I hate to start a whole thread on something that will probably be completely answered with just a few replies, but I’m very curious about this and didn’t know where else to ask it.
Just last weekend I cleaned out my extra refrigerator in the garage and it still had a lot of grafting scions that I harvested this past February. Many of them still looked extremely healthy. I had very little mildew but of course most- but not all- of them had already started to push a little bit of growth. I happened to have a couple buckets of water sitting right outside my garage, so I put most of the scion on those buckets with water about half-way up on them. I was happy to see that within just one week almost every single scion leafed out and grew nice, green, healthy leaves. I understand that this is just stored energy and that they won’t root and will die soon enough.
I know that you have to harvest scion before they push any growth, which I did. And I’ve always read and heard that you need to do the grafting in early spring when the tree leaves are roughly the size of a “squirrel ear” and/or temps are in the 70’s for several consecutive days.
But here (finally) is my question. If you are able to keep some scion that is healthy and not pushing growth, how late can you graft? WHile the vast majority of the aforemention scion was pushing growth, several of them showed little to no growth. I put those in a separate bucket just to see if they were just dead or were still viable. Turns out most of those did end up sprouting growth. Could I have grafted those onto a tree now? Is the recommended grafting time I just described used as the first opportunity and the best time due to scion’s potential to sprout or mold, or is it because its when sap is flowing in tree and therefore the only time a tree will take a graft?
forgive me for all that background…not sure why it took me 1000 words just to ask “I you have viable scion, can you graft in the summertime?” Thanks.
In the last few years I have been topworking pomegranate trees and usually have almost all the scions to grow well on the branches. They are grafted within a couple months of having been clipped and stored in the fridge. This year I had some scions left that were in the 3 month+ range and I decided to use them also, some grafted and some potted for rooting. All the potted sticks failed, even though it is just a regular routine process to get them to root well. Only half of the grafts grew out. For me, I think that despite the outward appearance of the scions looking fine, they had begun to lose enough enzymes during the extended storage that they were less able to grow out. The difference between a live potato that will root and grow, and a boiled potato that will not, is the “living” part of it has died: the enzymes. Once you clip the scions, the clock is running.
I’m not sure how far into the summer it will work, but June grafting seems to work fine. The 4 jujube grafts I made on 6/12 & 6/13 have all (apparently) taken and the 2 persimmon grafts from 6/16 look good. I’m not sure about the peaches from 6/16 and it is still too early to say on the last couple grafts from 6/23.
Great info, thanks. Almost everything I’ve ever read about grafting talks about it in the context of early spring, so I was under the impression that all grafting had to be done at that time. Sounds like that may be optimal, but not an absolute requirement. If anyone else has had luck with grafting after spring, I’d like to know it. Meanwhile, thanks to the above posters.
Spring is the most ideal time for the reasons you mention. But I have also successfully chip-budded and rind-grafted as late as early June (with pear scions harvested in spring and kept in the frig).
I have heard tales of folks successfully grafting scions harvested several months prior (and kept in the frig until used) but I cannot corroborate those reports with my own experiences (yet?)…
early spring is ideal because it is still cool, but the sap is already flowing. You have the least risk of dehydration of the scionwood. I have had pretty good success rates grafting fruit trees up to mid May in las vegas where humidity is a virtual zero, and day temps could reach 100.
if you’re summer temp now is ~15 degrees lower as what we have here now(which has been 113F/90’s), and especially if you’re in a humid region, your batting average should be pretty good…
Hmm. I had heard that if you graft late the growth may not harden off in time for winter…maybe that just refers to chip budding even later in the season? Since we don’t have winter anymore here (less than 63 chill hours last winter) I don’t have to worry about this but some of you might have to.
i agree, since the flow of sap slows down and there’s a chance the budwood may not have established a strong-enough graft union , and subsequently subject to a stormy or windy winter for several months–when sap is not flowing and this prevents healing.
of course, it is a regional thing, and what applies here at this time of year may be totally different from another usda zone.
The best way to figure it out is to just do it. I bet if you wrapped tin foil around them they would make it if your not to dry in your climate. Here in Michigan It’s been in the fifties at night and highs in the seventies. It was cold and rainy the last couple days. It was the first time I had the heat on in the end of June! We’ve had lots of rain here too, so I bet I could have gotten away with grafting yet. Everything is still pushing green hard here. My trees have two to three foot of new growth already soon to be munched by JB’s!
wow, highs in the seventies at this time of year?
that is definitely the perfect ambient condition for grafting
btw, that could be our winter temp in january/feb in las vegas, lol! Explains why many retirees here have second homes in minnesota and michigan. Flying north for summer, then back here during winter.
We have low eighties in the ten day forecast with lows in the 60’s, so it’s warming back up. We were in the eighties for a couple weeks then it cooled off. We normally get in the nineties. I’ll take the seventies! Friday I was out on my friends boat and I had my hooded sweatshirt on.
we don’t ask for much cooler summers where we’re at, heck we’d be so lucky(and happy) to have a daytime high of 105F or a little less…
admittedly, this baking heat, plus the dwindling colorado river, had radiically changed my gardening themes and choices
you’re complaining about the nineties? Here we’d be partying all day and all night at that temp.
when we reach 110F or more then we only party at night, lol
incidentally, do you even need to irrigate your plants/trees in michigan?
I’m not in MI, but we get plenty of rain in CT too. Once a tree is established and well mulched with wood chips, I don’t water much at all. Usually a few times each summer when the rain hasn’t come for a while. Watering is much more of an issue for potted plants- hence why I am working to have far fewer of them.
After 5 days with highs in the 80’s and 90’s, the last 3 days have been 77, 66, and 68. Due to the cloud cover, I chose this time to plant out some fig cuttings which I was growing indoors.
good for you, your water bill probably costs close to nothing!
and potted plants? none will survive our summers, unless they are cacti or sages…
as for 66F in June, that is unheard of around here… Can’t imagine myself shivering in june, the tropical animal that i am
I figure it’s probably a little out of the ordinary there as well. It’s been the same here, last week was brutally hot and this week the monsoons came and right now it is currently 51 F here at my place. We’ve many times had nights this time of year in the 90’s.
@jujubemulberry I watered my trees once this year, but really didn’t need to. We do get dry spells in August. Last summer was cold here too. We only hit ninety twice. Were in the same weather pattern we have been in for two years. The one they have been calling the polar vortex, even though there’s no such a thing. We keep getting the dip in the jet stream.