1. Propagation
by Grafting
PROPAGATION OF HORTICULTURAL
CROPS AND NURSERY MANAGEMENT
SUBMITTED BY ; SUBMITTED TO;
Kuldeep garwa Dr. L.N.Mahawar

2. Grafting
Defn: connecting 2 pieces of plant
tissue to grow as one plant
It includes the SCION which
forms the above ground part
of the grafted plant:
AND the ROOTSTOCK which
is the lower portion of the
grafted plant which provides
the root system for the new

3. Grafting
An INTERSTOCK or intermediate
rootstock may be used with some
fruit trees where a degree of
incompatibility occurs:
Interstocksare not normally
needed with ornamental plants:
Graftingwith interstocks is referred
to as DOUBLE WORKING

4. Grafting
 The aim of grafting is to make clean cuts in
the tissue of the two pieces so that the
CAMBIUM tissues can be matched together:
 Cambium is the main layer of meristematic
tissue in woody plants:
 It is located as a thin layer of tissue
immediately under the bark in stem and
roots:

5. The botanical limits of grafting
 Grafting within
species:
 Grafting of species
within the same
genus:
 Grafting of different
genera within the
same family:
 Grafting between
families:

6. Reasons for grafting plants
 Topropagate plants
which cannot be
economically
propagated by other
techniques
 Eg. Cultivars
of
ornamental shrubs
and trees

7. Reasons for grafting plants
 Tocontrol the growth
and performance of
trees
 Eg. Apple and pear
orchards
 Malling series
rootstocks
 Malling 27, 26, 9

8. Reasons for grafting plants
 Toconfer resistance
to pathogens to the
grafted plant
 Eg. Waxflowers
 Eg. Avocados
 Eg. Grapes
 Eg.Tomatoes

9. Reasons for grafting plants
 Tobring fruiting
plants into fruit
production earlier in
the life of the plant:
 All
fruit crops which
are commercially
grafted:
 Fruit at 2-3 years

10. Reasons for grafting plants
 Grafting to obtain
special effects in
plants:
 Eg. Weeping
standards
 Eg. 2 citrus fruits on
the same tree
 Eg. Multicoloured
rose plants

11. Reasons for grafting plants
 Grafting
as an
orchard management
technique
 Eg.Top working of
fruit trees to change
varieties
 Eg. Frame working of
fruit trees to assist
pollination

13. Grafting practice with students

15. Factors of importance in the healing of
a graft union
 Time of year
 Scion material at
correct stage of
growth
 Standard of
carpentry
 Tying of the graft
 Growing
environment

16. Polarity in grafting
 Correct polar
differentiation of
stock and scion must
be maintained:
 The PROXIMAL end
of the scion is fitted
to the DISTAL end of
the stock:

17. Selection of suitable rootstocks
 With woody  The vigour
ornamentals, most characteristics of the
rootstocks used are rootstock usually
closely related determine the size
species to the scion: and vigour of the
 Many are seed grafted plant:
propagated:  This means that
 Easy to propagate many grafted shrubs
and fast growing: grow to a large size:

18. Scion wood
Should be
One or two
Years old

19. Tying materials for grafting
With t-budding, simple rubber
budding patches are often used:
The rubber is biodegradable and
they will disintegrate within 4-6
weeks:
PVC budding tape is widely used
but must be cut off after the graft
union has formed:

20. Tying materials for grafting
At UQ Gatton we use the medical
laboratory tape “PARAFILM”:
This is a thin, stretchable tape
which seals the graft union very
effectively against the entry of
water:
It also degrades rapidly so it does
not need to be removed:

21. METHODS
OF
GRAFTING

22. Veneer Grafting
Selection of Scion: Scion stick or bud stick should be healthy
with swollen eye buds and 10 to 15 cm length and of pencil size
thickness. Leaves are defoliated 8 to 10 days before cutting for
grafting.
Procedure
Make a slanting cut up to 5 cm to the bud stick and same length
deep notch to mango rootstock seedling.
Put the cut part of scion in the notch of rootstock and tie with 1
cm wide polythene film tape.

23. Veneer Grafting
Season: Veneer grafting should be performed in the month of September to
October
After Care
Grafted plants / seedlings are kept humid and moist condition.
Scion shoot starts sprouting in about 3 to 4 weeks.
Polythene strip should be removed after the success of graft.
Grafts ready for planting in 3 months. Success rate is 75 to 80 %.

24. Stone Grafting
Selection of Scion: Scion sticks with 7 to 8 cm long from
current year growth from healthy mother plants should be
selected.
Procedure
 Stone grafting operation should be performed in July- August
months.
 Vertical cut of 3 to 4 cm is given on the rootstock and a
corresponding wedge shaped cut is given on the scion.
 Wedge shaped cut on scion is matched with the cut on rootstock
and then tied firmly with a polythene strip.

