continued growing on the rootstock. Sue

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#2

Yes, it works, but you need to water the potted combination plant lightly so that the open end of the graft doesn’t rot. It might need to be left joined that first winter too, so that the scion you want to keep has enough roots and reserves to make a winter. When I go upstairs, I’ll find a picture on my machine of one I did but lost to overwatering.

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#3

here you go, graft started, but died later to rot at the cut end.

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#4

Thanks Jocelyn. I plan to do a few apples this spring using established inground seedlings. We’ll see how it goes. Sue

#5

Yah, it will be fun for you, and you are likely to get most of them to grow too. I have nice red norway maple out in the yard on its own roots too. When yours start, perhaps you would post pictures so we could enjoy them too :slight_smile:

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