Grafting trees

[treeguy123]

What is the best way to graft, type of graft, time to graft, and or grafting tools for grafting oaks in the red oak family? I want to save the genetics of some old red oaks by grafting some twigs from the old oaks onto other smaller oaks. And is red oak grafting pretty successful?

Thanks.

[jimmyq]

try your local botanical library and sit down witha copy of Micheal Dirrs, The reference manual of woody plant propogation from seed to tissue culture. it will probably give you some insight about methods etc.

[Lucky_P]

For the most part, grafting does not work well within the red/black oak group. There are significant issues with peroxidase incompatibilities, even when you attempt to graft scions of most red/black oaks onto their own seedlings.
There is at least one Scarlet oak(Q.coccinea) selection that is propagated by grafting in Europe, but I'm unaware of anyone in the US who is grafting red oaks with any mentionable success.

Members of the white oak group, on the other hand, lend themselves very readily to propagation by grafting. I typically use bur oak(Q.macrocarpa) seedlings for rootstock - mainly because that's what I have most readily available. Dormant-collected scions, stored in the fridge, are grafted onto the seedling rootstock by a simple bark graft; best time is just as the rootstock is beginning to leaf out. I get successful 'takes' in the 90+% range.
I guess if I were going to try red oaks, I'd use the same procedure I use with white oaks, but ideally, your seedling rootstock should be as closely related to the grafted variety as is possible.

[conifers]

Good info lucky. Furthermore (for aftercare), When the scions begin to push, you should spray them with a combination algaecide/fungicide at bud break. I use from a local garden center, "Consan 20".

When all danger of frost has passed, bring the fresh grafts out of the greenhouse, pot them up and place them in "any" environment where partial sun can be utilized. A large shade tree, or shade structure, etc - ........for one full year minimum. Any graft right out of the greenhouse has a tendency to burn and you're out of luck.

Do not overwater do not underwater. Come mid-June you [B]will know[B] which have made it but not until then. Come early fall, remove the understock above the scion.

Backstepping, when the deciduous grafts are completed in the greenhouse, you want the soil media in the pots to be somewhat dry when the scion is attached. Keep the soil media just "dry enough" (you do need water so they don't dry out).......but be sure that they don't get heavy amounts of water as that will cause the sap to flow too much and make for an unsuccessful graft.

All deciduous grafts need to be tied with a bud strip followed by a wrap of parafin tape. Come early fall, and behind the scion on the understock - use a knife to slice through the bud strip and parafin tape. It's at this time the bud strips and tape and understock are removed.

The following year (going on year #2) keep them in dappled light once again for another entire year.

Now your plants/grafts are correctly hardened off and can be placed in full sun going on their third year.

Dax

[Lucky_P]

Hey, Dax.
I do virtually all of my grafting on rootstocks in the field or nursery beds, so good tips on container & greenhouse culture was appreciated.

[conifers]

No sweat.

Dax