Latent Energy in Scion Wood

[SuperG]

I don’t know what to tell you. All sorts of people use the Opinel for grafting. Stephen Hayes is a huge fan of them.

As to the speed of the cuts, I simply don’t know as I’ve never been around another grafter to see them cut. It seems to me the faster I cut, the worse the cuts get, but I simply have no basis to make that judgement.

[cckw]

All sorts of people use all sorts of knives for grafting. But when you come here asking for help, people try to help. My grafting success is near 100%, I attribute part of that to using the right timing, methods, and tools, including a knife made specifically for grafting. That doesn’t mean it cannot be done with a ZT0301 or an Opinel. I try to stack all the little details in my favor. As for speed, check the Stephen Hayes videos.

[alan]

@SuperG

Yeah, sorry about that. My bench grafts were done April 23rd and sat in a fridge for 3 weeks. They’ve been in dirt since then. I had hoped that was early enough to graft them and let them callous slowly in the fridge.

@Antmary

I don’t understand this. I thought callousing only began with growth of the graft- that is why one waits until at or near first growth of the mother tree.

[speedster1]

@alan

I don’t understand this. I though callousing only began with growth of the graft- that is why one waits until at or near first growth of the mother tree.

I completely agree. I never understood that reasoning either.

[SuperG]

@cckw

All sorts of people use all sorts of knives for grafting. But when you come here asking for help, people try to help.[/quote]
I apologize if you thought me unappreciative of your experiences. I was merely saying I didn’t just look for the cheapest knife I could find on the internet. It come pretty highly recommended by a number of grafters who claim high success.

@cckw

My grafting success is near 100%, I attribute part of that to using the right timing, methods, and tools, including a knife made specifically for grafting. That doesn’t mean it cannot be done with a ZT0301 or an Opinel. I try to stack all the little details in my favor.

Sounds like what you’re doing works super well for you!

[quote=“cckw, post:23, topic:5997, full:true”]As for speed, check the Stephen Hayes videos

I’ve tried cutting scions in front of YouTube, but he doesn’t commentary on my technique.

All kidding aside, I’ve seen what he and many other do. It doesn’t provide the same kind of input that having somebody there to work with does. I don’t feel I’m making slow cuts at all, but perhaps a veteran may see that differently.

[SuperG]

@alan and @speedster1

I’m not even remotely qualified to speak about it. My understanding is things will start to callous as soon as they break dormancy. A fridge isn’t a winter season so I figure it merely slows callousing, not stops it all together. If there is no action at all, I would think just the smallest air pocket in a graft would dry out and prevent a take when planted later.

But I don’t know. I work off information I find/see on the internet and try to do my best with it.

[alan]

They don’t readily break dormancy in the fridge- that sustains dormancy- or at least severely delays it.

[cckw]

SuperG, Sounds like you are just needing to practice. Practice that stuff on random clippings from any tree. Different trees have different hardnesses of the wood, so mix it up. Last knife thing, try using a utility/razor blade knife. Not as your permanent tool, but more as a test of sharpness of your knife. Factory edges vary a lot.

[SuperG]

Funny thing/this about that: Last year I used a razor/utility knife with brand new blades and the cuts were very similar. I spent about a week practicing last year before going after the real thing and the results seemed very similar to this new knife.

I do plan to keep practicing this summer and I’ll get the knife checked by a pro for it’s edge. I’m convinced it would lacerate my finger and tendons quite well, but I’m not made of wood.