Propagating Fruit Trees By Budding Method

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30051, 8 February 1963, Page 7

Propagating Fruit Trees By Budding Method

Many gardeners ane inter- ( ested in sowing seeds of various kindfl of fruit trees. They watch the seedlings develop, often for many years, waiting for them to bear fruit. The trees become larger and larger but there is still no fruit. Gardeners often ask how long it is likely to take a fruit tree to bear fruit when! raised from seed. It is impossible to be sure but it is unlikely to be less than seven years, and it may be as long as 15. Even when flowering takes place, fruit is not guaranteed for there may be no suitable pollinator present. Eventually fruit does form but it is usually of poor quality. Only very rarely is a fruit produced that is worth while.

All these years have been wasted. It would have been wiser to have budded or grafted the seedling when it was two or three years old with a known variety and it would have produced fruit three years later. Grafting is carried out in late winter or early spring and this was dealt with in an earlier article, this article describes the operation of budding of apples. Budding is usually carried out from January to March. The seedling root stock should be two years old although three-year-old stocks can be used. The bark on older stocks becomes too thick to lift easily. During dry weather it is advisable thoroughly to water the seedling stocks some time before budding is to take place as this will facilitate the lifting of the bark. A knife is required that will take and retain a good edge. A budding knife is the ideal but other

types tit knives can be used. Whatever type of knife is chosen, it should be sharpened on a stone and then finished on a leather strap until a razor-sharp edge is obtained. Collecting The Buds Buds that will be used are taken from growth that has been formed during the current growing season. This wood, when cut for use in budding, is known as a bud stick. The soft tip of the shoot is removed and also all the leaves, leaving about half-an inch of leaf stalk attached to the bud stick in each case. These bud sticks are then stood in jars in which there is about an inch of water, until they are required. Make a T-shaped cut about six inches from ground level on the stock. Make the cross cut first and then begin upright about 1J inches below the first cut.

As the second cut meets the first, flick the knife so that the bark lifts. Using the spatula end of the budding knife the bark is then lifted on either side of the cut.

Inserting The Bud Now take a bud stick and hold it with the top pointing towards you. About half an inch below the bud nearest to you, make a shallow cut and continue it behind the bud so that the knife emerges i-i inch above the bud. Hold the severed bud by the leaf stalk and pull back the bark slightly so that it leaves the wood. Then take hold of the wood and with a jerk pull it out from behind the bud. Slide the bud into the cut in the stock and cut off any of the bark that may protude above the cross piece of the T-cut.

After the bud has been inserted it must immediately be tied in position. This is to bring the cambiums of

stock and bud into contact. It also prevents the cut surfaces from drying out Raffia should be used for this operation. Soak it in water before use so that it opens out and is more pliable. Begin tying below the bud and keep the raffia at all times tight, most especially just above and below the bud. Finish off above the bud and secure by tying a knot. (There are patent plastic and rubber budding strips available, which can be used instead.) After-Care After about two weeks, if the operation has been successful, the bud should have taken, which will be indicated by the leaf stalk dropping off. If the bud retains the leaf stalk and both become brown, it is a sign that the operation has been unsuccessful.

Nothing further is done to the stock until the following spring. Just as growth is about to commence the top of the stock is cut off about six inches above the bud. The bud will then grow out and the resulting growth is usually allowed to grow unchecked during that growing season. Afterwards the home gardener can train the tree as he requires. Roses are also propagated by budding in the same manner as for fruit trees. The stock mostly used is known as multiflora and is raised from cuttings taken in autumn or winter. These can be budded in the following January to March period. Bud sticks are taken of shoots in bud or in flower. They are prepared in the same way as for fruit and all thorns are removed. The buds are inserted into the stock just above ground level.

Some other ornamental plants which are budded are flowering cherries, peaches and plums, lilacs and crab apples.