Goal:
Create a cocktail peach tree with an open center
Plan:
I have a rootstock plant ready in ground(See pic). I would like to chip bud 3-4 varieties on to it with the hope of using their
growth as the main scaffold branches(I have aquired scion with appropriate chill hours for my location)
Once budded let the plant grow as is this year
Next year prune off all the rootstock branches in late winter with hope that the grafted buds will sprout and take off.
Questions:
Can this work?
Will all grafted buds emerge?
If they do will the scaffold branches be strong enough in the long term?
While I have successfully grafted/budded many types of fruiting trees I have zero experience with Peaches.
I also have other multi-grafted trees and know that they have to be actively managed.
I haven’t chip budded stone fruits much because T budding is so easy and successful if done properly. My best trees were built by first choosing the scaffold branches of the rootstock that are in the right location with good crotch angles. Then T budding onto those branches as soon as the scion wood is mature enough. In z8a and judging by your rootstock, that would be in a month or 6 weeks.
What I’d do is T bud in that time frame. If successful, force the scion bud by cutting off above the bud. It those fail then do a chip bud latter in the summer. If those fail, then graft next spring. Rinse and repeat until you succeed.
T budding only works when the bud is placed into current seasons growth and with buds from current growth. Also the bark must be slipping. If it’s not water heavily to force rapid growth. At this point keep the tree growing like pictured above.
T budding or chip budding is the fastest way from this point to switch the tree over to new varieties. If you like chip budding better, try it soon and force the new bud as soon as you are sure it’s taken.
The graft union will be strong enough. It’s the crotch angle that’s more important than the graft union. Chose carefully where you graft. It looks like you have several possibilities.
so they could chip bud now and later(late summer/fall)?
one this i worry about is the crotch angle with budding onto the trunk. when it starts pushing it seems like it would be weak at the graft point to train it properly.
You don’t bud onto the trunk. That results in narrow crotch angles. I’ve bought several multigrafted trees and that’s how they’re done because they can’t wait long enough to select good branches.
One could chip bud now and if those fail try again in the fall. But be careful where the buds are placed. You don’t want to have a failed chip and then bud again further out on the limb.
