Hi all, I am a newbie backyard gardener and happy to find a treasure trove of information in this forum.
I got these two 1year+ peach plants (red haven, finger lake) and thinking of putting them in the ground. However, I noticed that they are not upright and also can’t tell if they are grafted.
Any tips are appreciated about how to plant, specifically, so they can attain a better upright form later.
Should I bury the twisted/warped trunk part?
Thanks
Seems like, as a new user, I am not allowed to attach more than one image
Hi MA_NJ.
Tremendous botch of graft.
The first tree has no problems, but the second tree, since the rootstock is bent, should have grafted a little higher so that you could have buried the bent part of the rootstock.
How the graft point is here:
You cannot bury the curved part of the rootstock, since if you bury it deeper, covering the graft point, the grafted variety (the peach tree) will emit roots at the graft point and the qualities of the rootstock will be lost.
Over the years the rootstock will get fat and improve a little, but that steep curve will never be lost.
This does not mean that your tree will be in poor condition, since it will develop perfectly, but it is a botch of graft on the part of the nurseryman.
You have to guide the trees in a metal or wooden tutor, so that they grow straight .
Jose, thanks for the explanation.
It is a classic newbie mistake that I ignored the curved part and thought it could be buried.
Here are some more pics for plant#2 showing the grafted part.
I am not sure when you mentioned the metal or wooden tutor. Is it for the rest of the part other than the curved rootstock.
Also, don’t I need to support the curved part with the soil underneath, should I bury part of it as highlighted in one of the pics.
Yes, looking closely at the image, this looks like the grafting point (marked in green line), so you could bury the rootstock curve, burying the tree until the pink line .
As for putting a tutor on the tree so that it grows straight, I mean this (it is suitable for both trees), it is a photograph taken from the internet, but perfectly explanatory.
