Someone sent me a bag of scion wood with Artic Glo nectarine, Stayman Winesap apple, and an unknown purple prune/plum. His plum tree gets brown rot. I’d like to graft all three on my trees, especially the nectarine. Is there a surefire way to disinfect the scionwood? I’d rather err on the side of ruining the scionwood than introducing brown rot (if I haven’t already got it).
I don’t think there is a surefire way, but if you make sure to use clean looking wood and soak in 10% bleach solution for 5 minutes you will probably be OK. don’t use tips, they may have had brown rot shoot blight the previous fall.
Brown rot almost surely is already in the air on your orchard, but it takes several years for the level to build up to be a problem.
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1-wash with clean water the cutting
2-float gently bud cutting with a brush to remove impurities (an old toothbrush to brush our teeth would be ideal)
3-rewashed with clear water
4- dip the cuttings 2-3 minutes in a mixture of bleach and water (1 part bleach to 9 parts water)
5 remove the cuttings and let them alone to dry (do not wash them again, it is important that the remains of lye is eliminated)
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Thanks for the info. I won’t use the plum wood, but I feel better about disinfecting the nectarine.