Contents
- Why do you need grape grafting
- Timing of grafting grapes in the spring
- Harvesting and storage of scion
- Stock preparation
- Ways to graft grapes in spring
- Grafting grapes in a split in spring
- Grafting in half split
- Grafting in the butt (wedge)
- How to plant grapes back to back
- Grafting grapes in the trunk in the spring
- Grafting grapes in spring on an old bush by drilling
- Spring grafting grapes black to black
- Grafting grapes green to green
- Grafting grapes black to green in spring
- Budding of grapes in the spring (bud grafting)
- Grape care after grafting
- Common mistakes
- Conclusion
Grafting grapes in the spring increases endurance, immunity and fruiting rates of the crop. There are several ways to carry out the procedure, it is not associated with great difficulties.
Why do you need grape grafting
A video on how to graft grapes in spring for beginners lists several benefits of the procedure:
- increases the culture’s immunity to fungal diseases and pests;
- increases the yield of weakly fruiting bushes;
- plants damaged by frost and rodents are restored;
- increases the endurance of grapes to adverse growing conditions;
- the ripening of berries is accelerated when grafting early and early varieties onto a stock;
- the frost resistance of the culture increases.
With the help of spring grafting, valuable grape varieties can be quickly propagated. The procedure allows you to create the so-called “family” bushes – several species are planted on one root at once. Grafting makes it possible to grow the maximum number of varieties in a small area.
Timing of grafting grapes in the spring
The best time for grafting grapes in spring is the end of April and the beginning of May. During the procedure, you need to focus on the climate of the region and weather features. But in general, vaccination is carried out after the air warms up to 15 ° C, and the soil temperature is at least 10 ° C for two weeks.
Harvesting and storage of scion
As a scion, cuttings from healthy grape bushes that bear fruit for at least three years are used. Pipes are harvested in autumn in October and November, shortly before frost. Closer to the base, several strong shoots 9-12 cm long are cut with a sharpened tool. The cuttings must be at least 8 mm in diameter, with 2-3 eyes on each.
The cut shoots are dipped for half a minute in a 3% copper sulfate solution for disinfection, and then dried and wrapped in a wet cotton cloth or plastic wrap. It is necessary to store the cuttings in the cellar, laying in a box with wet sand, or on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. The optimum temperature for the scion is from -2 to 2 ° C, bright light should not fall on the shoots.
Stock preparation
As a rootstock for grapes, young healthy bushes aged 3-5 years are used. Plants must be frost-resistant, hardy, without fungal infections and with good immunity, with a developed underground part.
The preparation of the stock comes down to the fact that in the spring, a week before planting the scion, the bush is cut and the shoots, leaves and tendrils located below the site of the future vaccination are removed. After that, the grapes are abundantly watered and fed foliarly with potassium and phosphorus.
Ways to graft grapes in spring
Grafting of grapes in April can be carried out using several technologies. Some methods involve the use of whole cuttings, for others, only a kidney is enough.
Grafting grapes in a split in spring
Spring grafting into splitting is carried out using a perennial underground stem of grapes. The algorithm looks like this:
- All branches are pre-cut from the stock.
- At the base, a hole is dug 30 cm deep.
- At a height of 20 cm cut off the upper part of the bush.
- The cut surface is cleaned of irregularities and wiped with a cloth dipped in a solution of potassium permanganate.
- With the help of a previously disinfected ax and a hammer, a split is made in the stem by about 3 cm in the center.
- Temporarily insert a clean screwdriver into the split so that it does not close.
- 1-2 buds are left on the scion, excess wood is removed and even cuts are made on both sides under the lower eye.
- The cutting is dipped for a few seconds in a solution of humate, inserted into the prepared split and gently sunk.
- A screwdriver is removed from the wood, a split is laid with wet toilet paper and the junction is wrapped with braid or twine.
