Propagating Mulberry

[hobilus]

I’m a little late to the party, but thought I’d throw my 2 cents in.

I’ve always found mulberry can be a little persnickety to graft. Here are a couple of things I’ve found helpful. As always, your mileage may vary.

I like rootstock to be at least somewhat awake. I don’t graft totally dormant stock as one would apples or pears. Similarly, I don’t mind if the scions are a bit farther along. If the buds are swollen and showing a bit of green, that’s a plus in my book. My reasoning is, I want the scion to wake up at the same time the stock is pushing sap, that way the whole works is ready to hit the ground running.

I prefer a side graft part way up the rootstock. The side graft lets you work with a range of scion and rootstock sizes, so there’s no need to match calipers, at least within reason. If it’s typical 1/4” or so rootstock, I’ll do a side graft roughly halfway up leaving the upper part of the rootstock, but pruning it back heavily. I like the sap to push PAST the graft Union, and continue flowing, as I’ve know mulberries to otherwise seemingly abort the top and instead push from dormant buds further down near the crown. By pruning some of the remaining stem, there are places for excess sap to weep out, which helps with flooding of the graft Union. When the scion does push, you have a ready made stake to secure the growing scion until the graft Union develops some strength.

Someone mentioned the merits of rooting vs grafting. IME, varieties vary greatly in how easily they’ll root. Many feral albas root extremely easily, akin to willows. A lot of the cultivars are at least somewhat harder, with some, like Gerardi and IE being downright hard unless you take them at just the right time. The best time (and only time for the tricky ones) is when the new growth is firm but not yet woody. Mid-July is usually about right in VT.

In a pinch, I’ve had decent luck root grafting. Get some ropey roots and cleft or whip graft ‘em right on. It’s a little tricky, because the root bark is quite different than what you find on the stem. I don’t know for sure, but my hunch is that to want the root piece a tad oversized, as the root bark is quite a bit thicker. One other trick I’ve had luck with is to graft onto a cutting of variety that is east to root. I like the contorted variety, ‘Unryu’ for this as it roots very reliably. It also makes super long ropey roots that are perfect for root grafting.

Any way you slice it, mulberry grafting is somewhat harder than gateway stuff like apples. It’s still pretty low hanging fruit (pun!) though compared to truly tricky stuff like nuts and conifers. Expect to fail some and play around with it. You’ll be pleasantly surprised sooner or later!

[blueKYstream]

I was wondering if side veneer grafts might be a good option over cutting down then bark grafting, so thanks for the tips! I’m thinking of possibly grafting a few different varieties onto each of a few rootstocks. I figure side veneers would be better for branching long term. With different varieties, I can then either root them later in the summer like you mention or graft them to cuttings I started from the rootstock (assuming they make it). I imagine the cuttings won’t be ready to graft this year, but I’ll have them for future stock anyways.

[hobilus]

Glad to hear that was helpful. When I talked about grafting directly to cuttings of easy to root varieties, I actually meant doing it all at once. It definitely CAN work if you’re sure of the ready-rooting qualities of the rootstock. Depends on how readily you have access to scion-wood. If it’s something rare you’ll only get once, don’t fool around. Then again, sometimes you’re in a pinch when you get something awesome and have nowhere to graft it. Sticking on a big nurse tree will let you grow it out for more wood. But grafting right to another cutting is a handy trick that I’ve had good luck with. I’d probably whip and tongue it and match diameters, though, in that case. If you have time and curiosity ti spare, don’t be afraid to fool around. Digging deep enough, you’ll find everyone does things differently and has their own ideas about the how and why. For some ideas and inspiration, check out ‘the Grafter’s Handbook’ sometime, reprinted by Chelsea Green a while back. It’s amazing the range of stuff you can do!

[SteadyStan]

@hobilus

somewhat harder, with some, like Gerardi and IE being downright hard unless you take them at just the right time. The best time (and only time for the tricky ones) is when the new growth is firm but not yet woody. Mid-July is usually about right in VT.

Thanks so much for sharing your experiences! Could you please say more about how you root your summer cuttings?

[hobilus]

My techniques vary with my mood, motivation level, and the propensity of the variety to root. I rooted a bunch of weedy albas collected in NYC one summer. They were literally growing in the sidewalk cracks, and though I tried to dig some up, most simply ripped at the crown. They then sat under the seat of a HOT car parked on the street in August. 2-3 weeks later, they had beautiful roots on them! A friend from Turkey recounted how he had cut largish limbs from a mulberry tree in his yard to use as posts in a temporary animal enclosure. After pounding them in, nearly all rooted! Other varieties seem very difficult to root under most normal circumstances. For these, you need to optimize the conditions with sterile medium, control of humidity, and very importantly IME, proper timing. What I’ve done is to take cuttings of semi-hard first year wood in batches a week to 10 days apart starting around July 1. You’ll see that the wood goes from green and tender to brown/gray and more woody as it grows. At the tip of a given branch, you’ll find the tender green section that you’ll discard as it’s not far enough along to root well. I make cuttings of two or three nodes- depending how they fit in the container- cutting near a bud to avoid the cutting being open to the foamy pith. I remove the lower leaves including petiole and cut the top leaf quite small with scissors. I don’t generally wound the cuttings, but make a clean cut straight across and immediately dip in liquid rooting hormone. I use the type that you mix yourself in different strength. It smells like naphtha.

For easy to root varieties, I’ll just stick ‘em in some potting soil in the northeast side of my house where they’re in the shade all but the first light of day, and maybe a little near when the sun behind the trees to the west. Harder stuff gets potted in quart yogurt containers with pure vermiculite. I put clear quart soup container cloches over top w/ a couple of small vent holes. The cliche gets removed daily for 5 minutes or so to air out and inspect. Using a clear container on the bottom with paper or similar covering lets you inspect for roots visually w/o disturbing the cuttings. These make for handy little low tech passive mist pots, and they work best for me placed near a south window. Because the Sun is high, the window and cloche reflect, filter, and diffuse the sunlight while the cover keeps humidity high.