25. Stone Grafting
After Care
Remove the growing shoots from root stock and inflorescence from
grafted scion immediately after emergence.
Remove the polythene strip when union is formed and protect the graft
from hot sun, pest and disease attack.
Advantages
Survival Success is more than 80 to 90 %, Requires less time and this
Method is very suitable for coastal region.

27. 1. Selection of bud sticks 3. Vertical Cut on Rootstock
2. wedge shaped Cut on
Scion
4. Grafting and Polystriping 5. Grafted Scion 6. Successful Grafts

28. Inarch Grafting
Selection of Scion and Rootstock:
Select one year old at least two feet long and healthy rootstock
grown in pots / polythene bags.
Root stock plant and scion stock plant sticks should have equal
thickness. It should be from current year growth and from
healthy mother plant
Season
 August-September is best season for Inarch Grafting.

29. Inarch Grafting
Procedure:
Arrange the root stocks and scion tree on some platform or
mandapam and Mark the grafting locations on stock and scion.
 Remove 5 cm long, 1 to 2 cm wide & about 0.2 cm deep slice
of bark along with wooden part from stock and scion branches.
 Bring the cut surfaces together, cover the joint with a banana
leaf sheath and tie them together with soft threads and cover joint
part with cow dung plaster to protect from rain water.

30. Inarch Grafting
After care
 Water the plants as and when required. Cut the scion from the
parent tree after 2 to 3 months when the wound has healed.
 One week after separating the plant from root stock, the part of
the rootstock above the graft is cut off.
 Keep the graft in semi shading area to harden the graft before
transplanting into the main field.

31. Grafting Methods
 Bench grafting
 Field methods
 Container or field methods
 Repair grafting

32. Bench grafting
 Whip-and-tongue graft
 Saddle graft

33. Whip-and-tongue grafting
 useful for small (1/4-1/2 in.) material,
double working (interstocks), root
grafting, and bench grafting
 splice grafting (the tongue is not
made)
 both stock and scion are dormant

34. Whip and Tongue Grafting
Cut a shallow angle

36. Whip and Tongue Grafting
Use the pith as center and split the stem. Note finger position!

37. Look at that
finger
position
again!
Please don’t cut
yourself!

38. Whip and Tongue Grafting
Repeat the same
cuts with the scion
wood except cut
the bottom of the
scion.

39. Whip and Tongue Grafting
Push rootstock and scion together with cambium lined up on one side.

40. Whip and Tongue Grafting

41. Whip and Tongue Grafting
Wrap the whole graft and also the tip of scion.

42. Healed Graft

45. Figure 1 Figure 2A (top), Figure 2B (bottom)
Figure 3A (left), Figure 3B (right)

46. Saddle grafting
 useful for machine grafting, bench grafting of
grape and Rhododendron
 scion and stock should be the same size
 grafting is done when stock and scion are
dormant, then the completed graft is stored in a
grafting case until the graft union has healed

48. Field methods
 Cleft graft
 Wedge graft
 Bark graft

49. Cleft grafting
 useful for topworking fruit trees,
crown-grafting grapes
 the best time is early spring,
before active growth
 wedge grafting allows 1 more
scion per stock

52. Bark grafting
 Two types (rind and inlay-bark grafts)
differ only in prep of stock’s bark, which
should be slipping
 often used in lieu of cleft graft later in the
season

53. Figure 23 25
Figure Figure 24
26

54. Container or field methods
 Side grafts
 Approach grafts

55. Side grafting
 defn: (smaller) scion inserted into the side
of a (larger) stock
 Types
side-stub: nursery trees too large for whip-and-
tongue, not large enough for cleft
side-tongue: useful for broad- and narrow-
leaved evergreens (e.g., oriental arbovitae)
side-veneer: useful for small potted plants, e.g.,
upright junipers

58. Approach grafting
 two independent plants are grafted
together
 after union, the top of the stock and
the base of the scion are removed
 used when other methods are
unsuccessful (e.g., Camellia)
 often done on plants in containers
 three methods: spliced-, tongued-,
and inlay-approach grafting

60. Repair grafting
 Inarching
 Bridge grafting

61. Inarching
 used for repairing damaged roots of
a full-grown tree.
 seedlings are planted around the
tree during the dormant season,
grafting is done in the spring.

63. Bridge grafting
 used for repairing a damaged
trunk
 early spring (with the bark
slipping) is the best time
 (dormant) scion wood should be
1/4 to 1/2 in. diam.