At the end of the spring grafting of grapes into a bole, the underground trunk should be covered with a cut plastic container, the hole should be covered with earth with the addition of ash and humus, and then properly watered with settled water. Over the following weeks, the plant is moistened and from time to time the bottle cap is unscrewed to ventilate.
Grafting in half split
Grafting in a semi-split in the spring practically does not differ from a full split. The difference is that the trunk is not split in the upper part in the center, but from the side and to the middle of the trunk.
The step by step algorithm is as follows:
- The rootstock is cleared of branches and leaves.
- The underground trunk is exposed to a depth of 30 cm and the main bush is cut down at a height of 20 cm.
- A semi-split is prepared and the scion is inserted into it with the lower eye outward.
- Seal the gap on the trunk with wet toilet paper and tightly wrap the graft with a cloth.
- Plentifully water the grapes and cover with earth.
All instruments before the procedure must be sterilized with a solution of potassium permanganate or alcohol.
Grafting in the butt (wedge)
Grafting of grapes in the spring with cuttings into the stock is carried out if the stock is thin enough and not suitable for splitting, but still significantly exceeds the thickness of the scion. Perform the procedure like this:
- The stock according to the standard algorithm is cleared of branches and cut off at the top.
- On the side, a triangular incision is made with a sharp instrument.
- The lower part of the scion is turned in such a way as to obtain a wedge that ideally matches the prepared nest at the joints.
- Insert the handle into the butt and wrap it with twine or cloth for fixation.
So that the infection does not penetrate to the vaccination site, it is recommended to treat the incision with garden pitch.
How to plant grapes back to back
You can graft grapes in the spring back to back. The procedure is carried out like this:
- Dig up a stem of grapes to a depth of 10 cm and evenly saw off the top.
- Make exactly the same even cut on the bottom of the scion.
- A wooden hairpin 4-5 cm long is inserted into the stem of grapes in the center.
- The scion is strung on a wedge at a distance of 2-2,5 cm from the kidney.
- Achieve the most dense contact of the joints and wrap the graft with cotton wool soaked in potassium permanganate.
After that, the junction must be tied with a clean rag and smeared with garden pitch. The remaining stump is covered with earth, ash and humus, and then covered with a film.
Grafting grapes in the trunk in the spring
You can plant grapes on an old trunk in spring with several cuttings with 3-4 buds on each. The step by step procedure looks like this:
- The stem of grapes is dug to a depth of 10 cm and cleaned of dirt and old bark.
- The aerial part of the bush is cut with a sharp pruner.
- Several 3-5 cm slots are cut in the trunk for the installation of cuttings.
- The graft is inserted into the splits and fixed with a bandage, and wrapped with damp paper on top.
- The trunk is covered with earth and the upper part of the cuttings is covered with sand.
Before the inoculation takes root, the grapes must be watered and the soil loosened from time to time.
Grafting grapes in spring on an old bush by drilling
Grafting grapes on the old root in the spring can be done using drilling. The method is very simple and suitable for beginners. The algorithm of actions is as follows:
- The grape scion is removed from the cellar, wrapped with a damp cloth and left at room temperature for several hours.
- The lower ends of the cuttings are cleaned of bark by 5 mm.
- A drill of the same diameter as the shoots is selected and disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate.
- A hole up to 5 cm deep is drilled in the center of the stock.
- Insert the scion into the prepared recess.
The grafting site is covered with clay or garden pitch and standard care is carried out for the plant.
Spring grafting grapes black to black
The best time for grafting grapes in spring black to black is the very beginning of sap flow. In the process of work, only lignified old cuttings are used.
Inoculation is carried out in the spring, usually by drilling on the side of the trunk. The schema looks like this:
- On the lateral side of the stock, a hole is made up to 2 cm deep, similar in width to the diameter of the scion.
- On the bottom of the cutting, cut the bark by 2 cm.
- The graft is carefully inserted into the trunk and deepened, lightly tapping on top with a pruner or other tool.