[disc4tw]

@hobilus

Harder stuff gets potted in quart yogurt containers with pure vermiculite.

The benefits of diatomaceous earth

Yes I like the finer product for seeds. I could probably screen Optisorb and get some, but that creates dust so I would rather not. I like Optisorb for rooting cuttings. I’m rooting figs right now under lights. Once I up pot the DE will go in my soil mixes. I always use new stuff to root as it can get algae and such. [IMGP6307]

DE may be a better value than vermiculite per pound, I’m not sure.

[SteadyStan]

Thank you, I’m going to try root a few this summer. I’ve had really poor takes on hardwood cuttings and I’ve tried several different varieties including those that are typically easier to root. They’ll callus very well but won’t grow past an inch or so. Since there isn’t much root development, they wither and die.

[swincher]

@hobilus

I prefer a side graft part way up the rootstock. The side graft lets you work with a range of scion and rootstock sizes, so there’s no need to match calipers, at least within reason. If it’s typical 1/4” or so rootstock, I’ll do a side graft roughly halfway up leaving the upper part of the rootstock, but pruning it back heavily.

I’m curious about this technique, as I’ll be trying to graft mulberries for the first time this spring. I was thinking maybe something like T-budding would be better than cleft or bark grafts, for the reasons you mention above.

Do you use a single bud for your “side graft” (veneer/shield/etc.), or an entire scion (side cleft/side whip-and-tongue/etc)? Do you have any photos?

The section on side grafting in The Grafter’s Handbook lists a wide variety of different types of grafts under this heading, so I’m curious which one has worked well for you with mulberries.

Thanks!

[hobilus]

Yeah, the cool thing about side grafting is that you have so much leeway in how you orient and execute them. I favor an actual scion, even if it only has one bud. I’ve done some bud grafting- both chip and t/shield- and it just seems more fiddley, plus there’s not much between the bud and the graft. Using a scion, no matter short gives more room for error and more options IMO. If you’re dealing with a difference in size between rootstock and scion, you can stay near the surface and make it more of a side veneer graft. In that case, I try to make it plenty long if possible, reasoning that more cambial contact can only help. I’ve been known to make them 2” or so long. I make a single downward cut, leaving the flap, and make 2 opposing cuts on the scion, so that doubles the surface area too. If the diameter is similar, I’ll do more of a side cleft. I’ve been known to cut obliquely most of the way through the stem, that way all of the sap going up the shoot passes literally through the graft union. The top growth that is left (it seems to me) keeps the plant fed and makes sure that growth is initiated up the stem rather than down nearer the crown, as often seems to happen with mulberries. I’ll dig up some photos and see about posting them

[hobilus]

[swincher]

Thank you, those look great! I’ll try something similar when my rootstocks bud out the spring, and post photos here.

[hobilus]

You can sort of make it out in both photos if you look, but the top self aborted by the end of the season on both. This seems common in mulberries, so grafting at the top of the stem (as is common in other fruits) can be frustrating

[SteadyStan]

I’ve also observed something similar when grafting mulberries.
Your grafts look like they healed in really well.
I also did a couple of side grafts last spring. Some of them didn’t completely callous well together. I was worried about water getting into the union but they seem to be doing okay coming out of dormancy. Buds are swelling up.

[swincher]

The Ukrainian varieties Shelli and Galicia both seemed to sprout too vigorously too soon after I stuck them in soil, so I’m covering them with humidity domes until I’m more confident they actually have roots:

[hobilus]

I wintered over several 1st yr grafts in my unheated basement this past winter. It seems a vole must have come in with one of the pots and had a field day munching at roots. I found my one ‘Gaylitzia’ tree had half or more of the roots eaten off at the crown. Luckily I had a big container full of rooted cuttings. I did several grafts even though the ‘Gaylitzia’ was pushing quite a bit. They’re all looking good, as is the patient- I.e. original tree, which I lopped all but 4 buds off if.

I’ve seen this variety (presumably the same) spelled several different ways. I’m thinking ‘Gaylitzia’ is probably correct, since it’s a place in Poland. Galicia, on the other hand, seems less likely since it’s a region in Spain. Sounds like this one has huge fruit. I’m looking forward to trying it.

[swincher]

@hobilus

I’ve seen this variety (presumably the same) spelled several different ways. I’m thinking ‘Gaylitzia’ is probably correct, since it’s a place in Poland. Galicia, on the other hand, seems less likely since it’s a region in Spain.

Interesting! I got mine from @Marta and haven’t really looked into the origins beyond that, but I do agree your spelling makes more sense.

[Marta]

Саженцы шелковицы Галиция 1 от Батькив сад

It’s often not just one way a word can be converted from the Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin one. In the above link it’s spelled Galitsija. I got it from someone in the US who got it from Ukraine. This cultivar was selected in Ukraine. Any of the following should refer to the same cultivar:

Галиция
Галiцiя
Galicia
Galitsija
Galitsiya

But I would never spelled it Gaylitzia. You may have a different cultivar.

[hobilus]

@Marta

Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin one

Makes sense. It’s phonetics, so not necessarily a correct spelling. Looks like I butchered the spelling anyway. I see now that Galicia is also a region of Poland/Ukraine, as well as an unrelated region of Spain.

[jerry63]

Anyone use bottom heat to root mulberry cuttings? I tried it and have roots. Always failed before. I had them at 84 degrees and had roots in 12 days.

[hobilus]

What variety? Any pics of your setup?