66. Technique Date Use
Bark grafting Mid-April through mid-May Establish a pollinating variety on a limb of a tree or
to completely topwork a tree.
Bridge grafting Mid-April through mid-May Repair trees girdled above the ground line.
Cleft grafting Late February and March Establish a pollinating variety on a limb of a tree or
to completely topwork a tree. Limbs should be 1
inch or more in diameter.
Inarch grafting Mid-April through mid-May Repair trees girdled at or below the ground line.
Also used if a root disease is suspected or feared.
Saw-kerf grafting February and March On peaches, nectarines and plums to completely
topwork a tree.
Whip grafting February and early March Propagate 1-year-old rootstocks. May also be used
to establish a pollinating limb on a young,
established tree.

67. The Biology of Grafting
Natural grafting
◦ Bracing of limbs in commercial orchards to
support weight of fruit
◦ Root grafting in woods is prevalent (CHO’s of
upper canopy trees provide support for
understory trees). This grafts only occur
between trees of the same species
◦ Problems with root grafting include:
transmission of fungi, bacteria and viruses
between plants (Dutch Elm Disease spreads this
way)

69. The Biology of Grafting
Formation of the graft union
◦ A “de novo” formed meristematic area
must develop between scion and rootstock
for a successful graft union
3 events
◦ 1) adhesion of the rootstock & scion
◦ 2) proliferation of callus at the graft
interface = callus bridge
◦ 3) vascular differentiation across the graft
interface

71. The Biology of Grafting
 Steps in graft union formation
◦ 1.) lining up of the vascular cambium of rootstock and
scion. Held together with wrap, tape, staples, nails or
wedged together
◦ 2.) wound response
 Necrotic layer 1 cell deep forms on both scion and stock
 Undifferentiated callus tissue is produced from uninjured
parenchyma cells below the necrotic layer
 Callus forms a wound periderm (outer “bark”) which becomes
suberized to prevent entry of pathogens
 Necrotic layer dissolves

72. The Biology of Grafting
◦ 3.) callus bridge formation
 Callus proliferates for 1 - 7 days
 Callus mostly comes from scion (due to
basal movement of auxins and CHO’s, etc.)
 An exception to this is on established
rootstock which can develop more callus
than that from the scion.
 Adhesion of scion and stock cells with a mix
of pectins, CHO’s and proteins. Probably
secreted by dictyosomes which are part of
the Golgi bodies in cells.

74. The Biology of Grafting
◦ 4.) Wound-repair :
 First the xylem and then the phloem is
repaired
 Occurs through differentiation of vascular
cambium across the callus bridge
 Process takes 2 - 3 weeks in woody plants
◦ 5.) Production of 2º xylem and phloem
from new vascular cambium in the callus
bridge
 Important that this stage be completed before
much new leaf development on scion or else
the leaves will wilt and the scion may die

75. The Biology of Grafting
 Some water can be translocated through
callus cells but not enough to support leaves
 Cell-to-cell transport via plasmodesmata =
symplastic transport (links cells membranes)
 Apoplastic transport is between adhering
cells

77. Graft Incompatibility
Compatibility = ability of two
different plants grafted together to
produce a successful union and
continue to develop satisfactorily
Graft failure: caused by anatomical
mismatching/poor craftmanship,
adverse environment, disease and
graft incompatibility

78. Graft Incompatibility
Graft incompatibility from:
◦ Adverse physiological responses
between grafting partners
◦ Virus transmission
◦ Anatomical abnormalities of the
vascular tissue in the callus bridge

79. Graft Incompatibility
External symptoms of incompatibility
◦ Failure of successful graft or bud union in
high percentages
◦ Early yellowing or defoliation in fall
◦ Shoot die-back and ill-health
◦ Premature death
◦ Marked differences in growth rate of scion
and stock
 Overgrowth at, above or below the graft union
 Suckering of rootstock
 Breakage at the graft union

80. Graft Incompatibility
Anatomical flaws leading to
incompatibility
◦ Poor vascular differentiation
◦ Phloem compression and vascular
discontinuity
◦ Delayed incompatibility may take 20 years
to show up (often in conifers and oaks)

81. Graft Incompatibility
Physiological and Pathogen-Induced
Incompatibility
◦ Non-translocatable = localized. Problem is fixed
by using mutually compatible interstock(no
direct contact between scion and stock)
◦ Translocatable = spreads. Interstock does not
solve the problem. Some mobile chemical
causes phloem degradation. Ex: cyanogenic
glucosides like prunasin is converted to
hydrocyanic acid (from Quince to pear)

82. Graft Incompatibility
◦ Pathogen-induced virus of phytoplasma
induced
◦ Tristeza = viral disease of budded sweet
orange that is grafted onto infected
sour orange rootstock

83. Graft Incompatibility
Correcting incompatible
combinations
◦ Generally not cost-effective. Remove
and top-work the rootstock
◦ Bridge graft with a mutually compatible
rootstock
◦ Inarch with a seedling of compatible
rootstock