- The grafting site is treated with garden pitch or clay.
At the time of the procedure, the rootstock vegetation should already start. However, it is necessary to vaccinate before the opening of the kidneys, during the period when they just swelled.
Grafting grapes green to green
Grafting of grapes in the spring with a spring vine is carried out closer to summer, in the middle or at the end of May. The procedure algorithm is as follows:
- On the green vine, only two strong sprouts are left and shortened, making a straight cut above the second node.
- Other shoots are removed completely.
- The green stalk is cut into pieces 3-4 cm long and left 1,5 and 2 cm above and below the leaf, respectively, and the plate itself is shortened by half.
- The lower part of the scion is cut obliquely.
- The stalk is inserted into the split of the stock and the graft is isolated with film and garden pitch.
To create optimal temperature and humidity, it is advisable to place the fusion point of green shoots in a plastic bottle before the development of a new branch.
Grafting grapes black to green in spring
You can graft grapes into a sleeve in spring from black to green – that is, a lignified cutting into a young shoot. The step by step algorithm looks like this:
- Last year’s stalk in the lower part is cut with a wedge using a sterile tool.
- In the green vine of young grapes, a split is made over the third node from the base of the shoot.
- The cutting is inserted into the hole and tied with plastic wrap for tight fixation.
- As the shoot develops, the winding is weakened and finally removed with the onset of autumn.
The grafting is carried out black to green, usually at the end of May, when the young branches of the grapes have time to get stronger.
Budding of grapes in the spring (bud grafting)
Budding for grafting grapes is used at the end of May in cloudy and rather cool weather. The procedure is carried out according to the following scheme:
- On a rootstock at least three years old, 1-2 green shoots are selected, and the rest are removed.
- On the left young branches, T-shaped cuts are made with a sharpened knife, removing the bark.
- From the prepared green cuttings of the desired variety, dormant or germinating buds are cut along with small sections of wood.
- The eyes are inserted into the incisions on the rootstock and tightly fixed with a film or a damp cloth winding.
After grafting in the spring by budding, the grapes begin to grow, usually within three weeks. During this time, the plant should be watered regularly.
Grape care after grafting
After grafting the grapes in the spring into the root or into the trunk, it is necessary to ensure careful care of the plant:
- After a month after the underground grafting, the trunk is dug up, the roots that have appeared on the handle are cleaned, cut off and the plant is covered with earth again.
- The emerging shoots of grapes are regularly removed.
- Every ten days, the bushes are sprayed with 0,5-1% Bordeaux liquid to prevent fungi and insects.
- With a lack of rain in the first half of summer, the soil under the plants is abundantly moistened every week.
- After the next watering or rainfall, an earthen mound is loosened around the grafted grapes.
Throughout the year, the bush must be fed – in total, fertilizers are applied 2-3 times per season. When using aboveground grafting methods, attention is paid to the fixation of the joints. Shoots longer than 40 cm are fixed on a trellis or supports so that they do not break during growth.
Common mistakes
Spring grafting of grapes in general is a fairly simple procedure. Engraftment can be hindered by several factors:
- Improper storage of cuttings. If the scion dries up before planting on a rooted plant, then engraftment will not occur. It is necessary to keep the cuttings constantly moistened in conditions of low temperature.
- Too deep split or drilled hole. In this case, the wood begins to rot under the influence of moist air, and the graft does not take root.
- Irregular cuts. When grafting, it is important to use only very sharp knives and secateurs that do not leave bumps and hooks.
- Non-sterile instrument. If you carry out the procedure with dirty blades, infections are likely to get on the cuts of the stock or scion.
Only healthy plants can be used for spring grafting. This applies to both scion and rootstock.
Conclusion
Grafting grapes in the spring allows you to quickly propagate the crop on the site and get hardy and high-yielding bushes. There are many ways to carry out the procedure; the gardener only needs to be attentive and follow the instructions exactly.