Grafting cherry buds to cherries is an easy way to get more different types of berries in your small summer cottage. Common methods of grafting are: cleft, tongue seam or bark. Beginners are advised to start their experiments with copulation - the grafting method that has the highest survival rate.
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Copulation: stages and rules
New buds do not always take root, but if at least 1 vaccination is successful, the gardener will have 2 varieties of berries on 1 tree. Copulation is carried out in early spring, when the pruning of branches has already been completed, but there is no sap flow in the trunk yet. It is difficult to predict in autumn when severe frosts will begin. There is a great risk that the vaccine will freeze faster than it takes root.
Shoots for grafting are harvested in the fall. They should be annuals and have several, well-developed, lively buds. Shoots are stored in the basement until March. Wet sand is poured into any container, live cuttings are placed on it. Once the sand is dry, it is wetted again.
Cherry grafting will be unsuccessful if the buds on the cuttings die off. To check if they are damaged, the branches are thrown into warm water for several hours before copulation. If the buds begin to swell and open, it means that they are alive.
Copulation is the easiest way to graft. It is suitable when both the cut shoots and the rootstock (main branch of the tree) are approximately the same thickness.
The copulation stages are as follows:
- A healthy branch of a sweet cherry is selected, large enough so that the desired variety can be grafted onto it.
- Oblique cuts are made on the main branch (rootstock) and on the shoot from another fruit tree (scion).
- The graft and rootstock are connected and pressed as tightly as possible.
- The junction is fixed with cling film or electrical tape. The material is wound quite tightly in several layers.
It is advisable to put a small plastic bag on top of the scion and fix it with wire or thread. So there will be more chances that the escape will take root.
Another way is improved copulation. It differs from the previous method only in that "tongues" are made on the branches, which allow the branches to fit more tightly to each other.
If the scion and rootstock differ significantly in thickness, use copulation with a saddle, splitting and other methods. These methods provide a large area of contact between the branches. Copulation with a saddle is more difficult, it is desirable to have experience for it. Such an inoculation is done in the middle of winter - long before the start of sap flow.
In order not to infect the tree with pests, 2 rules are observed: the cuts are carried out only with a sterile knife, the upper part of the grafted cutting is treated with garden pitch.
What trees are suitable
Sweet cherries are best planted on the same tree. However, it is permissible to inoculate the shoot on 3 crops: cherry, cherry plum and plum.
On cherries, the shoot takes root better than on other listed crops, and this tree is found on almost every site. Therefore, it is preferable to carry out copulation on this plant. However, if the gardener wants to improve the characteristics of the cherry shoot, then you can graft it on the cherry plum. All physical characteristics of the tree will be transferred to the scion. The branch will be stronger in the future, it will not break with gusts of wind, but the taste of the cherry will remain.
It is not recommended to plant shoots on a plum - the stalk takes a long time to take root. Although this tree is a “relative” of sweet cherry, it is distant. Such an inoculation is carried out only if there are no other suitable crops on the garden plot, or to practice if the gardener has little experience.
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